Energy House Holding Company held a press conference at Sheraton
Kuwait on January 23 2008, to declare the signature of two partnerships
with the U.S. based companies; SynFuels and GeoGas that are specialized
in the energy sector.
Deputy Managing Director of AREF Investment Group (AIG), Mr.
Ebrahim Al-Khuzam said in a welcome speech, that Energy House Holding
was established in September 2007 as a subsidiary of AIG, adding that
the company spearheads the achievement of AIG goals within the
investment in the energy field. This goes in line with Groupâ€┢s
strategy to build an integrated investment conglomerate through
financial management of a number of holding companies. AIG is considered
as a stable, long-term and one of the leading investment institutions
in the region.
Mr. Al-Khuzam talked on the global perspective of energy saying:
â€ŔMan has been always searching for energy resources to fulfill the
increasing human needs for fuel that is required to run industries,
transportation means, and power generation. Accordingly, the
availability of energy resources will boost the world economy and
nationsâ€┢ developmentâ€Â.
â€ŔMr. Al-Khuzam expressed his confidence that Energy House
will play an important role in the energy investment and people
development locally, regionally and internationally.
It is worth mentioning that Energy House is about to increase its
capital to KD 75 million. Such increase comes in an important phase that
the company will undergo to evaluate a number of acquisition,
investments and strategic alliances with pioneering partners to enhance
its existing operating base and capabilities and move ahead in the
value-adding path within the regional and international energy arena.
Such strategic direction would achieve viable annual returns to
shareholders and add value to the company throughout the coming years.
For his part, Mr. Tareq Al-Wazzan –Chief Executive Officer
of Energy House- revealed that the company has recently concluded the
acquisition procedures of 10% share in the Saudi oil and gas services
company â€ŔMakaminâ€Â. The company was keen on attracting
partners from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf to achieve its vision of
building one of the most important oil services companies worldwide.
Mr. Al-Wazzan also indicated that his company has recently acquired
25% shares in SynFuels International with exclusive marketing rights in
the Gulf, MENA, FSU and Indian Sub-Continent. He also mentioned that
his company has also acquired 50% of GeoGas project, an exploration and
production concession for oil and gas in 75,000 acres of land in Dewitt
County- Texas. Where the company has put up a future business strategy
and started its implementation.
CEO of Energy House revealed that the company is developing some
final recommendations concerning a number of strategic projects which
would be announced in due course. This would achieve companyâ€┢s
strategy for the energy supply chain integration, focusing on promising
opportunities with operating and value adding nature. This should go in
line with companyâ€┢s policy with respect to risk management and
geographical diversification between emerging and maturing markets.
Mr. Al-Wazzan indicated that the company invests in the energy
business globally including oil and gas (exploration, production,
refining, marketing and petrochemicals), power generation, energy
related services and new technologies and patents.
He also added that the company mission is to: â€ŔManage our
business towards creating an unshakeable business identity by providing
leadership and management support to our subsidiaries and affiliates for
capacity building and growth, while meeting international standards of
excellence in all aspects of business operations and processes and
cultivating elevated standards of business ethics. We will multiply our
stakeholdersâ€┢ satisfaction by generating wealth and adding value,
motivating and training employees for quality output, growth and
innovation, and embracing environment-friendly cultureâ€Â.
He stated that companyâ€┢s vision is to become the leading
integrated energy investment holding company in the region with strong
business identity, distinctive high performing assets and an
environmentally friendly conscience accomplished through our quality and
competent staff, in order to maximize stakeholderâ€┢s return and
capital value.
Mr. Ben Weber –one of the major owners of SynFuels and an
investor in GeoGas- talked about the project as an oil and gas drilling
and production concession in DeWitt County of Texas, USA.
It is worth mentioning that all seismic and geological surveys have
been completed and drilling has started in late December 2007. Initial
exploration activities in the area indicated significant reserve volume
of oil and gas that would be fully exploited to generate viable returns
to shareholders.
Mr. Weber said that in order to fully capitalize on the reserves
potential, GeoGas has commissioned a world renowned company to conduct
drilling and production operations. Based on estimated reserve base,
GeoGas is expected to produce significant volumes of gas. According to
prevailing and expected oil and gas prices, the project will achieve
high returns within a short period of time. Surrounding land plots are
operated by major oil companies and are producing gas and condensate.
Mr. Tom Rolfe –President of SynFuels International-
mentioned that the U.S based company registered a revolutionary patented
Gas-To-Liquid (GTL) technology. SynFuelsâ€┢ technology is based on
the ECLIARS process, which has significant advantage over the
Fischer-Tropsch GTL process in terms of capital, process costs and
product throughput. Compared to competitive conventional technology,
similar or superior end products are produced at a lower cost.
Mr. Rolfe clarified that SynFuels has made significant progress
with the production of 95 octane fuel from natural gas. Initial success
has generated world wide interest resulting in construction of the first
fully operational demonstration plant. The technology has now matured
to allow the construction of an economical and energy efficient
commercial GTL plant. SynFuels and Energy House are actively pursuing
opportunities with major oil and gas producers and are expected to close
the deal for a commercial plant soon.
He also pointed that the economic benefits of this technology
combined with ease of implementation makes it the perfect choice for oil
and gas producers with stranded gas flaring to capture lost revenue
while reducing carbon emissions