Cairn is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company. The main area of focus is South Asia.

            Red = 25 day moving average.           Green = 200 day moving average.

The Times - October 04, 2006

Senator's victory on gaming is an unlikely boon to Cairn - By Nick Hasell


SIR BILL GAMMELL, of Cairn Energy, has more reason than most FTSE 100 chief executives to be grateful to Bill Frist, the majority leader of the US Senate.

With the demerger of GUS into its two constituent parts Experian and Home Retail slated for next Wednesday, the lowest-valued FTSE 100 constituent as of Fridays close is due to be edged out of the benchmark index. Unusually for such a split, those two parts are currently big enough implicitly valued at roughly 5.6 billion and 3.7 billion respectively to qualify as FTSE 100 members in their own right. For example, the forthcoming split of Severn Trent, up 1p at 13.64 also due next week will see the spun-off Biffa take its place in the FTSE 250. As of last week, the GUS shake-up spelt the end of Cairns tenure in the blue-chip index, which it rejoined last September.

With a market capitalisation of 2.94 billion, Cairn was in the uncomfortable position of being the 101st company in the FTSE indices after the GUS demerger, just behind Bradford & Bingley, up p to 466p. But Cairns saviour appeared at the weekend in the unlikely form of Mr Frist, whose unexpected legislative victory against online gaming has devastated the sector. Specifically, barring a massive reversal, PartyGaming valued at 1.6 billion at last nights close will be ejected from the FTSE 100.

Some say that being in the FTSE 100 has it's disadvantages, as those members are in the grip of the Tracker funds which make life difficult for the small investor.

13 October 2006 - Independent

Market Report: - By Andrew Dewson - Cairn investors find a devil in offer's details


The prospect of Cairn Energy's initial public offering of its Indian operations has supported the price against a falling oil market, but the devil is in the details and the publication of the offer documents sent the shares into freefall.

The retention of 69.5 per cent of Cairn India by the UK-listed parent means that less of the proceeds will be available to UK shareholders. A slightly bizarre research note from the Dutch broker ABN Amrodid not help the stock. The broker reiterated its "buy" recommendation but with an 1,800p target. Seeing as the shares closed on Wednesday at 1,907p, the bank's clients probably won't be too happy if the target is hit. As it happens, the news on the Indian IPO was enough to send the shares 215p lower to 1,673p, before a late rally saw the shares close at 1,835p, 53p worse.

Banking stocks were in focus once again as a rumour did the rounds that the US banking giant Citigroup, the world's largest financial group, is poised to make a large European acquisition. The word among traders is that it will be the French bank SociGale, but traders were also backing Barclays, 12.5p better at 722p, a new high, and Lloyds TSB, 4.5p firmer at 559p.

In the wider market, strong earnings figures from several US stocks, including McDonald's and Costco, sent the Dow Jones sharply higher, helping the FTSE100 to climb 47.8 by the close to 6121.3. Property and mining stocks were the key drivers in London - British Land added 27p to 1,432p, with Land Securities up 22p to close at 2,030p. The London blue chip index is now 16 points short of a new intra-day high for the year.

It isn't every day that a stock rises almost 8 per cent after delivering a profit warning, but that is exactly what shares in the paper and packaging group DS Smith did yesterday. The company warned in September that first-half profits will be much lower than anticipated, so traders put yesterday's rise down to a combination of a relief rally and short covering. A bullish sector note from Citigroup also helped the shares to climb 12p to 167.25p.

A bout of vague bid speculation got traders excited about FirstGroup, the transportation group, sending the shares 29p firmer to close at 538p. With the utility sector having taken just about as much bid chat as it can take, traders are busy looking for the next sector that will attract the interest of private equity cash. Rivals National Express and Arriva were also well bid, closing 21p better at 948p and 10.5p better at 675.5p respectively. All three stocks are trading at all-time highs.

It looks like traders do not believe rumours that United Business Media, the publishing group, is about to attempt a management buy-out. The shares rallied in early trade as talk did the rounds that the group will offer shareholders 750p to take the company private, but by the close sellers had cashed in, sending the shares 2.5p worse by the close to 681p.

Another mid cap takeover tale surrounds the housebuilder Taylor Woodrow. Bid speculation in the sector has been quiet for a while, after a hatful of stories in the spring and summer. Given the premium that McCarthy & Stone attracted, it is a sector that few investors are prepared to go short of. Taylor Woodrow closed 11.25p firmer at 381.25p.

In the small caps, follow-through buying after Wednesday's bullish trading statement in International Medical Devices sent the shares 1.25p better to 4.87p, the best performer in the smaller end of the market. The broker Corporate Synergy also upgraded the shares, telling clients that the current rating does not reflect the company's growth prospects.

Central African Mining rallied 2p to close at 39p, but market makers put the jump down to some short covering rather than genuine buying support. The word in the market is that a large number of short sellers are looking to take out positions in the stock but are being put off by the fact that the respected investment bank Credit Suisse has given the company lots of support.

Among the disasters of the day was Betcorp, after the company warned investors that the anti-gaming legislation in the United States will have a "very serious impact" on group revenues. The shares lost another 15.5p yesterday to close at 15p.

Finally, It was an even worse day for Cartucho Group, the printer ink cartridges company, after a big order failed to materialise, leading to a severe warning on full-year results. Ian Diery, chairman, and Michael Willcocks, chief executive, paid for the warning with their jobs, as the shares tanked to close at 3.12p, down 5.63p, a loss of 64.3 per cent.

The prospect of Cairn Energy's initial public offering of its Indian operations has supported the price against a falling oil market, but the devil is in the details and the publication of the offer documents sent the shares into freefall.

The retention of 69.5 per cent of Cairn India by the UK-listed parent means that less of the proceeds will be available to UK shareholders. A slightly bizarre research note from the Dutch broker ABN Amrodid not help the stock. The broker reiterated its "buy" recommendation but with an 1,800p target. Seeing as the shares closed on Wednesday at 1,907p, the bank's clients probably won't be too happy if the target is hit. As it happens, the news on the Indian IPO was enough to send the shares 215p lower to 1,673p, before a late rally saw the shares close at 1,835p, 53p worse.

Has the tide changed for this, the charts is looking as if its on a road of long recovery? if ignore the bid rumour today it looks it may be worth a punt for medium term? Is the chart revealing a 'Falling Wedge' reversal?

Just a note of caution; Evolution Securities gave this a reduce rating on the 10th may with a target price of 1476p.

Thanks Harrycat, thats a bit low from current sp. Surprised to see sp still rising since re-rating.

A bit strong this morning, any news?

Released on the 10th May '07:
LONDON (Thomson Financial) - Cairn India Ltd, a unit of Cairn Energy PLC, said it found more oil in the Rajasthan basin.
The latest strikes were made in the Kameshwari West-2 and Kameshwari West-3 wells.

'The two discoveries confirm our belief that the Rajasthan basin is world class and will continue to add incremental value,' said Rahul Dhir, chief executive of Cairn India.

Kameshwari West-2 is located 56 kilometres south of the Mangala field, India's largest find in over 20 years. It flowed 450 barrels of liquid per day for seven hours during drill stem testing, Cairn India said.

Kameshwari West-3, meanwhile, encountered up to 16 metres of gas pay. Further tests on the hole confirmed the presence of a 'gas pool' which flowed around 75,000 standard cubic feet per day.

'The deeper test of the potential oil accumulation remains inconclusive due to the tight nature of the reservoir rock,' added the company, which is 69 pct owned by Cairn Energy.

Cairn India also revealed the Indian government gave the company another six months to explore the Northern Appraisal Area of licence RJ-ON-90/1.

The extension, which will begin from May, will allow Cairn India to explore the full potential of the 879-square-kilometre NAA, it said.

Harrycat I think Citigroup have re-rated as buy today which probably explain strong rise together bid spec in the sector

The has been a suggestion of a bid for their Indian assets. If there is a bid coming then the directors don't seem aware of one. From today's RNS it would seem they have been willing sellers.

Cairn Energy PLC
18 May 2007

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

18 May 2007
CAIRN ENERGY PLC ('Cairn' or 'the Company')

Interests of Directors/Persons Discharging Managerial Responsibility ('PDMRs')

in the Company's Shares

Cairn announces that it has today been notified by the Trustee of the Company's
Employees' Share Trust ('the Trust') that a total of 444,021 Ordinary Shares
were released by the Trust on 17 May 2007 to the Executive Directors and certain
PDMRs of the Company under the Company's Long Term Incentive Plan 2002 ('2002
LTIP'). The shares comprise (i) 46,800 of the 93,600 Ordinary Shares which
vested on 28 March 2007 and (ii) 397,221 Ordinary Shares which were released to
certain Executive Directors/PDMRs following the expiry of the one year
withholding period in respect of previous LTIP awards.

Details of the shares released from the Trust are as follows:-

Director/PDMR Shares released pursuant Shares released pursuant Total
to vesting on 28 March to expiry of withholding shares
2007 period released
Sir Bill
Gammell, 12,600 96,888
Chief Executive 109,488

Dr Mike Watts, 7,600 80,888 88,488
Exploration
Director

Malcolm Thoms, 7,600 72,388 79,988
Chief Operating
Officer

Phil Tracy, 6,400 61,519 67,919
Engineering &
Operations
Director

Jann Brown, 4,200 36,519 40,719
Finance Director

Simon Thomson, 4,200 36,519 40,719
Legal &
Commercial
Director

Richard Heaton, 4,200 12,500 16,700
Head of
Exploration

Following the release of shares from the Trust, the Executive Directors/PDMRs
sold a total of 405,312 shares (327,374 of the shares released from the Trust
and 77,938 shares from personal shareholdings) at a price of 17.5333 per share
on 18 May 2007. Details of the share sales and the resulting effect on the
Executive Directors'/PDMRs' shareholdings are set out below:-

Previous Shareholding Shares Sold* New Shareholding

Director/PDMR

Sir Bill Gammell 697,426 187,426 **500,000

Dr Mike Watts 274,115 74,115 200,000

Malcolm Thoms 89,252 51,652 37,600

Phil Tracy 74,319 27,919 46,400

Jann Brown 48,981 16,781 32,200

Simon Thomson 47,356 40,719 6,637

Richard Heaton 74,618 6,700 67,918


* includes (i) 77,938 shares sold by Sir Bill Gammell in addition to the shares
being released to him from the Trust and (ii) shares sold to cover income tax
and national insurance liabilities.

** a further 10,000 shares were gifted to charity by Sir Bill Gammell on 18 May
2007. This is reflected in his new shareholding.


Cairn also announces that Hamish Grossart, non-executive Deputy Chairman, sold
27,500 shares on 18 May 2007 at a price of 17.5333 per share.


Following this announcement the relevant Directors'/PDMRs' beneficial interests
in the Ordinary Shares of the Company are as follows:-

Director/ Number of % Issued Outstanding Awards Outstanding Awards
PDMR Ordinary Share Capital under 2002 LTIP Under 2006 LTIP
Shares
Tier One Tier Two Cairn Capricorn
India Units
Units
Sir Bill
Gammell 500,000 0.383 83,500 97,800 515,118 897,196

Dr Mike 200,000 0.153 58,300 89,000 187,803 981,308
Watts

Malcolm 37,600 0.029 52,100 78,000 482,923 280,374
Thoms

Phil 46,400 0.036 50,200 59,500 321,949 560,748
Tracy

Jann 32,200 0.025 33,900 31,300 268,291 467,290
Brown

Simon 6,637 0.005 34,600 32,900 134,145 700,935
Thomson

Richard 67,918 0.052 33,900 37,800 134,145 700,935
Heaton

Hamish 5,000 0.004 - - - -
Grossart

This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

Media comment. click HERE

have I missed a thread or does no one folow this stock?

Cairn found oil in an virgin oil territory in the deserts of Rajasthan and have brought it to market. In the course of 6 years or so their share price has gone up at least 10 times. They hope to do the same in the icy waters off Greenland and exploit a potential world class oil field but they have surprisingly no following on this BB unlike the Falkland oilies. I'd love to see what Marymar from the Rockhopper thread thinks of Cairn's chances.

Cairn Energy's first Greenland oil drilling season was a "royal flush" and the company will invest $1.2bn (755m) on up to 12 wells over the next three years. The Edinburgh-based exploration company is already spending $400m on four wells in the unexplored Arctic region this year, of which the first found traces of gas and the second traces of both oil and gas, says the Independent.

Cairn AGM was held on 19 May. They will host a visit to Greenland for analysts and investors from 23 - 25 May and will display a presentation on their web site on 24 May. They have agreed with Vedanta to extend the deadline for a deal to sell a 40% stake in Cairn India to Vedanta pending agreement from the Government of India.(See Interim Management Statement dated 19 May on Cairn web site) If this deal goes ahead, proceeds should amount to about 5.8B. Their current stock market value is about 6B. They will retain a stake of 22% in Cairn India. Drilling of 4 wells offshore Greenland is imminent. This news does not seem to be reflected in the share price.

i confess that i haven't followed CNE for many a long day, and indeed it seems to have fallen from the limelight in the last year or so.
the comparative chart over the last year shows how CNE (blue) performance has badly lagged behind TLW (red) and PMO (green)
i dare say the optimist would say that implies that CNE is undervalued or similar, but my own view is that i would not be overly-tempted to buy until there is some decent upside movement .... indeed it is arguably of some concern that sp is struggling to break back north of the 200 dma

i'll have to find an alternative to PMO as 4:1 share split this morning makes that chart meaningless

==============

i now see the chart has been corrected to allow for the share split

Thanks for your views, Cynic

Hey, where's the oil in Greenland?

Matrix has slashed its target price for Cairn Energy and maintained its hold rating on the stock, saying that chances are running out for the oil explorer.

There are now only three opportunities for drilling success this year in Greenland, and the chances for achieving it look slim, said analyst Charlie Sharp.

The comments come two days after the group announced that the well on the Lady Franklin Block offshore Greenland reached target depth and is being plugged and abandoned.

The target price is lowered from 410p to 370p.

Cairn abandons Greenland well
StockMarketWire.com
Cairn Energy has plugged and abandoned a well offshore Greenland.

Cairn said the Delta-1 well which was targeting the Cretaceous section beneath the Tertiary volcanic, reached a total depth at 2,977m still within Tertiary volcanics without encountering hydrocarbon shows.

The well was drilled by the Leiv Eiriksson semi-submersible rig which will move south shortly and start operations to re-enter the AT7-1 and drill to the planned TD.

The well, which is in the Atammik block, is located in 909m of water and 198km offshore Nuuk.

This well was temporarily suspended to allow the Leiv Eiriksson to drill the Delta-1 well to optimise the drilling time in the West Disko area.

Cairn also said the Ocean Rig Corcovado has moved 597km south from the Eqqua Block, to the Atammik block, and has started drilling the AT2-1 well, located in a water depth of 1,045m and approximately 198km offshore Nuuk, as a fifth well in the 2011 exploration drilling campaign.

At 9:48am: (LON:CNE) Cairn Energy share price was -13.25p at 282.35p

Cairn hits dry well, as Tullow makes new oil discovery



Rowena Mason, 18:30, Wednesday 28 September 2011

It was a tale of contrasting fortunes for the FTSE 100 (Euronext: VFTSE.NX - news) 's two biggest independent explorers, as Cairn Energy (LSE: CNE.L - news) came up with its sixth dry well in Greenland and Tullow Oil (Stuttgart: 591219 - news) made a new discovery in Ghana.

Cairn's share price dropped a further 5pc to 281.62p, after it did not find oil in the third well it has drilled this year.

The company did not find any success last year either and has only two more wells to go before the freezing Arctic winter weather stops work for the rest of 2011.‎

Cairn has placed all its hopes on finding oil off Greenland, after selling most of its Indian assets to Vedanta for $9bn (5.5bn). It has almost completed this deal after more than a year of delays. Some money will be returned to shareholders and the rest will be used to fund its drilling programme.

It has pledged to spend $600m this year drilling off Greenland, which it hopes will be the world's big new oil frontier. The company has found traces of oil in previous Greenland wells but not enough to make them worth developing.

Meanwhile, FTSE 100 rival Tullow Oil made an oil discovery in Ghana, where it started producing for the first time earlier this year. Tullow, which recently also struck oil off French Guiana, owns almost half the Enyenra discovery.

However, its share price dropped slightly to 13.20. Investors are waiting nervously to see whether the company can manage to strike a good deal with the Ugandan government over the $10bn development and infrastructure for its giant Lake Albert field with two partners - CNOOC (HKSE: 0883.HK - news) and Total (Euronext: FP.NX - news) .

Approval was meant to be given for CNOOC and Total's participation earlier this month, but the parties are still wrangling over a "stabilisation clause". This clause, opposed by the Ugandan government, would make the oil companies more protected from political instability, such as tax changes

Should have included Salamander they are experts at dusters.

Note from Oriel Secs:
"Cairn Energy (CNE, HOLD, 275p) - Greenland update, little further encouragement
Cairn has completed the AT7 well offshore Greenland.
Having encountered 53m of reservoir quality sands as previously announced, MDT samples taken revealed only mud filtrate. Further samples have been sent to labs for analysis but at this stage the interval is interpreted to be water wet.
The company also confirmed that the AT2 well has been plugged and abandoned with minor hydrocarbon shows as previously announced. This now concludes the latest drilling programme in Greenland which, whilst having some minor encouragement, has failed to yield a discovery. Activity on their licences will continue in 2012 with seismic acquisition and interpretation ongoing but with plans to farm-out their position it is highly unlikely in our view that we will see any drilling in Greenland next year.
Although this news should not be a surprise to the market, the shares are likely to come off but this could open up a buying opportunity with the Vedanta deal inching towards completion and a pro-forma NAV post the deal of c310-320p/sh."

Part sale of shareholding in Cairn India Limited ("Cairn India") to Vedanta Resources plc ("Vedanta")
Vedanta has confirmed that it has now satisfied the conditions under the Sale and Purchase Agreement for the acquisition of a controlling shareholding in Cairn India.

As previously announced, Cairn intends to return a substantial proportion of the proceeds from the sale to shareholders. A further announcement in this respect will be made in due course.

Cairn will now retain an approximate 22 per cent shareholding in Cairn India.

Cairn and Vedanta Transaction Completed
Cairn is pleased to announce that the Transaction has now completed. Net proceeds to Cairn from the sale of a 30 per cent shareholding in Cairn India were $4.1 billion in cash. In July 2011, Cairn completed the sale of a 10 per cent shareholding in Cairn India to Vedanta for net proceeds of approximately $1.4 billion in cash.

Following the Transaction, Cairn retains an approximate 22 per cent shareholding in Cairn India.

Cairn now proposes to return approximately $3.5 billion of the sale proceeds to shareholders. The return of cash is expected to be made in a manner that will provide shareholders with an element of choice as to when and in what form they receive the cash. A further announcement will be made in due course.

Monday =

• Cairn, the Edinburgh-based oil explorer, issues a pre-close trading update today. Investors will be watching for any clues on the company's strategy following a series of dry wells in Greenland last year. Cairn has been in talks with potential partners for its Greenland campaign, while looking for new ventures elsewhere. Rumours abound that it could buy a stake in Rockhopper's Falklands discovery.

SP on the move?

CNE have done a reverse split,approx 1 for 3. In the process they have landed CFD holders with an income tax bill. On 5th Feb my shares were worth £2,910, on 6th they were worth £1310 and my account was credited with a £1600 dividend payment. Cash position flat, but I may have to pay income tax on the £1600 divi.

I am mystified by the corporate action. Does anyone have an explanation??

Bobcolby..I shall double check but I am sure that for normal shares this CNE dividend is treated as a capital gain according to Barclays stockbrokers letter, not dividend income.

Tks JJ50

Cairn Energy (LSE: CNE.L - news) , which added 11.7 to 356.6p as two brokers upped their price target for the oil explorer after adjusting for a special dividend payment and share consolidation on Monday.

Having met with management last week, UBS (NYSEArca: DJCI - news) analysts added they were more comfortable with the Cairn story, but they still did not see a compelling enough reason to buy the stock and kept their “neutral” rating.

Time to climb aboard the ride back up!

StockMarketWire.com
Cairn Energy has confirmed that the FAN-1 exploration well, offshore Senegal, has discovered oil. The well, located in 1,427 metres (m) water depth and approximately 100 kilometres offshore in the Sangomar Deep block, has reached a Target Depth (TD) of 4,927 m and was targeting multiple stacked deepwater fans. Preliminary analysis indicates: - 29m of net oil bearing reservoir in Cretaceous sandstones

- No water contact was encountered in a gross oil bearing interval of more than 500m

- Distinct oils types ranging from 28° API up to 41° API indicated so far from a number of oil samples recovered to surface

- Initial gross STOIIP estimates for the FAN-1 well range from P90, 250 mmbbls, P50, 950 mmbbls to P10, 2,500 mmbbls and are broadly in line with pre-drill STOIIP estimates

As stated prior to the commencement of operations there are no plans for immediate well testing. Further evaluation will now be required to calibrate the well with the existing 3D seismic in order to determine future plans and optimal follow up locations to determine the extent of the discovered resource. Once operations are completed on the FAN-1 well, the rig will move to complete the second well, SNE-1 where the top hole has been drilled pending re-entry. This Shelf Edge Prospect targeting a dual objective in 1,100m water depth is in the Sangomar Deep block. The FAN-1 well was drilled using the semi-submersible drilling unit "Cajun Express". It is the third well in Cairn's North West Africa programme and first in Senegal. Cairn has a 40% Working Interest (WI) in three blocks offshore Senegal (Sangomar Deep, Sangomar Offshore and Rusifique) ConocoPhillips has 35% WI, FAR Ltd 15% WI and Petrosen, the national oil company of Senegal 10% WI. The three blocks cover 7,490 km2.

Chief executive Simon Thomson said: "The oil discovered in the FAN-1 prospect is an important event for Senegal and the Joint Venture.

"£We have encountered a very substantial oil bearing interval which may have significant potential as a standalone discovery. Furthermore, this result materially upgrades the prospectivity of the block with a proven petroleum system and a number of deep fan and shelf prospects established.

"Work is already under way with the joint venture partners to determine follow up activity which is targeted for 2015 onwards.

"Cairn looks forward to working with the Government of Senegal and our partners to realise the full potential from this large acreage position off the West coast of Senegal."

RBC comment:
"FAN-1 Discovers Oil: Cairn Energy announced that the FAN-1 well on the Sangomar Deep Block (Cairn 40%, Conoco 35%, FAR 15%, Petrosen 10%) offshore Senegal has discovered oil. The well drilled in 1,427m water depth reached 4,927m targeting multiple stacked deepwater fans finding 500m gross oil column (no oil/water contact was encountered) with 29m net oil-bearing reservoir in Cretaceous sandstones (significantly there is one main 10-15m reservoir). Oil types recovered ranged from 28-41API with samples already sent for further lab tests. The initial gross oil in place ranges from P90 of 250mmbbls to P10 2,500mmbbls with a P50 case of 950mmbbls (~300mmbbls recoverable). No well test is planned and calibration work will continue using the existing 3D dataset to determine follow-on locations. Following this result we upgrade the stock to Outperform and increase our price target to 250p/share.
Follow-on Potential: The well result today, where light/medium oil and good quality reservoir was encountered, has derisked four similar Cretaceous fan systems (see Exhibit 2) identified on 3D seismic across the ~7,490km2 acreage position. Although the 2015 exploration campaign is still to be confirmed we anticipate further appraisal/exploration activity next year. The next well, SNE-1, is closer to shore targeting the Shelf Edge 438mmbbls (mean unrisked prospective resources) prospect in a different play type albeit oil source has been derisked by the FAN-1 result. The well (-34/+137p/share risking) should restart shortly and reach TD through November.
Relatively Attractive Fiscal Terms: We value the FAN discovery at $9/bbl on a 2P NPV10 basis. This is based on a 300mmbbl model oil development partly using Tullow's Jubilee field as an analogy. We include a $102/bbl long-term oil price (based on RBCs long-term Brent forecast), first oil in 2022 (8 years to first oil vs. 4 years for Jubilee), capex of $12/bbl (in line with Jubilee) and due to remote location higher operating costs ($25/bbl). This generates a ~$1bn NPV10 valuation fully unrisked based on these relatively conservative assumptions.
Portfolio Management/Funding Flexibility: At the mid-year Cairn had about $1.1bn cash with around $400m of development and exploration spending planned through H2/14. Given the recent farm-down of Catcher (selling 10% to Dyas for a $182m carry) that reduced capex exposure on the project by $380m ahead of first oil in 2017, the company has increasing flexibility to maintain frontier exploration. We anticipate further details on 2015 drilling at the IMS on 30 October."

StockMarketWire.com
Beaufort Securities upgrades Cairn Energy to buy from hold.

StockMarketWire.com
Cairn Energy has announced a discovery of high quality oil in the second well in the Senegal exploration programme.

The SNE-1 well is located in 1,100 metres water depth and approximately 100 kilometres (km) offshore in the Sangomar Offshore block with a target depth of ~3,000 m and targeting the Shelf Edge Prospect.

Intermediate logging of the SNE-1 well has confirmed hydrocarbons in the Cretaceous clastics objective which is of similar age to oil bearing sands found approximately 24 km away in FAN-1.

As operator, Cairn has now issued 'notices of discovery' for the SNE-1 well and FAN-1 well to the Government of Senegal on behalf of the joint venture.

Initial analysis of the SNE-1 well indicates:

- 95m gross oil bearing column with a gas cap

- Excellent reservoir sands with net oil pay of 36m

- Oil of 32 degrees API from samples of gas, oil and water recovered to surface

- Preliminary estimates of the Contingent Resource range from P90, 150 mmbbls, P50, 330 mmbbls and P10, 670 mmbbls recoverable

Further evaluation of this zone is continuing. The deeper target of karstified and fractured Lower Cretaceous shelf carbonates is yet to be reached. A further announcement will be issued once operations are completed on SNE-1

Watching.

Big faller today.

RBC note today:
"Our view: Contrary to recent indications from India's Finance Minister that 'The government has no intention of using the retrospective tax provision,' Cairn Energy has received a $1.6bn assessment from The Indian Tax Department relating to the 2007 IPO of Cairn India. We remain enthusiastic about the Senegal drilling programme H2/15 but downgrade the shares to Sector Perform (and reduce our price target to 220p) while the impact of this disappointment is absorbed.
• Waiting in vain: Any hope that Cairn Energy's remaining stake in Cairn India (currently worth $700m) could be sold in the short term appears to have been dashed. The company now has a $1.6bn capital gains tax (CGT) bill addressed to its Cairn UK Holding Limited subsidiary only (therefore limited to the Cairn India holding). Although it plans to contest this (and the loss in value since 2014) through a legal process outside India, clearly it will take time to resolve. This development has no impact on Cairn Energy's ability to fund ongoing activities. However, in the absence of this catalyst, we anticipate that some major shareholders will rotate out of the stock. As a result, we downgrade the shares to Sector Perform as the impact of this disappointment is fully absorbed.
• Taxing issue: The Indian Tax Department has presented Cairn Energy with a draft order for $1.6bn in respect of fiscal year 2006/7. The transactions/share transfers subject to the assessment were undertaken as part of the group reorganization to enable the IPO of Cairn India in 2007 (see Exhibit 2). This assessment was first outlined by the Indian Tax Department in a BSE announcement 22 January 2014 and comes from the retrospective capital gains tax introduced as part of the 2012 Finance Act. Cairn has instructed legal counsel to file a Notice of Dispute under UK-India Investment Treaty (International Jurisdiction ex-India) following the receipt of this order. The process starts with a 3- to 6-month negotiation to potentially find resolution before appointment/establishment of an International Arbitration proceeding begins. Management expects to be successful and no accounting provision has been made regarding the assessment.
• Say one thing, do another: Leading up to the assessment, Cairn had reported encouraging discussions with the Indian political heirachy around resolving this tax dispute, particularly as the 2012 retrospective tax law (effective from 2007) was established by the previous Congressled administration. Since the landslide election of Narendra Modi as Prime Minister in June, the government has pushed a pro-business/FDI stance. Specifically, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has stated that the tax 'scared away investors' from India. Indeed, he was quoted recently as remarking that 'The government has no intention of using the retrospective tax provision.' There could be some political fallout from the Indian Tax Department announcement; however, we anticipate this creates more murk than clarity."

sad to see the demise of this once market darling ..... TLW is trying to follow in its footsteps

.....Time to get out of CNE; Black Rock have just increased their holding. Am expecting big shorting period on SP.

DYOR
HAb

blackrock now hold just over 11%
though this isn't a stock in which i hold any interest, i fail to see why it should now be a target for shorting let alone aggressively

The SP will speak for itself to support my comments above; over the near term period.

SP already started to fall slightly, am expecting it to bounce around mid 165p level.

DYOR
HAb

hardly aggressive shorting then :-)

StockMarketWire.com
Cairn Energy is 'delighted' with positive flow tests on the SNE-2 appraisal well confirming the commercial deliverability of the SNE discovery.

Chief executive Simon Thomson said: "Further appraisal activity this year will test the overall scale and extent of the resource base in Senegal, and is expected to lead to revision of the resource estimates. Drilling operations on the next appraisal well, SNE-3, are now under way.

"The Company remains fully funded from existing financial resources to deliver its exploration and appraisal programme, as well as to take its North Sea developments through to free cashflow generation in 2017. International arbitration proceedings to resolve the retrospective tax issue in India have now formally commenced following the agreement between Cairn and the Government of India on the appointment of a panel of three international arbitrators under the terms of the UK-India Investment Treaty." The group also issued a corporate and finance update:

- Group net cash at 31 December 2015 of USD603 million

- Reserve Based Lending bank facility remains undrawn, with availability to fund North Sea development capex currently estimated at USD300m, subject to six monthly redeterminations in March and September

- Total cash expenditure for 2H 2015 was US$174m, principally comprising USD85m development expenditure and US$77m exploration and appraisal (E&A) expenditure including pre-award costs (US$50m E&A expenditure was in Senegal). A USD52m tax rebate in respect of previous Norwegian E&A activity was received in 2H 2015

-Forecast development expenditure for 2016 and 2017, taking the UK development projects through to cashflow generation, is USD492m; and remaining currently committed drilling and seismic E&A expenditure 2016 is estimated at US$122m, predominantly in Senegal. Outstanding Norwegian tax rebate receivables are US$32m

- Cairn remains unable to access the value in its ~10% residual shareholding in Cairn India Limited (CIL) valued at USD384m at 31 December 2015.

Credit Suisse comment today:
"Understanding risks presents opportunities
Positioning for a recovery in oil prices: Investors often look to the E&P sector as a way to play a recovery in the oil price, and we think some companies are smarter ways to play a recovery than others from a risk/reward perspective. When thinking of how to position for a recovery in oil prices, we analyse E&Ps through a five part framework involving: i) balancing oil price leverage with funding risk; ii) ability to refinance, iii) project execution risk, iv) exploration upside and v) M&A.

Cairn Energy (upgrade to Outperform from Neutral, TP 255p from 215p) is our top pick. It is on the verge of returning to production in 2017, re-establishing itself as a full-cycle E&P company that funds future exploration from organic cash flows. It also has exposure to an exciting oil discovery in Senegal, where the current ~500mmbbl resource has the potential to grow in size towards the large 2.74bn oil in place estimate."

This looks cheap at 185p.

StockMarketWire.com 19/05/17
Cairn Energy has a strong platform for further activity this year after excellent progress in 2016, shareholders at the annual general meeting today will be told.

Chief executive Simon Thomson will say: "Cairn's strategy is to deliver sustainable value growth for shareholders from a balanced portfolio of exploration, development and production assets.

"Our exploration focus is on acreage in frontier and emerging basins which offer the greatest value potential, funded from production assets and balance sheet strength.

"In the past year, we have made excellent progress on our strategic objectives.

"We have created a strong platform for future growth, with active positions in various geographies providing significant acreage positions of technical and commercial value.

"In Senegal, we have confirmed the scale and potential of the world class SNE field, having successfully drilled nine wells in three years.

"Following appraisal success in 2016 which saw us upgrade our resource estimates, we commenced the third phase of drilling in January and have drilled three successful wells this year with a further exploration well shortly commencing.

"The near-term focus in Senegal is defining the scale and phasing of the overall SNE field development including the balance between the number of drilling centres, type and number of wells and the subsea infrastructure.

"As previously indicated, we aim to submit an Exploitation Plan to the Government of Senegal in 2018 with a Final Investment Decision within twelve months thereafter and first oil in the period 2021 to 2023.

"Cairn currently anticipates providing an update on contingent resource estimates at the half year in August when the results of the latest wells will be further analysed and incorporated into the design and development plan for the SNE field.

"In the UK North Sea, both the Catcher and Kraken developments remain significantly below their original budgets and both are on schedule to target first oil this year.

"Together they will deliver around 25,000 barrels of oil a day on plateau net to Cairn, generating significant cash flows for reinvestment.

"Elsewhere, we have secured additional licences both in the North Sea and Barents Sea and farmed in to a number of interesting prospects offshore Ireland, where we plan to drill an exploration well in the Southern Porcupine basin this summer.

"We are fully funded to deliver this programme, and meet all our commitments.

"We currently have ~US$254 million cash on our balance sheet, while our Reserve Based Lending facility is undrawn.

"International arbitration proceedings are progressing in respect of Cairn's claim under the UK-India Bilateral Investment Treaty for the restitution of c. US$1billion of assets frozen in 2014, with a date set for the final arbitration hearing in January 2018.

"We expect a ruling soon thereafter and remain confident in our position.

"To conclude, 2016 was a year of excellent progress, providing a strong platform for further activity in 2017.

"This year, we will commence production in the North Sea, progress the SNE field towards development, drill material exploration wells in Senegal and Ireland, and continue to work on new exploration and development opportunities both from the existing asset base and from new ventures."

Macquarie today reaffirms its outperform investment rating on Cairn Energy PLC (LON:CNE) and raised its price target to 270p (from 246p).

StockMarketWire.com
Cairn Energy has issued an update on the tax dispute in India and said it had a high level of confidence in its claim under the UK-India Bilateral Investment Treaty.

Cairn announced in March that it had received confirmation from the Government of India (GoI) via the international arbitration tribunal that dividends of US$53m due from Cairn India Limited were no longer restricted, and Cairn requested the immediate release of that sum from CIL.

On 9 June, the tribunal issued a formal order memorialising the numerous confirmations from the GoI that the dividends were no longer restricted and authorising that order to be provided to CIL (now named Vedanta Limited following the merger of CIL and VIL). An update said: "However, on 16 June the Indian Income Tax Department (IITD) issued an order to VIL directing it to pay over any sums due to Cairn.

"Sums due to Cairn from VIL now total US$104m, including historical dividends of US$53m and a further dividend of US$51m after the merger of CIL and VIL.

"Notwithstanding this action by the GoI, international arbitration proceedings are progressing in respect of the group's claim under the UK-India Bilateral Investment Treaty."

Cairn said it was seeking full restitution for treaty breaches resulting from the expropriation of its investments in India in 2014, the attempts to enforce retrospective tax measures and the failure to treat the company and its investments fairly and equitably.

Cairn added that it "has a high level of confidence in its case under the Treaty and, in addition to resolution of the retrospective tax dispute, its claim seeks damages equal to the value of the group's residual shareholding in CIL at the time it was attached (approximately US$1bn)".

The seat of the arbitration is The Hague in the Netherlands and final hearings for the tribunal are scheduled for January 2018.

StockMarketWire.com
Cairn Energy has secured interests in two licences in the Mexico offshore bid round.

The group said the licences (one operated and one non-operated) covered around 1,100 sq km in the Gulf of Mexico in the shallow water Sureste basin. - Block 7: ENI (45% operator), Cairn (30%), Citla (25%)

- Block 9: Cairn (65% operator), Citla (35%)

Cairn Energy chief executive Simon Thomson said: "We are delighted with these awards which we believe provide an exciting opportunity to build a strategic portfolio over time in this highly prolific yet under-explored region.

"As we build on the success of discoveries in Senegal it is important to access new acreage to provide exploration drilling opportunities in the future.

"Cairn and its partners have identified and secured our favoured blocks with multiple stand-alone prospects and numerous follow-on tie-back opportunities based on 3D seismic data.

"We are partnered with ENI, an experienced explorer and operator in Mexico, as well as Citla Energy, a Mexican focused, exploration company and look forward to working with our new partners and the Government of Mexico to deliver the work programme in the coming years."

StockMarketWire.com
Cairn Energy has confirmed that oil samples have been obtained from the FAN South-1 well in the South Fan prospect offshore Senegal.

Cairn said the Stena DrillMAX drill ship performance continued to be excellent and operations had been safely and successfully completed ahead of schedule and under budget following drilling and wire line logging operations. The well encountered hydrocarbon bearing reservoir (Lower Cretaceous) and oil samples were obtained.

It said preliminary analysis indicated 31 degree API oil quality and further work was being undertaken to integrate this discovery with FAN-1 to establish the potential commerciality of the deep water, basinal resource seen in these two wells.

FAN South-1 - located in ~2,175 metres (m) water depth, ~90 kilometres (km) offshore in the Sangomar Deep Offshore block and 30 km south west of the FAN-1 exploration well - reached total depth of 5,343m, targeting dual prospects: an Upper Cretaceous stacked multi-layer channelised turbidite fan prospect and a Lower Cretaceous base of slope turbidite fan prospect, similar to the FAN-1 oil discovery in 2014.

Cairn said FAN South -1 was being plugged and abandoned.

It said the rig was now moving location to commence operations at the SNE North exploration prospect, 15 km north of the SNE-1 discovery well and the most northerly location yet tested, on trend with the highly successful SNE field.

SNE North is targeting a prospective volume of more than 80 mmbbls of total resource in multiple objectives.

The well is located in ~ 900m water depth and the projected total depth of the well is 2,800m.

Chief executive Simon Thomson said: "FAN South is our 10th well in Senegal in the last three years and our second well to encounter oil in the deep portion of the basin, adjacent to the FAN discovery.

"The results of FAN South will be integrated with FAN-1 and SNE to help the joint venture's ongoing evaluation of the large, deep water basin potential offshore Senegal.

"As planning for the phased development of the SNE field moves ahead, we will shortly commence operations on the SNE North prospect which has the potential to enhance our total resources in Senegal."

StockMarketWire.com
Cairn Energy is encouraged by results from the SNE North-1 exploration well offshore Senegal.

Cairn said the well encountered oil and gas in the primary objective and oil in the deeper secondary objective, in a separate accumulation to the SNE field.

It said further work was being undertaken to establish the potential commerciality of this discovery and to integrate the results with the block wide data gathered to date.

It said the well result had positive implications for further hydrocarbon potential to the north of the structural trend containing the SNE field and SNE North-1 discovery well, as well as for broader exploration potential in the permit.

The well is located in ~900 metres (m) water depth, ~ 90 kilometres offshore in the Sangomar Deep Offshore block and ~15km north of the SNE-1 discovery.

The well reached a total depth of 2,837m ahead of schedule and under budget.

Cair said its preliminary analysis indicated:

- ~24m of gross hydrocarbon column across three intervals

- ~11m net condensate and gas in high quality reservoir in primary objective

- ~4m net oil in good quality reservoir in deeper secondary objective (occurring below the SNE field Oil Water Contact)

- A slightly lighter oil type of 35� API than that encountered in the SNE field

Cairn said this marked the end of the five well 2017 drilling campaign and SNE North-1 was being plugged and abandoned and the Stena DrillMAX rig would be released.

It said the joint venture was reviewing the potential for further exploration drilling operations next year within the Rufisque, Sangomar and Sangomar Deep production sharing contract area.

Chief executive Simon Thomson said: "The SNE North well results are encouraging in terms of further prospectivity and implications for the full block potential offshore Senegal.

"We are delighted to have completed a safe and successful drilling programme in Senegal this year with the Stena DrillMAX.

"An update on resources and the SNE development plans will be provided at our interim results later this month."

StockMarketWire.com
Cairn Energy swung into profit after strong progress across its business in the six months to the end of June.

Cairn posted a profit of $314m for the period compared with a loss of $38m last time.

The group said that first oil production commenced from the Kraken field in late June and Catcher production was scheduled to be on stream by the end of 2017.

It said its funding position was enhanced during the first half of 2017 with the completion of a NOK500 million exploration finance facility which allowed the company to borrow against Norwegian tax refunds on exploration expenditure, and US$75m proceeds from a stream agreement with FlowStream Commodities in exchange for an initial 4.5% share of production from Kraken (stepping down to a 1.35% share once FlowStream achieved a 10% return).

Chief executive Simon Thomson said: "Cairn continues to deliver strong progress across the business.

"In the North Sea, Kraken has commenced production and Catcher is scheduled for first oil later this year.

"In Senegal, planning work has commenced on the phased development of the world class SNE field.

"Cairn has also added to its exploration portfolio with exciting new opportunities in Norway, Ireland and Mexico creating additional drilling prospects in the near term.

"With a strong balance sheet and imminent cashflows, Cairn remains well funded to create and capture value for our shareholders."

Up 8.5% at the mo on that news.

RBC Capital Markets today reaffirms its outperform investment rating on Cairn Energy PLC (LON:CNE) and cut its price target to 230p (from 270p).

Deutsche Bank today reaffirms its buy investment rating on Cairn Energy PLC (LON:CNE) and raised its price target to 240p (from 235p).

StockMarketWire.com
Cairn Energy has issued a procedural update on its dispute with the Indian government under the UK India Bilateral Investment Treaty.

Cairn said: 'The arbitration proceedings are well advanced, and the tribunal and parties have now agreed the process and timetable for finalising document production, submissions and hearings.

'This includes some extensions to the previously agreed schedule, and taking into account the tribunal and parties' availability, the final hearing has now been scheduled for August 2018.

'The tribunal stated that it expects the parties to strictly adhere to the deadlines set out in the amended procedural calendar and it will make appropriate arrangements to progress with the drafting of the award as expeditiously as possible.'

SYDNEY/DAKAR (Reuters) - Oil exploration company Cairn Energy (CNE.L) is in talks with BP to sell a 30 percent stake in its deepwater SNE field offshore Senegal, which could be valued at around $600 million, banking sources and a Senegal oil ministry source said on Monday. “We are aware that BP wants to acquire a stake in Cairn Energy, but they are awaiting validation by the state (of Senegal),” an adviser to Senegal’s oil minister, who declined to be named, told Reuters by telephone.

StockMarketWire.com
Cairn, one of Europe's leading independent oil and gas exploration and development companies, said both the Kraken and Catcher developments in the UK North Sea delivered first oil production while In Senegal it completed a successful third phase of drilling.

'Over the last twelve months, Cairn has achieved several strategic milestones and is well positioned to deliver on its strategy in 2018,' said Simon Thomson, Chief Executive, Cairn Energy PLC. 'Cairn is funded in respect of all capital commitments with a strong balance sheet and growing production cash flows.'

The company said the Catcher and Kraken developments in the UK North Sea both achieved first oil in 2017 and are ramping up to plateau production, following which they are expected to deliver significant cash flows for reinvestment. Full-year production, net to Cairn, for 2018 is estimated to be 17,000 to 20,000 bopd with plateau production from Catcher and Kraken achieved by mid-year.

'Cairn offloaded its first Kraken cargo of ~386,000 barrels (net of the Flowstream 4.5% share) in Q4 2017 recording revenue of ~US$20m,' Cairn said in a statement.

The company said that in Senegal its SNE field appraisal and concept select definition are concluding, for the first phase of development of the extensive resource base, and aims to have a government- approved exploitation plan in place by the end of 2018 with a target of first oil in 2021-2023.

In Norway an extensive exploration drilling campaign is underway for 2018, 2019, with plans to drill up to ten wells, targeting more than 1.5 boe gross unrisked resources across a variety of play types in the UK and Norway, including the Barents Sea,' Cairn said in a statement. 'The Skarfjell (Cairn 20% WI) JV plan for development and operation (PDO) is anticipated in H1 2018, with first oil targeted in 2021 and expected plateau production of 50,000 bopd (~10,000 bopd net to Cairn).'

Cairn secured two new licences in the Mexico offshore bid round in the first half of 2017. 'The licences, one operated and one non-operated, are located in the highly prolific yet under-explored Sureste basin,' Cairn said in a statement. 'Cairn anticipates exploration drilling to commence in 2019 on both blocks.'

Cairn reported group net cash at 31 December 2017 was about US$56m, while capital expenditure for second half of 2017 was about US$205m.

JP Morgan Cazenove today reaffirms its overweight investment rating on Cairn Energy PLC (LON:CNE) and raised its price target to 241p (from 228p).

Barclays Capital today reaffirms its overweight investment rating on Cairn Energy PLC (LON:CNE) and raised its price target to 280p (from 265p).

Morgan Stanley today upgrades its investment rating on Cairn Energy PLC (LON:CNE) to overweight (from equal weight) and raised its price target to 300p (from 270p).

StockMarketWire.com
Cairn Energy reported a profit of $263.1m in 2017, compared with a loss of $95m the previous year as production got underway from its Kraken and Catcher North Sea fields.

Catcher and Kraken developments in the UK North Sea achieved first oil production in 2017, with total project capex expenditure estimated by the operators to be about 30% and 25% below original estimates.

UK North Sea 2018 full year production, net to Cairn, is estimated to be 17,000 to 20,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd), while project commissioning on both fields expected to be completed in first half of 2018.

Full capacity production, meanwhile, is expected to be achieved by mid-year, with peak net production to Cairn of 25,000 bopd.

In Norway, Nova - formerly Skarfjell - first oil is targeted in second half of 2021 and expected to deliver plateau production of 50,000 bopd.

Cairn's North Sea exploration drilling campaign was said to be underway for 2018 to 2019 with plans to drill up to ten wells over the next two years targeting more than 1.5 billion boe gross unrisked resources.

In Senegal, five successful wells drilled in 2017 as the third phase of drilling took place, completing the appraisal activity for the development of SNE. Operations were delivered ahead of schedule and under budget.

The evaluation report is expected to be submitted to the government of Senegal in H1 2018 with the formal transfer of Operatorship (TOO) to Woodside expected to take place in H2 2018, subject to government approval.

Simon Thomson, Chief Executive, Cairn Energy PLC said: 'With first oil production from its North Sea developments, Cairn continues to deliver a strong and balanced business with a growing production base supporting further development and a multi-well exploration programme offering significant growth potential.'

'The SNE field in Senegal is now fully-appraised and the Joint Venture is targeting Government approval of the Exploitation Plan by the end of this year.'

'The company continues to maintain balance sheet strength and financial flexibility as we focus on creating, adding and realising value for shareholders from a portfolio of attractive exploration, development and production assets.'

Deutsche Bank today reaffirms its hold investment rating on Cairn Energy PLC (LON:CNE) and cut its price target to 230p (from 240p).

Jefferies International today reaffirms its hold investment rating on Cairn Energy PLC (LON:CNE) and raised its price target to 265p (from 235p).

UBS today reaffirms its buy investment rating on Cairn Energy PLC (LON:CNE) and raised its price target to 300p (from 280p).

Today saw a substantial drop in CNE’s price. Could this be influenced by the Tax dispute and court case with the India tax authority.

Would anyone have an opinion on how it may be going or what to expect in the dispute between the Indian Tax Authority and Cairn Energy. The hearings should be in progress.

StockMarketWire.com
Cairn Energy Tuesday swung to a loss for the first half of the year as output at its Kraken development in the North Sea was hurt by disruptions.

For the six months to 30 June, the company reported a loss before tax of $602.9m compared with a profit of $77.7m a year earlier. Revenue rose to $182.4m from $10.8m for the first half of 2017.

The downturn in performance comes as average gross production at Kraken during the half came in at about 30,700 barrels of oil per day, weighed down by disruptions, owing to downtime and other factors.

Gross production improved, however, rising to levels in a range of 35,000 and 40,000 barrels of oil in August. Demand for cargoes continued to be strong as pricing relative to Brent is in line with expectations, the company said.

The company also reported an operating loss of $34.5m, compared with an operating loss of $52.4m a year earlier.

The company forecast a capital expenditure of US$124m on the Kraken, Catcher, Senegal and Nova developments and estimated exploration and appraisal expenditure of US$72m across the portfolio.

The company said its non-operated Nova development in Norway is expected to deliver first oil in 2021 with peak net production to Cairn of 10,000 bopd.

JP Morgan Cazenove today reaffirms its overweight investment rating on Cairn Energy PLC (LON:CNE) and raised its price target to 306p (from 241p).

Peel Hunt today reaffirms its add investment rating on Cairn Energy PLC (LON:CNE) and cut its price target to 260p (from 280p).

StockMarketWire.com
Shares of Cairn Energy edged higher on Tuesday after it forecast a rise in annual oil and gas production for 2019.

Full year production, net to Cairn, for 2019 was estimated to be 19,000 to 22,000 barrels of oil equivalent, above the production of 17,500 boepd averaged reported in 2018.

Oil and gas sales revenue was $395m at an average realised price of US$68 per boe and average production cost was US$20 per boe for the year ended December 2018.

Capital expenditure for 2019 was estimated at about $305m, below the $335m seen in 2018.

The company said it would target 'significant' exploration opportunities for 2019, backed by a strong balance sheet and cash flow.

'The SNE and Nova development projects are progressing on track, evaluation of the recent Agar discovery is ongoing and we look forward to commencing a material exploration drilling programme in 2019 with up to seven wells offshore Mexico, the UK and Norway targeting a total gross volume in excess of one billion barrels,' said Simon Thomson, Chief Executive, Cairn Energy.