Exploration & Production | People

Madalena Appoints Two New Board Members

Share Print Bookmark    |    Monday,January 26,2015

Madalena Energy Inc. and Maglan Capital LP have announced that, further to the recently announced initiatives and review undertaken by the special committee of Madalena's Board of Directors, effective immediately Mr. Gus Halas has been appointed to the Board and Mr. Steven Sharpe has been elected Chairman of the Board.

Mr. Halas, an independent director, is currently a director of Triangle Petroleum Corporation and has significant experience in the energy industry and in public companies in both an executive and board role, including his roles as President, Chief Executive Officer, Director and/or Chairman of Central Garden & Pet Company, T-3 Energy Services, Inc., Ingersoll Dresser's Pump Services Group and Aquilex Corporation. Mr. Halas has also held a leadership position at Sulzer Industries, Inc. and is currently a Member of the Advisory Board of White Deer Energy, a Houston based private equity firm. Mr. Halas received a BS in both Physics and Economics from Virginia Tech. With Mr. Halas' background and skills, Madalena and Maglan believe that Mr. Halas will be an excellent contributor to the success of Madalena.

Mr. Sharpe, an independent Board member who recently joined the Board on September 23, 2014, has a wealth of experience in both an executive and board level with several public companies and has extensive skills in the areas of strategic planning, business development and mergers and acquisitions. Madalena and Maglan are confident that Mr. Sharpe has the skills, experience and education that will serve Madalena well and provide the excellent leadership at the Board level.

Over the past four months, three new independent directors, including a new independent Chairman, have been appointed to the Board, bringing extensive oil and gas, capital markets and governance experience to the Board. To accommodate this Board renewal process, Mr. Jay Reid has resigned as a director and Mr. Ray Smith has resigned as Chairman but will remain on the Board. Mr. Reid and Mr. Smith remain steadfast supporters of the Madalena story and it is expected that Mr. Reid will be nominated to the Board at Madalena's next Annual General and Special Meeting of shareholders, which will be held on May 26, 2015.

In connection with these changes, Madalena and Maglan have entered into a Settlement, Release and Standstill Agreement, pursuant to which, among other things, Maglan has agreed to certain standstill restrictions and to vote the shares it controls in support of Madalena's director nominees at the 2015 AGM.

Mr. Sharpe, the new Chairman of the Board, commented: "I would like to welcome Gus to the Board and look forward to his contributions, as we continue our focus on unlocking value for shareholders through our efforts to prove up and de-risk Madalena's unconventional assets while managing capital prudently in the context of the current weak market conditions. The Board and management strongly believe in the potential of Madalena and we are pleased to have reached this constructive outcome."

Steven Azarbad, Chief Investment Officer of Maglan, stated: "We are pleased to have worked constructively with Madalena's Board and management to add Gus to the Board. We believe adding Gus to the Board and Steven as Chair brings a fresh perspective and unique insight to Madalena and that these two gentlemen have the experience necessary to help the Board and management as they work toward unlocking and enhancing shareholder value. With a clean balance sheet, good production base and solid cash flow from fixed oil of $77 per barrel in Argentina, we are confident that Madalena is well positioned to substantially grow its production and reserves in the future."