Amplitude Energy Limited (AEL) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary
November 6, 2024
Earnings Call Speaker Segments
John Conde
executiveGood morning, ladies and gentlemen. I think it's just gone 10:30. Welcome to this morning's Annual General Meeting of Cooper Energy Limited. I'm John Conde, and I'm the Chairman of Cooper Energy. I extend a warm welcome to you all, and thank you all for joining us. Nice to have some familiar faces. I acknowledge the Kaurna people as the custodians of the Adelaide region where we meet today and the traditional owners of the sites and regions where we operate. We pay respects to their elders, past and present. There are several housekeeping matters to mention. In case of an emergency, a beep, beep, beep will sound. Please remain seated and a fire warden will attend to assist. Additionally, an audio message alert will be communicated and heard in all areas of the function space, including the restrooms. Should an evacuation be necessary, the fire warden will guide everyone safely single file down the main stairwell, accessible from the landing adjacent to the elevators on Level 1, where most of you would have come in. I ask you please now to turn off your mobile phones or switch them to silent mode. Shareholder, proxy holder and corporate representatives attending today's meeting will have the opportunity to ask questions and vote on the formal items of business. Today's meeting is being recorded and will be made available on the company's website within the next 24 hours. May I introduce to you the company's directors, all of whom are present at this meeting. From your right to your left: Jane Norman, our Managing Director and CEO; Tim Bednall, Non-Executive Director; Giselle Collins, Non-Executive Director; Betsy Donaghey, Non-Executive Director; Gary Gray, Non-Executive Director; Frank Tudor, Non-Executive Director; and Jeff Schneider, Non-Executive Director. In addition, we are joined by some of our people, including Daniel Young, our Chief Financial Officer; Nicole Ortigosa, our Company Secretary and General Counsel; Tom Fraczek, our Investor Relations and Treasury Manager; and Darryn Hall, an assurance partner representing the company's auditor, EY. The proceedings this morning will be as follows. I would like to address the meeting, and that will be followed by a presentation from the Managing Director. After the Managing Director's presentation, there will be an opportunity for you to ask questions, and we will deal with those and any questions we may have received online. And the formal part of the Annual General Meeting will commence after those questions. So I present my report. The 2024 financial year was an encouraging one for Cooper Energy, featuring operational successes, project challenges addressed and a renewal of our Board and management team. We are now well positioned to increase our presence in the East Coast domestic gas market and to embark on our next phase of growth, guided by the strategic focus of the Managing Director, Jane Norman and her team. This year marked Jane's first full year as CEO and Managing Director. Shortly after her arrival in March 2023, she reshaped our management structure, clarifying accountabilities and setting responsibilities within the executive team, while sharpening our focus on operational success. Under her leadership, the team is well equipped to deliver on our new strategy for the East Coast domestic gas supply. The material improvement in operations at the Orbost Gas Processing Plant has started to yield substantial production benefits. Since July 2024, hardly a week is gone by without a new production-related record. In the recently concluded quarter of September fiscal '25, the company delivered record average group production of nearly 75 terajoules equivalent per day. These achievements are enabling record revenue and improved margins through greater volume of spot gas sales and reduced production costs. Maximizing production at Orbost will remain a key priority for fiscal '25. Overall, we are committed to strengthening our underlying cash generation to strengthen our financial position and to reduce risk. The completion of the Basker Manta Gummy wells decommissioning project was a significant milestone for the company. This complex project was carried out with a very strong focus on safety and environmental protection and risk management, and resulted in no lost time injuries or major environmental incidents despite over 360,000 worker hours. Although cost above our initial budget largely due to issues outside the company's control, the project's final cost was within the company's revised guidance. In fiscal '24, we also began preparing for our next major growth initiative, the East Coast Supply Project, ECSP. This project represents low-risk exploration prospects and leverages our existing infrastructure to provide an accelerated development pathway with attractive returns for shareholders. Our preferred 3-well ECSP program aims to become one of the largest sources of new gas supply for the Southeast Australian market in the latter part of this decade. Our management team is advancing funding and partnership arrangements and the necessary approvals to enliven this project. As we enter fiscal '25, our focus is clear, to improve shareholder returns by increasing production in a tight market, maximizing our operational leverage and derisking the growth initiatives. I think we are seeing a shift in the narrative surrounding gas in Australia with an increasing realization that gas has a critical role in the energy transition and beyond. The lack of new local supply poses risks. And without it, Southeast Australian consumers may face higher costs and emissions from imported gas, whether it be from Queensland or via LNG terminals. We believe that Cooper Energy is positioned uniquely to help mitigate those risks by providing affordable local gas supply for domestic customers. We are delighted to be joined today by 2 new directors, Mr. Gary Gray AO and Mr. Frank Tudor, both of whom are offering themselves for election at this AGM. Their extensive expertise will be invaluable as we strive to maximize shareholder value for the company's evolution. There are more details about Gary and Frank in the Notice of Meeting. I wish also to acknowledge the excellent and long service of my Board colleague, Mr. Jeff Schneider, who will retire at the conclusion of this AGM. As the company's longest-serving Board member, Jeff has guided us through a transformative period. And we all thank you, Jeff, most sincerely for your insights, your dedication, your wisdom and the outstanding example you've set always. In these times, when ethical behavior in all aspects of corporate and personal life is regarded highly but seems often to be hard to find, Jeff has been a pillar of decency and integrity. Thank you, Jeff. With Jeff's retirement and the appointment of our new directors, the average tenure of the Board members will be under 4 years, contributing to a genuinely diverse Board, however you measure it: gender, background or experience. With my current term expiring at next year's AGM in November 2025, I am now the longest-serving Director. While my enthusiasm for the company remains undiminished, buoyed by the changes and successes we have had across the company in the last 12 months, the Board will continue to keep its composition under consideration so as to ensure it remains contemporary, in the best interests of shareholders. Before asking Jane to address us, I express my gratitude to our shareholders, thank you for your ongoing loyalty and support. We understand your expectations and remain committed to delivering on our promises. To our staff, I extend deep appreciation to our people for their hard work and commitment, particularly to the commitment to safety and operational excellence. Your efforts drive our success. To our gas customers, we thank you for your support and look forward to continuing to working with you to achieve mutually positive outcomes. To our community stakeholders, we value the support of the communities in the Otway and Gippsland Basin regions in particular. These communities are our neighbors, being where we -- where our people work and live and for whom we try to reciprocate support through worthy community activities. To our long-term lenders, thank you for your trust and commitment to Cooper Energy. Your continued support is vital to achieve our goals. To my Board colleagues for wise and considered counsel at all times and, of course, to our Managing Director, Jane Norman, for her dedication and excellent leadership. With your company having come through many challenges during the last few years, we now anticipate a new chapter of achievements, maximizing production from Orbost and bringing new supply into the market via the East Coast Supply Project. This is what we mean by being part of Australia's energy future. The long-term strategy of the company remains sound, and we look forward to crystallizing the benefits of it in the best interest of our shareholders in fiscal '25 and beyond. I now invite the Managing Director to address us.
Jane Norman
executiveThank you, Chairman. It is my pleasure to address our shareholders today. Our disclaimer, thank you, Tom, is set out on this slide. And among other matters set out here, we would draw your attention to the language regarding forward-looking statements. I'm going to start with highlighting the important role of gas in Australia's economy. Many of you have heard me speak about this previously, but it is a key message that underpins our business. 27% of energy demand in Australia is met by gas. It is used across industrial, residential, commercial and power generation customers. Australia's manufacturing industry employs nearly 1 million people and relies heavily on natural gas. Natural gas is a critical source of energy for the sector with 91% of gas used in manufacturing, serving as a heat source and a feedstock for chemical reactions. This includes products which are essential to Australia's supply chain, such as fertilizer for food production, food processing and construction materials such as bricks, glass and cement. Electrification is often not a viable alternative for many manufacturers, as electricity cannot deliver the high-temperature process heat with the same efficiency as gas. To maintain food security and supply chain security in Australia, we need to develop more affordable, reliable domestic gas supply. If affordable domestic gas is not available, these industries could shut down and move offshore, risking Australian jobs and tax income for governments and increasing emissions associated with transporting these products back to Australia. Neither our economy nor the planet will be better off. As these latest charts from AEMO show, gas demand is expected to remain resilient in Eastern Australia beyond 2040, while gas supply is falling much faster than demand despite ambitious targets for electrification. If anything, the market opportunity for Cooper Energy's undeveloped resources in the Otway and Gippsland Basins continues to get stronger, and with LNG imports more likely to be the primary near-term solution, we see gas pricing continuing to increase to LNG import parity. As shared at our full year results at the end of August, we continue to be focused on increasing production and reducing costs, leading to increased margins and cash generation. Since starting as CEO in March last year, I have been building a performance-focused culture that delivers on what we promise. With the strong gas market tailwinds behind us, improving production performance and the start-up of the ECSP later this decade, shareholders should expect consistent improvements in production and operating cash flow over time. We have started to build a track record, but recognize that consistent delivery of results is required to continue to build trust and confidence in our business. Improving the Orbost plant performance has been key and focus area for the business and a key driver of our success in the last year. We have methodically implemented improvement initiatives, which have minimized foaming and fouling in the absorbers, increased the time between absorber cleans and reduced the duration of the cleans. This was a key driver behind our production guidance upgrade yesterday. In June, we spoke about the need to improve reliability at both of our facilities to improve production stability, average -- increase the average throughput. In the first quarter of FY '25, reliability was greater than 99% at both Athena and Orbost. Our Chief Operating Officer, Chad Wilson, who is here with us today, and the operations team continue to work through identified efficiencies and improvement opportunities. Beyond our operational success, we continue to progress the East Coast Supply Project with the order of long lead items and ongoing discussions with potential customers. Our major customers, regulators and policymakers have highlighted the need for additional domestic gas supply in the Southeast of Australia. Our East Coast gas supply project is ideally placed to leverage existing infrastructure to bring new gas to market, in the shortest possible time frame and at lower emissions compared to the alternative gas sources. Discussions with Mitsui, our 50% joint venture partner in the Otway Basin, are ongoing. Cooper Energy has also held discussions with other potential project partners to enable us to lock-in our preferred 3-well program for the ECSP. To manage project risks and funding, Cooper Energy does not intend to pursue a 3-well ECSP program without a partner. In recent months, Cooper Energy has made a number of long lead item orders to preserve the project time line. These orders provide the company with maximum flexibility regarding the ECSP program and, any unused long lead items will either be resold or kept in storage for future use. We expect the drill rig to arrive in the Otway Basin around the middle of calendar year 2025 and are preparing for the drilling of our committed well in late calendar year 2025. This timing remains subject to a number of variables. The company continues to engage with several gas customers regarding foundation contracts for the ECSP. The ECSP is expected to be funded from several sources, with organic cash generation largely funding the drilling phase of the project, and we are evaluating potential customer prepayments as a funding source for the development phase. We are also in the process of enlarging and extending our existing senior secured debt facility to maximize our funding flexibility over the next 5 years. Our portfolio is low emissions intensity compared to our industry peer group, as shown on this slide. In June, we announced targets to further reduce our Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions. Closely linked to improved production stability at Orbost, we are tracking strongly against our Scope 1 target reduction to reduce flaring by 40% by FY 2030, from an FY '23 baseline. In FY '24, we achieved a 34% flaring reduction at the group level compared to FY '23. Full details of our FY '24 emissions are published in our sustainability report. Continuing improvements in production reliability at both sites are expected to further reduce flaring associated with the unexpected plant outage and drive us closer to delivering against our target. On our Scope 2 target, we are continuing to investigate behind-the-meter renewable electricity opportunities, where we have a connection to the grid. In FY '25, we continue to focus on improving our production performance across our portfolio to grow our margins, maximize our cash generation and pay down our debt, ahead of the next phase of growth with the East Coast Supply Project. We are extending and enlarging our existing senior debt facility to take advantage of our strong underlying borrowing base and to maximize liquidity over the next 5 years. This is progressing well and is expected to be finalized before the year-end. We continue to expect strong production levels from OGPP for the remainder of this year and have increased our group production guidance to between 65 and 72 terajoules equivalent per day, as announced in yesterday's ASX release. With higher production, we increased our exposure to the tightening spot market and continue to explore opportunities to gain exposure to the spark spread by providing gas to our customers when the market needs it most. This, together with the next CPI contractual price increase taking effect in January 2025, should result in an increased average realized gas price and higher overall margins. We expect our stronger operational and financial performance over FY '25 will continue to help reduce our debt levels and provide substantial funding flexibility for our next phase of growth. We continue to maintain our focus on the cost base, leveraging the efforts through FY '24 to drive a mindset of efficiency and continuous improvement, and including a further reduction in production expenses and G&A. We will provide a further update on this in the half year results in February. As we mature the East Coast Supply Project, we expect to confirm our drilling program and foundation customers in the second half of FY '25. We continue to work to find an aligned partner for our preferred 3-well program. Our preparatory activities to date in maintaining our operational rig slots and securing long lead items enable us to maintain the option to pursue the most capital-efficient 3-well development program. These long lead items can be resold or used in future campaigns with minimal regret costs in the event we do not proceed with the 3-well program. The company continues to engage with several gas customers regarding foundation contracts for the ECSP and project funding, which may include prepayments. Indeed, we've had a number of inbound inquiries from industrial customers seeking incremental gas against the tightening macro picture. The ECSP is expected to be funded from a range of sources, including organic cash generation, customer prepayments and the existing secured bank debt facility. Thank you to all of our shareholders who have supported us on this journey. Over the last 2 decades, we have evolved from a company which is a Cooper Basin-focused oil explorer, to now an East Coast domestic gas explorer, developer and operator, proudly playing our part in the energy transition. The next logical step on this journey is to renew our company name and brand to something that represents who we are today and who we aspire to be. A new name and new brand reflects our identity as a progressive energy company adapting to today's customer needs and playing our part in the energy transition. This change is part of our overall performance and culture reset. Amplitude measures the resource potential of a gas opportunity. And as Amplitude Energy, we are embracing opportunities to realize our maximum potential. I'd like to finish my presentation today with a short video describing our transition. [Presentation]
Jane Norman
executiveFinally, I'd like to acknowledge the valuable guidance and support offered to me by the Board throughout my time at the company. I look forward to providing you with updates as the FY '25 year progresses. And on that note, I will hand back to our Chairman for the formal part of today's meeting.
John Conde
executiveThank you, Jane. I now invite questions from shareholders. But before I invite shareholders present to ask any questions that you would like, we have received some questions online. And I would like to ask Tom to read what questions we have received, please.
Thomas Fraczek
executiveThanks, Mr. Chairman. First question received online. With respect to the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Amendment Bill 2024 that recently passed in the Victorian Parliament, and specifically its granting of permission to store gas, offshore and underground depleted reservoirs, does Cooper Energy have any such depleted reservoirs that might be able to be utilized as such? Is it possible that Patricia Baleen could be useful as such a storage field, assuming the required umbilical repairs were carried out?
John Conde
executiveI think that was a question from Mr. [ Andrew McPherson ]. And the answer is yes, we are assessing the potential of the Patricia Baleen field to be repurposed as a gas storage asset. The last part of his question, he asked about once the umbilical repairs were carried out. The well control system repairs have been completed during the September quarter, and diagnostic testing of the existing subsea equipment was also conducted. And the results of those tests will assist in the evaluation of repair options and future use of Patricia Baleen.
Thomas Fraczek
executiveSecond question from [ Andrew McPherson ]. Given the limited gas storage options available in Victoria like Iona, could such depleted gas reservoirs be restocked and switched on to supply additional gas in real time for periods of peak demand?
John Conde
executiveI think the answer to that question is also yes. And that's what we're doing with Patricia Baleen and doubtless, there are other fields that could be similarly repurposed. The benefit of Patricia Baleen is that the reservoir appears to have recharged a little since the field was shut in. And I understand that provides a cushion of gas that is useful for gas storage and a fast withdrawal rate. So yes is the answer to that question.
Thomas Fraczek
executiveThird question from [ Mr. McPherson ]. Can you provide any update on our East Coast Supply Project with respect to any discussions or progress to secure an equity partner to share the well drilling program with? Do you have an opinion on the likelihood of us being able to secure a partner on acceptable terms to Cooper?
John Conde
executiveA good question and probably of interest to everyone. The East Coast Supply Project is a very attractive project. And we understand that Mitsui, who is our existing joint venture partner in the Otway, is well progressed regarding the sale of its interest in the Otway assets. However, those discussions are a matter for Mitsui, not for me. We have assisted Mitsui in their sales process. So we have some visibility over the parties with whom they have been discussing a sale. And we expect that those parties, if something proceeds with Mitsui, would be very supportive of our East Coast Supply Project. It's a very attractive project. We understand that the parties interested in the Mitsui stake include domestic gas producers as well as multinationals with interests in Australia and in the region.
Thomas Fraczek
executiveFourth question from [ Mr. McPherson ]. In reality, would it be fair to say that any prospective ECSP partner would most likely want to see the potential sale of Mitsui's 50% interest in the Otway concluded prior to agreeing any firm arrangements with us on partnering up for the ECSP drilling campaign? Further, is it possible that the new owner of Mitsui's 50% interest could well end up also being our future partner on the ECSP?
John Conde
executiveWell, again, I think the answer is yes, and some aspects of that were covered in my earlier answer. But a successful partner in the Mitsui sale process would be highly likely to be our partner. The obvious attraction for a buyer of Mitsui's interest in the Otway is that they would participate in the economics of the ECSP, so yes. Next question, please.
Thomas Fraczek
executiveCan you provide any guidance on the projected pathway and time frames you are seeing to reducing our currently elevated debt levels post BMG completion? In particular, is it your intention to pay down this debt as a priority? Or would Cooper consider maintaining debt at this level and focus on growing future operating EBITDA to help reduce the materiality of such debt levels in our overall financial equation? In other words, pay down debt as our top priority? Or grow our way to the point where our current debt levels are reasonably modest in terms of our overall financial capacity?
John Conde
executiveYes. I think [ Mr. McPherson's ] question is another good question. And both the Managing Director and I mentioned in our addresses that we are prioritizing cash flow towards debt reduction for the remainder of fiscal '25. We do expect the positive operational performance we are seeing at our assets, particularly improvement at Orbost, will generate cash, which we will use to reduce debt. We don't provide cash flow or debt guidance, but we are comfortable with where our debt levels are tracking for the remainder of fiscal '25. And the East Coast Supply Project is spread over 4 years through to '28, fiscal '28, which allows organic cash generation to support the project and its funding during that period. The Managing Director also made a comment about that we would not be committing to a 3-well development without a partner.
Thomas Fraczek
executiveAnd a final question from [ Mr. McPherson ]. Can you help shed any light on the extraordinarily pronounced weakness in our share price this past few weeks? Despite a very positive quarterly result with record production, our usually stable share prices collapsed from 25% -- over 25% from its recent peak in just 3 short weeks. Are you aware of any large shareholders selling out of the company or adverse broker coverage since the latest quarterly that might explain this disappointing recent market feedback?
John Conde
executiveWell, thank you, another good question and a question of interest to us all. You would see from our ASX filings over recent weeks that one of our substantial shareholders has reduced their position in mid-October. However, that shareholder has not filed a new ASX notice since that time, and we are not aware of any other large shareholder sales in recent weeks. We are not aware of any negative broker coverage either. Indeed, most analysts appear to be noting and factoring in the improved operational performance at our assets and the positive impacts that has on cash flow and underlying earnings. And we saw a bit of this yesterday. We are aware that uncertainty exists regarding the ECSP. And we are, therefore, assuring shareholders that we are progressing partnering approvals, customer offtake and financing work streams as quickly as possible to bring that project to reality and to bring much-needed new gas supply to Southeast Australia. But in short, we see a lot more value in the company than where it is presently sitting on the market.
Thomas Fraczek
executiveNo further questions from online.
John Conde
executiveWell, thank you again to [ Mr. McPherson ] for those questions, which I'm sure would be of interest to everybody. I now invite questions from shareholders present. And if you would like to ask a question, please raise your hand, and we will bring you a microphone so that you can be heard on the recording. Are there any questions or matters that you would like to discuss? Well, thank you. I suspect that the questions that we had received were of interest to everyone and may have dealt with some of your questions. We will now turn to the formal part of the annual meeting of Cooper Energy Limited. I've been informed that there is a quorum present. Therefore, the meeting is properly constituted, and I declare the meeting open. The proxies received for today's meeting are held by Computershare, and we have proxy -- we have received proxies totaling approximately 1,746,838,708 shares, or approximately 66% of the company's issued shares. Where a proxy vote has been given to the Chairman without voting instructions, in all cases, I intend to vote in favor of resolutions 1 to 7 inclusive. The notice of Annual General Meeting dated 4th of October 2024 has been circulated to all Cooper Energy shareholders, and I will take the notice as read. The minutes of the general meeting of the company held on the 9th of November 2023 have been signed, and a copy is available for inspection. The company Secretary has those minutes at the front table here. I will now deal with the formal items of business as set out in the Notice of Meeting. I confirm that shareholders attending today's meeting and wishing to ask a question provided it relates to the relevant agenda item under discussion, will be given an opportunity to do so as we come to that question. All resolutions will be put to a poll at the end of the formal business. To ask a question, please hold up your blue or pink admission card. And when I call you, state your name and then please ask your question. The first order of business is to receive and consider the financial statements and related reports by directors and auditors. I confirm that all shareholders who have requested a printed copy have been mailed a copy of the company's 2024 annual report. The annual report is also available on the company's website and contains the annual financial report, together with the reports of the directors and auditor for the financial year ended 30 June 2024. There is no resolution required for this matter. But if shareholders have any questions or comments regarding the financial statements and reports, including any questions as to the conduct of the audit and the preparation and content of the auditor's report, I invite you to put those questions. There are 7 resolutions to be considered by the meeting today. Votes will only be taken from shareholders, proxy holders or corporate representatives entitled to vote and who have attended in person today. Resolution 1 is the adoption of the annual report. Consistent with section 250R of the Corporations Act 2001, the company submits to shareholders for consideration and adoption by way of a nonbinding vote, its remuneration report for the year ended 30 June 2024. The vote on resolution 1 is advisory and will not bind the directors or the company. However, the Board will take the outcome of the vote into consideration when reviewing remuneration practices and policies. I now move that the remuneration report as set out in the Director's report for the financial year ended 30 June 2024 be adopted. The proxy votes received for this resolution are now displayed on the screen. And please note that as set out in the Notice of Meeting, key management personnel and their closely related parties are excluded from voting on this resolution. Please see the Notice of Meeting for more detail on how that voting prohibition will be enforced. The resolution is now open for discussion. Would anybody like to ask any questions or comment on the remuneration report? There being no further questions -- or no questions, this resolution will be put to a poll at the end of the meeting. Computershare will conduct all polls at the end of the meeting, and the final poll results for all resolutions will be released to the ASX and posted on the company's website when they are available later this afternoon. Resolution 2, the reelection of Ms. Elizabeth Donaghey as a Director. Clause 5 of the company's Constitution provides that at each Annual General Meeting of the company, 1/3 or the number nearest to but not exceeding 1/3 of the directors and any director who has held office for 3 years or more, must retire from office. A retiring director is eligible for reelection. Ms. Elizabeth Donaghey, being eligible, has offered herself for reelection. Details of Ms. Donaghey's background and experience are contained in the annual report, and I have pleasure in moving that Ms. Elizabeth Donaghey, a Director of the company who retires by rotation in accordance with Clause 5.1 of the Constitution and who offers herself for election, be reelected as a Director of the company. The proxy votes received for this resolution are displayed on the screen, and the resolution is open for discussion. Are there any questions or comments on this resolution? There being no questions, the resolution will be put to a poll at the end of the meeting, and Computershare will conduct all polls at the end of the meeting. Resolution 3, the reelection of Ms. Giselle Collins as a Director. Clause 5 of the company's Constitution provides that at each Annual General Meeting of the company, 1/3 or the number nearest to but not exceeding 1/3 of the directors and any director who has held office for 3 years or more, must retire from office. A retiring director is eligible for reelection, and Ms. Collins being eligible, has offered herself for reelection. Details of Ms. Collins' background and experience are contained in the annual report. And I have pleasure in moving that Mr. Giselle Collins, a Director of the company who retires by rotation in accordance with Clause 5.1 of the Constitution and who offers herself for election, be reelected as a Director of the company. The proxy votes for this resolution are displayed on the screen, and the resolution is open to discussion. Does anybody wish to ask a question or make a comment? There being no question, the resolution will be put to a poll at the end of the meeting. In case you didn't hear before, Computershare will conduct a poll at the end of the meeting. Resolution 4, election of Mr. Gary Gray as a Director. Mr. Gary Gray was appointed by the Board as a Non-Executive Director of the company effective from the 1st of October 2024. In accordance with clause 8.2 of the Constitution, a director appointed by the Board ceases to hold office at the conclusion of the next Annual General Meeting and is then eligible for election. Mr. Gary Gray is seeking election as a Non-Executive Director of the company. Details of Mr. Gray's background and experience are contained in the Notice of Meeting. And I have pleasure in moving that Mr. Gary Gray AO, being appointed as a Non-Executive Director of the company by the Board in accordance with clause 8.1 of the Constitution since the last Annual General Meeting and who ceases to hold office at the conclusion of this Annual General Meeting in accordance with clause 8.2 of the Constitution, be elected as a Non-Executive Director of the company. The proxy votes received for this resolution are displayed on the screen, and the resolution is open for discussion. Does anybody wish to ask any questions or make a comment? Thank you. There being no questions, this resolution will be put to a poll at the end of the meeting. Computershare will conduct all polls at the end of the meeting. Resolution 5, the election of Mr. Frank Tudor as a Director. Mr. Frank Tudor was appointed by the Board as a Non-Executive Director of the company effective 1 October 2024. In accordance with clause 8.2 of the Constitution, a director appointed by the Board ceases to hold office at the conclusion of the next Annual General Meeting and is then eligible for election. Mr. Tudor is seeking election as a Non-Executive Director of the company. Details of Mr. Tudor's background and experience are contained in the Notice of Meeting. I have pleasure in moving that Mr. Frank Tudor, being appointed as a Non-Executive Director of the company by the Board in accordance with clause 8.1 of the Constitution since the last Annual General Meeting and who ceases to hold office at the conclusion of this Annual General Meeting in accordance with clause 8.2 of the Constitution, be elected as a Non-Executive Director of the company. The proxy votes received for this resolution are displayed on the screen. The resolution is open for discussion. Does anybody have any questions or wish to make a comment? There being no further questions, this resolution will be put to a poll at the end of the meeting. Computershare will conduct all polls at the end of the meeting. Resolution 6, the issue of rights to Ms. Jane Norman, Managing Director and CEO. The Board considers that its senior executive should be remunerated in a manner that encourages them to become and remain shareholders as this is the best mechanism to align their interests with the interest of the company's shareholders. It is the company's policy that the performance-based pay, that is the pay that is at risk of senior executives, forms a significant portion of their total remuneration. Granting incentives under a long-term incentive plan seeks to encourage and reward contributions to the company's long-term sustainable performance. Listing Rule 10.14 provides that a company must not issue or agree to issue securities to a director under an employee incentive scheme without the prior approval of shareholders of ordinary securities. Under section 200B of the Corporations Act, a company may only give a person a benefit in connection with their ceasing to hold a managerial or executive office in the company, such as that held by Ms. Norman or a related body corporate if it is approved by shareholders under section 200E or an exemption applies. Under resolution 6, shareholder approval is sought for the issue of performance rights as incentives to Ms. Norman. Subject to shareholder approval, the incentives will be issued in accordance with the invitation made by the Board pursuant to the terms of the company's equity incentive plan. I now move that for the purpose of Listing Rule 10.14, sections 200B and 200E of the Corporations Act 2001 Commonwealth, and for all other purposes, the issue to Ms. Jane Norman of performance rights pursuant to the company's equity incentive plan as described in the explanatory notes to the Notice of Meeting, be approved. The proxy votes received for this resolution are displayed on the screen. The company will disregard any votes cast on this resolution by Ms. Norman, her nominees and any of their associates and by the company's key management personnel as named in the remuneration report or by any closely related party of a member of the key management personnel acting as a proxy. Please see the Notice of Meeting for more detail on how this voting exclusion is to be applied. The resolution is now open for discussion. Does anybody wish to ask any questions? There being no questions, this resolution will be put to a poll at the end of the meeting. Computershare will conduct all polls at the end of the meeting. Resolution 7, change of the company name. Shareholder approval is sought under section 157 of the Corporations Act for the change in name of Cooper Energy Limited to Amplitude Energy Limited, effective from the date that ASIC updates its register to reflect the new name. The proposed change to Cooper Energy Limited's name aligns with the company's updated 10-year vision and strategy released in June 2024. This strategy and name change highlights the company's move away from being an onshore Cooper based -- Cooper Basin-focused oil producer to a dedicated domestic gas explorer and producer focused on developing domestic gas for Australians and playing its role in the energy transition. Amplitude is an industry term that measures the resource potential of a new gas opportunity and is defined as the maximum extent of a vibration or oscillation. As Australia moves towards lower emissions, natural gas will continue to play a crucial role in driving our economy and supporting a consistent, reliable and affordable energy supply. Shareholder approval is also being sought in accordance with section 136.2 of the Corporations Act to replace all existing references in the company's Constitution to Cooper Energy with Amplitude Energy Limited. This resolution is a special resolution, and at least 75% of the votes cast by shareholders who are entitled to vote on this resolution, are required for it to pass. The proxy votes received for this resolution are displayed on the screen. The resolution is open for discussion, and happy to receive any questions or comments from shareholders. If there will be no questions or comments, the resolution will be put to a poll at the end of the meeting, and Computershare will conduct all polls at the end of the meeting. Just on the conduct of the poll, Computershare Investor Services has been appointed to conduct the poll. We will now conduct the poll on motions numbered 1 to 7. First, if there is any person present who believes they are entitled to vote but has not registered to vote, would you please raise your hand for assistance? The persons entitled to vote on this poll are all shareholders, representatives and attorneys of shareholders and proxy holders who hold blue admission cards. On the reverse side of your blue admission card is your voting paper and instructions. I will now go through the procedures for filling in the voting papers. Proxy holders have attached to their admission card a summary of proxy votes, which details the voting instructions for business items on the appointment documents in your favor. By completing the voting paper when instructed to provide -- to vote in a particular manner, you are deemed to have cast your vote in accordance with those instructions. In accordance with any open votes, you may be entitled to cast, you need to mark a box beside the motion to indicate how you wish to cast your open votes. Proxy holders should refer to the summary of proxy votes form attached to your voting paper for further information. Shareholders also need to mark a box beside the motion to indicate how you wish to cast your votes. Please ensure you print your name where indicated and sign the voting paper. When you're finished filling in your voting paper, if you haven't already, please lodge it in a ballot box to ensure your votes are counted. And if you require any assistance, please raise your hand. [Voting]
John Conde
executiveI sense that everyone has placed their voting paper in a ballot box. So I can now declare the poll closed. The result of the polls will be declared by announcing the details when they are available to the Australian Stock Exchange after the close of this meeting, and we expect that will be early this afternoon when they are announced to the ASX. We have now completed all of the matters contained in the notice of Annual General Meeting, and I thank you all for your attendance and declare the meeting closed. Please, I hope you will stay back and join us all for a cup of tea or coffee or a glass of water in the foyer. And thank you very much indeed for taking the trouble to attend, and thank you for your continuing interest and support of Cooper Energy, soon to be Amplitude Energy Limited. Thank you.
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