Assets

Vanguard Energy is continually screening and evaluating opportunities which meet the criteria set by the Company to meet its strategy. Key aspects of initial opportunity screening include:

assets with proven oil and/or gas reserves;
assets located within Europe and North Africa;
existing production, or early production options;
oil and gas fields which can be developed and brought on production;
technical or other characteristics that have led to 'stranding';
opportunities which provide operatorship.

Given the extensive degree of volatility and the depressed public valuations in the energy sector Vanguard expects to focus more heavily on the acquisition of existing production assets in 2009, for which operatorship is a less critical requirement.

Vanguard has a strong preference for exclusive negotiations with potential sellers in order to accelerate the Company’s growth. Vanguard has access to secure sources of private equity funding to pursue these opportunities and has entered, and continues to negotiate, several transactions ranging from US$50 million to in excess of US$500 million.