New Oil Search Shares

OIL SEARCH LTD., by its new issue of 2,100,000 5/- shares, will, it is under stood, be able to take up 292,364 £1 shares in the operating company Austral asian Petroleum Co. Pty., Ltd. A further subscription of 194,908 £1 shares in the operating company is likely to be made later this year.

These two subscriptions would be equivalent to the quota of 487,272 £1 shares, which Oil Search was to have taken, up at the end of 1949 when APC announced that it would raise a further £2,500,000 capital. However, the share issue of Oil Search Ltd. was deferred after APC had announced that drilling had been discontinued at Oroi. This, it was claimed, caused an alteration in the prospectus on which the underwriting agreement was based.

Anglo-Iranian Oil 00., Ltd. and the Vacuum Oil Co., it is announced, have taken up £1,500,000 in £1 shares offered to them by APC. The option to Oil Search, it is believed, was left open until March 31, in which time the company could take up the original quota in the APC share issue or any part of it.

A new prospectus will be issued by Oil Search within a few days. The issue will not be underwritten. — Melbourne Age.

AUSTRALASIAN Petroleum Company Pty., Ltd., reported the following on February 14:— HOHOEO.—The hole has been deepened 1,175 feet from 2,585 feet to 3,760 feet.

UPOIA. —Depth, 2,662 feet. Frozen drill pipe has been side-tracked and preparations are in pro gress to run 13% inch casing in order to shut off upper difficult formations.

WANA AND MAJjALAUA.—Rig erection is in progress.

ORLOLI. —Examination of access routes to the rig site has been continued.