Houston and Kemah, Texas, Aug. 9, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Brenham Oil & Gas Corp., OTCBB: BRHM ("Brenham"), a subsidiary of American International Industries, Inc., OTCBB: AMIN ("American"), announced today the filing of a tortious interference lawsuit against geophysical services company TGS-NOPEC Geophysical and ENI Petroleum Co., Inc., the American subsidiary of an Italian multinational oil exploration and production company. The lawsuit is pending in the 189th District Court of Harris County, Texas. Brenham Oil & Gas, Inc. is represented by Houston law firm Fleming & Associates, LLP. The firm has successfully represented thousands of clients in complex legal matters throughout the United States. The lawsuit is the result of Brenham’s agreement to acquire deepwater oil exploration rights in the Republic of Togo, which borders Ghana and is along trend with the 1.2 billion barrel Jubilee Discovery.
Rog Hardy, Brenham Vice President Technology, stated, "In a comprehensive regional review of all available data, Brenham identified a trend with attributes in Togo deepwater similar to those of the Jubilee Field area, including the probable presence of direct hydrocarbon indicators."
Brenham’s executives twice visited the Republic of Togo and met with the Oil Minister and otherwise briefed the Government of Togo about the deepwater prospects it had identified. Based on the technical work Brenham undertook to identify the prospective trend, the Government of Togo negotiated a Production Sharing Agreement with Brenham for the 4,433 sq km (1,095,418 acre) Block 2 concession.
Brenham alleges that during this process, a senior employee of TGS-NOPEC contacted the Togolese Oil Minister and interfered with Brenham’s contractual rights. The Government of Togo subsequently signed a Production Sharing Agreement with ENI, and Brenham’s lawsuit also alleges that ENI conspired with TGS-NOPEC to interfere with Brenham’s rights to the Togo concession.
Brenham also is continuing to investigate the involvement of certain local consultants in the ENI transaction, who are the close personal advisors to the President of Togo.
"While litigation is a long and uncertain path," said Scott Gaille, Brenham’s President, "the irregular nature of this transaction when coupled with the high value of the oil prospects identified by Brenham’s technical team requires us, in light of our responsibilities to our shareholders, to pursue all avenues available to protect the Company’s rights to a level commercial playing field."
Mr. Gaille further stated, "The work undertaken by the Company in Togo reflects our African exploration efforts. Brenham’s business model is to initially acquire oil development and production assets in the U.S. and then to follow these with a portfolio of international exploration prospects, with an initial focus on Africa. The Company previously announced the acquisition of approximately 1.4 million barrels of probable reserves near Abilene, Texas and the signing of an agreement to purchase a 5,000 acre Permian oil field near Midland, Texas."
For more information concerning this matter, please contact Rand Nolen of Fleming & Associates at 713-621-7944.
For more information regarding Brenham please visit their website: http://www.brenhamoil.com/
Brenham Oil & Gas Corp. is an independent oil and gas company engaged in the acquisition of petroleum resources. The Company's focus is on coupling United States development/production assets with international exploration in locations such as Sub-Saharan Africa. Brenham's management team includes experienced professionals from major oil and gas companies.
Forward-Looking Statements:
This press release may contain forward-looking statements, including information about management’s view of the Company’s future expectations, plans and prospects, within the safe harbor provisions under The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the "Act"). All statements other than statements of historical information provided herein may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Without limiting the foregoing, the words "believes", "anticipates", "plans", "expects" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those that we may anticipate reflected by our subsidiaries' operations include without limitations, growth in the energy sector and in the oil and gas service industry, increased levels of competition, new products and technology changes, and the market for pipes, the rules of regulatory authorities and risks associated with any potential acquisitions. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect management's analysis, judgment, belief or expectation only as of the date hereof. Finally, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these statements after the date of this release, except as required by law, and also takes no obligation to update or correct information prepared by third parties that are not paid for by the Company.