Tomco Energy Share Discussion Threads

[danmart2] 21/2/2022 15:23

This funding deal is make or break , all the best to long term holders, hopefully TOMco finally deliver.

[goulding1215] 21/2/2022 15:08

Good point AJJ2003. IF it was sent today from USA, then the UK will be getting it about now up to about midnight. So, earliest tomorrow for rns. Aimho

[1dutchman] 21/2/2022 14:29

The drilling campaign also seems opaque. Tom raised the funds for 3 exploration wells but the amount raised doesn't square with the amount required for fully testing three wells. There is no question they'll 'find' oil as it is pervasive throughout the tar sands. But will they test Byle's 'in situ' recovery process? If not, how can a reserves estimator produce a CPR that will be used for raising funds for the 'in situ' production wells? Or will investors simply have to take Valkor's word that it will work? BTW - what was the name of the company that was meant to be providing this process? I remember reading it somewhere but can't seem to find it. Maybe it has been proven elsewhere, in which case one would assume it is currently being used for production on other wells.

[ajj2003] 21/2/2022 14:24

Quick question - any thoughts as to whether it is likely to be the start of an English or US trading day that the Terms could be received?

Suppose it depends on the backers themselves rather than Tomco although sent one day, notification the next is probably the most likely scenario I would have thought?

[lopodop] 21/2/2022 12:56

SB plays along with the TOM BOARD - keeping his powder dry until a moment of his choice.
One can only hope BDO LONDON have been over to see first hand what is going on. Otherwise the audit will be of no value.

[the diddymen] 21/2/2022 12:36

1d the survival of TOM is the first issue. If the drill does not work then they have no business besides Tarsands. As you have pointed out they will not be raising the finance for the Tarsands project in the form of a loan, and right now they do not have the funds to exploit the potential themselves, ergo they have no business if the drilling does not succeed.

It is not clear to me how the drilling is to be executed but at a guess Valkor will be central to the delivery. The relationship is bizarre because they have just financed the R&D of Valkor via the defunct Greensands partnership. As a rule of thumb when relationships appear opaque, they are opaque. Here is a business with its strategy predicated to an opaque relationship.

As you have discovered on the other thread there are many with eyes like fruit machines dreaming of wealth. If it were only that easy.

[1dutchman] 21/2/2022 11:38

So Tom investors are being asked to put their trust in someone who bears no responsibility for the company's performance and who owes them nothing. Someone who, at best, offers up a misleading website showing failed projects which produce no ongoing income. Someone who - with no experienced oversight from TomCo - saw fit to continue to take investors’ money in the form of fees without ever achieving his own stated goals for the CORT process and the PQE test plant. Steve Byle may indeed be a genius, but it appears that in recent years his greatest genius has been in relieving TomCo shareholders of their company’s cash and leaving them with nothing to show for it.

[1dutchman] 21/2/2022 11:35

Someone recently suggested that Byle should be on the Board. That seems appropriate. Because there is little doubt he is calling the shots. Even more so now because JP has been rewarded for his fealty with a $10k/month contract for acquiring permits. I suppose there’s recognition that JP has done well as the ‘mad Englishman’ schmoozing the local authorities. Good for him. But that relationship makes it even less likely that the TomCo Board will be able to take a step back and assess the situation objectively. Thus they are all dancing to Byle’s tune.

[fenners66] 21/2/2022 11:35

UK auditor for a US operation ?
Small budget / maybe a tie up with a local auditor or is someone going to take a cushy trip to the US to verify fixed assets ?

After all if they can now "say" that a derelict refinery is worth ...$? they can spin RF and its leases as assets.

I have seen other examples of intangibles in the loosely described "energy" industry as retaining value after each audit - right up until years later when they are written off , never having been anywhere near adding any business value - so the tangible leases etc could be around for many more years yet....

[1dutchman] 21/2/2022 11:31

Re: the next game - drilling - I have a sincere question – has Byle's ‘in situ’ extraction process been proven? If so, I have missed it. But apparently Heavy Sweet Oil has been formed to buy these leases and use this process. Who is backing that venture and why so secretive? What's there to hide? Do you suppose Tom's Board is asking the necessary questions?

[1dutchman] 21/2/2022 11:26

True, TomCo has a history of simply rolling onto the next game if the current one proves unwinnable. And thus far, they have proven themselves incapable of winning a single game. (Lopo - on the audit, one would think they will finally have to write off the RF technology and leases. To pretend it is still viable would be gross dereliction. But perhaps the RF equipment has some value if sold?)

[ducky fuzz] 21/2/2022 11:18

Thanks for moderating rmart. I don't know why people feel they have the right to come and lecture us, ramming their "expert" opinion down our throats.

If they want to give their opinion then there is the other ready made thread and people here can read their opinions there if they want to.

[1dutchman] 21/2/2022 11:17

The talk of income from a refinery is frankly mystifying. A 10,000 bbl/day refinery seems to have appeared from nowhere. Be that as it may, perhaps one does exist on the TS2 lease. If so, it will have been mothballed (it does not show up on EIA lists of operating refineries) some time ago because 10,000 bbl/day refineries are usually not economically viable. In the industry, these are termed ‘tin-pot’; refineries and are typically located in remote locations (eg, Africa) where crude transport is not available. To provide some perspective, there are some 95 refineries in the US with an average capacity of 200,000 bbl/day. Because they don’t have upgrading capacity, the handful (only 6 exist with 10,000 bbls/day or less) of tin-pots that remain in the US are focused on specialty products, usually processing heavier crudes and producing the heavier products (dirty diesel, bunker fuel, asphalt). I’ve heard that in some areas it is possible to use tar sands for road repair even without processing. Nevertheless, given the heavy nature of the Utah tar sands, it is conceivable that a TS2 tin-pot could produce heavy product for the local market. The challenge would be putting it back into operation (what cost?) and keeping it running while meeting stringent (and expensive) HSE and pollution standards.

[ajj2003] 21/2/2022 11:16

Certainly is DF, just showing where the give way signs are on the way up ;)

[ducky fuzz] 21/2/2022 11:14

Hi Ajj .. the only way we will break out is if we get positive news.

[lopodop] 21/2/2022 11:08

If BDO do a good job the audited accounts will spell out their perception of hazards and uncertainty so investors receive full frontal of the issues. Even RMART DAMAC and DF will have to revise their views.

[fenners66] 21/2/2022 11:04

The other board cannot accept it - but I came looking last year to see if TOM had something , that it has not had in 10 years - a viable business.

So I did my research and found a financial can of worms and a whole BB of resentment that anyone should even ask questions.

There are lots more readers of BB's than contributors and keeping debate alive and adding balance may serve far more than the half a dozen posters.

So we shall see how this pans out - but for my money the RNS suggesting that anytime between now and 2 years time the "mystery" refiner may come back and use the derelict plant - is the big clue that TOM will drag on for at least those 2 years , with or more likely without anything else happening.... gravy train will keep rolling.

[1dutchman] 21/2/2022 10:55

Absent PE or family offices, the most likely player would be a group looking to pump and dump. But if it goes down that road, such a group won’t offer real money, only smoke and mirrors to make it appear that way.

[1dutchman] 21/2/2022 10:54

On the financing, as pointed out above, there will be no loans. That’s not to say that a financing won’t occur, but if it does, it will require a huge chunk of equity out of TomCo or Greenfield. Any investors in unproven technology at this scale will require guarantees, or ‘a wrap’ from the technology providers. Neither Tomco, PQE or Valkor can possibly provide that wrap. So any financing will require an equity player (or quasi equity in the form of punitive convertible loans) which might exist in the form of a private equity fund or a family office. Frankly, private equity has been burned in energy in recent years and without a clear exit (IPO or industry sale) will be reluctant to play. Family offices or sovereign wealth funds remain an option but they are known for being exceedingly cautious and are rarely the first to invest in an unproven technology. But still, equity is an option if someone with deep pockets can be convinced a process that failed in the test plant can be made to work at a larger and far more expensive scale. If so, I suppose 10-20% of something is better than 100% of nothing for shareholders.

[1dutchman] 21/2/2022 10:52

Thanks, Fenners. Over the course of my research, I’ve delved into the TomCo chat room from time to time. I’ve never felt any need to comment because the likes of you and Mssrs Lopodop, Diddy and Wilson2 have consistently raised appropriate red flags for other investors. But given recent excitement about a financing and the possibility of unsuspecting new investors being brought into the fold, I thought it appropriate to support the red flags with some additional information.

[lopodop] 21/2/2022 10:09

Many experts abound who are living the dream!

[fenners66] 21/2/2022 09:51

Off-topic but just shows what can happen in the casino that is the stock market

Morses Club CEO sold all his holdings on Friday
This morning they announced results will be 25-30% lower than consensus
CEO has left the company.
Share price down 66%

Is it even legal that he can sell knowing that announcement was coming?

Clearly he was very lucky to sell on Friday, and it looks like as a director he was looking after his own.....

Is that the only example on the stock market ?

[ajj2003] 21/2/2022 09:15

More coverage on Tomco by Zac Mir yesterday. Looks like a break upwards is coming ;)

hxxps://www.voxmarkets.co.uk/articles/traders-cafe-with-zak-mir-weekend-bulletin-board-heroes-february-20-762cb47

[1dutchman] 21/2/2022 08:48

I’m not a big user of social media, so this is the first time I’ve been cancelled. In truth, it feels surprisingly good. I had anticipated contributing my initial comments and questions and leaving well enough alone. But now I’m considering sticking around. There’s plenty more insights to drop on TomCo that will no doubt send Vauch and the groupies around the bend. The absurd thing is that anyone would rather cancel someone with experienced views than listen and possibly learn a thing or two in the give and take. And those lessons can go both ways. No name-calling, no sputtering vindictive, just a clear exchange of views on how one's shares might perform.