HOUSTON, April 27, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ERHC Energy Inc. (OTCBB:ERHE), a publicly traded American company with oil and gas assets in Sub-Saharan Africa, today announced it has received formal confirmation from the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that proceedings on subpoenas served on the Company several years ago are closed. The announcement follows ERHC's receipt of letters from the Department of Justice and the SEC confirming that they have closed action related to the subpoenas served on ERHC between 2006 and 2007. ERHC had earlier sought and obtained confirmation that it had fully satisfied the subpoenas of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations and that the Subcommittee is undertaking no further action on the subpoenas.
ERHC has always insisted that subpoenas are merely requests for information and that service of the subpoenas on the Company did not necessarily mean that any further proceedings were intended or would result with respect to the Company.
"Today's announcement is the culmination of six long years of work aimed at protecting ERHC's oil and gas interests and advancing the interests of our shareholders," said ERHC President and CEO Peter Ntephe. "Now that the cloud of suspicion resulting from the subpoenas has been formally removed, we expect that many of the challenges of selling the ERHC proposition to prospective partners and the larger investment community may be significantly diminished."
ERHC holds oil and gas exploration interests in the Republic of Chad, the Sao Tome and Principe Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and the Nigeria-Sao Tome and Principe Joint Development Zone (JDZ). In the Republic of Chad, ERHC has 100 percent of the interest in BDS 2008 and Manga. The Company has a 50 percent interest in Chari-Ouest Block 3. In the EEZ, ERHC holds 100 percent working interests in Blocks 4 and 11 with an option to acquire up to 15 percent working interests in two more Blocks. In the JDZ, ERHC holds working interests in Blocks 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 9.
About ERHC Energy
ERHC Energy Inc. is a Houston-based independent oil and gas company focused on growth through high impact exploration in Africa and the development of undeveloped and marginal oil and gas fields. ERHC is committed to creating and delivering significant value for its shareholders, investors and employees, and to sustainable and profitable growth through risk balanced smart exploration, cost efficient development and high margin production. For more information, visit www.erhc.com.
The ERHC Energy Inc. logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=11579
Cautionary Statement
This press release contains statements concerning ERHC Energy Inc.'s future operating milestones, future drilling operations, the planned exploration and appraisal program, future prospects, future investment opportunities and financing plans, future shareholders' meetings as well as other matters that are not historical facts or information. Such statements are inherently subject to a variety of risks, assumptions and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated, projected, expressed or implied. A discussion of the risk factors that could impact these areas and the Company's overall business and financial performance can be found in the Company's reports and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These factors include, among others, those relating to the Company's ability to exploit its commercial interests in Chad, the JDZ and the Exclusive Economic Zone of São Tomé and Príncipe, general economic and business conditions, changes in foreign and domestic oil and gas exploration and production activity, competition, changes in foreign, political, social and economic conditions, regulatory initiatives and compliance with governmental regulations and various other matters, many of which are beyond the Company's control. Given these concerns, investors and analysts should not place undue reliance on these statements. Each of the above statements speaks only as of the date of this press release. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement to reflect any change in the Company's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any of the above statements is based.