The Utikima, Otter, Slave and Ogsden fields remain in active wildfire
zones. To date, Penn West's fire suppression and facility shutdown efforts
appear to have mitigated fire damage to our production infrastructure;
however, these are preliminary indications only and a thorough site
assessment must be completed before the full extent of
damage can be determined. Production in these areas has
been and will continue to be shut-in while the fires are brought under
control. Damage assessments are underway in the Red Earth and Mitsue
fields and production has been resumed at East Swan Hills and Crimson
Lake. In addition to RCMP and government road blocks, Penn West has
imposed an emergency-only traffic ban for all Penn West staff and
contractors in these areas to allow firefighting equipment and supplies
24-hour access.
Local and provincial authorities continue to assess and determine areas
safe for access. Penn West teams will enter each affected operating area
to determine, on an area by area basis, the nature and extent of any
damage and estimated timelines for production resumption in accordance
with Penn West's existing production resumption protocols.
Penn West routinely reviews and monitors risk management policies and
procedures, and as a result of our risk assessment process, we maintain
loss and business interruption insurance with coverage levels in
accordance with customary industry practice. Penn West's insurers
have been notified of the situation in the Slave Lake area and they are
continuing to monitor these areas closely.
In southern Manitoba and portions of southern Saskatchewan, high water
conditions continue to impede operational activities. A portion of
production volumes in these areas has been restored and the remaining
volumes should be restored as conditions permit.
Approximately 35,000 boe per day of production was interrupted by these
events and the bulk of this volume remains shut-in.
Penn West common shares and debentures are listed on the Toronto Stock
Exchange under the symbols PWT, PWT.DB.E and PWT.DB.F and Penn West common
shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol PWE.
Forward-Looking Statements
In the interest of providing our securityholders and potential
investors with information regarding Penn West, including management's
assessment of our future plans and operations, certain statements
contained in this document constitute forward-looking statements or
information (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning
of the "safe harbour" provisions of applicable securities legislation.
Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as
"anticipate", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "forecast", "may", "will",
"project", "could", "plan", "intend", "should", "believe", "outlook",
"objective", "aim", "potential", "target" and similar words suggesting
future events or future performance.
In particular, this document contains forward-looking statements
pertaining to, without limitation, the following: our belief that our
fire suppression and facility shutdown efforts appear to have reduced fire
damage to our production infrastructure; our expectation that our teams
will be able to enter each affected operating area to determine, on an
area by area basis, the nature and extent of any damage; our belief that
production will resume, and particularly, our belief that production will
resume in accordance with our production resumption protocol; our belief
that the production resumption protocol will help ensure the safety and
reliability of field infrastructure; our loss and business interruption
insurance coverage levels relative to customary industry practice; and our
expectation that production volumes remaining shut-in in southern Manitoba
and portions of southern Saskatchewan will be restored.
With respect to forward-looking statements contained in this document,
we have made assumptions regarding, among other things: our ability to
obtain equipment in a timely manner to carry out damage assessment and
repair activities and the costs thereof; our ability to access sites, the
timing of such access and costs thereof; our ability to obtain applicable
regulatory permits; future oil and natural gas prices; and future oil and
natural gas production levels.
Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the
forward-looking statements contained in this document, and the assumptions
on which such forward-looking statements are made, are reasonable, there
can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking
statements included in this document, as there can be no assurance that
the plans, intentions or expectations upon which the forward-looking
statements are based will occur. By their nature, forward-looking
statements involve numerous assumptions, known and unknown risks and
uncertainties that contribute to the possibility that the predictions,
forecasts, projections and other forward-looking statements will not
occur, which may cause our actual performance and financial results in
future periods to differ materially from any estimates or projections of
future performance or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking
statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things: the
impact of weather conditions on the ability to execute damage assessment
and repair programs; risks associated with any continued, further or
additional natural disasters; risks inherent in oil and natural gas
operations; competition for, among other things, capital, equipment and
skilled personnel; unanticipated operating events that can reduce
production or cause production to be shut-in or delayed; failure to obtain
regulatory authority, industry partner and other third-party consents and
approvals when required; the potential failure of counterparties to honour
their contractual obligations; and the other factors described in our
public filings (including under "Risk Factors" in our Annual Information
Form and under "Business Risks" in Note 10 to our 2011 first quarter
unaudited financial statements) available in Canada at www.sedar.com and in the United States at
www.sec.gov. Readers are cautioned that
this list of risk factors should not be construed as exhaustive.
The forward-looking statements contained in this document speak only as
of the date of this document. Except as expressly required by applicable
securities laws, we do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or
revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise. The forward-looking statements
contained in this document are expressly qualified by this cautionary
statement.
