American Energy-Utica settles (without Aubrey McClendon’s blessing) with Chesapeake Energy for up to $25M

http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2015/04/14/aubrey-mcclendo...

American Energy-Utica settles (without Aubrey McClendon’s blessing) with Chesapeake Energy for up to $25M

Apr 14, 2015, 12:18pm EDT UPDATED: Apr 14, 2015, 1:08pm EDT

Tom Knox
Reporter-Columbus Business First
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Aubrey McClendon’s Utica shale company will give 6,000 acres of Ohio land toChesapeake Energy Corp. and pay up to $25 million in a partial settlement with the company he brought to prominence.

American Energy-Utica LLC, a subsidiary of American Energy Partners LP natural-gas development company, announced the settlement Tuesday morning along with the Houston investment firm Energy & Minerals Group, the major funder of American Energy Partners. American Energy-Utica and 20 unnamed investors are no longer part of Chesapeake’s (NYSE:CHK) lawsuit.

McClendon didn’t approve of the deal – his major financial backers did. He has not been a director of the subsidiary since this year, though remains a director of the parent company.

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Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake filed the lawsuit in February, alleging McClendon took swaths of data from Chesapeake, which he co-founded and ran until 2013. Shortly after his exit from Chesapeake, McClendon’s new company bought huge swaths of acreage in eastern Ohio, where it today remains one of the major acreage holders.

Chesapeake still has the most land.

American Energy-Utica will give Chesapeake 6,000 acres in northern Harrison County.

Energy & Minerals Group did not inform McClendon of the decision.

“Although Mr. McClendon is a director and the single largest non-institutional shareholder in AEU, he did not approve the settlement and neither he nor AELP were advised of the negotiated terms of this settlement,” American Energy Partners LP said in a statement.

The parent company plans to fight the remaining charges. It has set up a website to state its case.

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Permalink Reply by Booger on April 15, 2015 at 2:45am

6,000 acres in north Harrison county........I didn't think there was that much left to lease when AEU showed up.......could be hbp acres they acquired from buying shallow drillers?....redhill?...others?

Permalink Reply by pinehill on April 15, 2015 at 4:12am

I am hoping it is bits and pieces of land in Northern Harrison as I live in that area and sure hope I am not now going to have to deal with CHK. I think I was told that Red Hill had over 20000 acres hbp.  I knew something was in the wind with AEU at the end of the year, but did not know it was that McClendon was gone. RedHill had a deal with AEU but they did not actually buy the leases was just a joint venture.

Permalink Reply by pinehill on April 16, 2015 at 2:58am

I do read the news and nothing in the press release about combining the Utica and Marcellus units and the new appointee stated that McClendon would be out of the loop and I guess I missed that this is a spin off that is no longer part of the parent and McClendon is no longer involved. This settlement is a legal document and would require his signature if he were still in control.  Actually the news said he did not know about it and that the financial backers signed the deal. I guess you have inside info and deal with AEU and know that he is still very involved.

 

Permalink Reply by pinehill on April 17, 2015 at 2:53am

If you "would of saw" that several sites still today like Bloomberg, Reuters list him as an officer, CFO, CEO, COO,

Mr. Aubrey K. McClendon

Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Age: 54
Chief Financial Officer
Age: 47
Chief Operating Officer
Age: 45

So the current statement about him not being connected would seem to have occurred quietly without an actual announcement till this press release. Perhaps to shelter AEU from holdings and drilling being interfered with by a injunction that was mentioned in the press release from law suit. 

Permalink Reply by bo boboski on April 17, 2015 at 8:52am

It's hard to believe that your company can make deals/settlements without your approval. But I guess if you are operating with someone else's $$$, then they are the Boss! Anyway, he is still drilling away in the Utica, Harrison/Guernsey co. Ohio. When oil & gas goes back up, AEP will have lots of wells ready to go. Other companies now sitting on the A#!&) will have to go thru  drilling  & fracking 1st. Aubrey's regional offices are framed up. Roof is going on now. Looks like all the buildings had to be sprolled out as 1 storys  maybe because it's on the hill by the Cambridge airpor'ts airspace? Just guessing.

Permalink Reply by bo boboski on April 17, 2015 at 10:07am

Permalink Reply by bo boboski on April 17, 2015 at 10:10am

Permalink Reply by Philip Brutz on April 20, 2015 at 9:17am

Aubrey McClendon's Financier Settles Lawsuit With Chesapeake Energy

Read more: http://www.nasdaq.com/article/aubrey-mcclendons-financier-settles-l...

Aubrey McClendon appears to have lost some support from his biggest financier over allegations that he started American Energy Partners LP using trade secrets taken shortly before his forced departure from Chesapeake Energy Corp. in 2013.

In a lawsuit filed in mid-February, Chesapeake accused Mr. McClendon--its founder and former chief executive--of making off with confidential data and maps of oil and gas prospects that he then used to buy up drilling rights on acreage Chesapeake had hoped to acquire.

The Energy & Minerals Group, an investment firm headed by John Raymond that has put billions of dollars into American Energy, initially defended Mr. McClendon, calling Chesapeake's suit meritless.

But on Tuesday, an affiliate of American Energy controlled by EMG said it had agreed to assign approximately 6,000 acres in Ohio to Chesapeake, along with a combination of cash and payments up to $25 million. In exchange, the affiliate, American Energy-Utica LLC--in which EMG is the largest equity investor--and 20 unnamed investors are being dropped from Chesapeake's lawsuit, according to a statement from EMG and American Energy-Utica.

Mr. McClendon is no longer an officer of American Energy-Utica, the statement said.

Mr. Raymond and Energy & Minerals had no immediate comment.

In response, Mr. McClendon said he has the right to possess the disputed data. American Energy-Utica. "apparently chose to settle with Chesapeake before any discovery was taken, evidently for the business purpose of mitigating further damage that Chesapeake's litigation has been having on AEU's business and financing activities," he said in a statement. "This resolution should not be mistaken as reflecting an informed view of the merits of Chesapeake's claims or a concession of any liability by any party to Chesapeake."

Mr. McClendon said that he remains a director of American Energy-Utica's parent company and an officer of many of its other affiliates.

Write to Erin Ailworth at Erin.Ailworth@wsj.com



Read more: http://www.nasdaq.com/article/aubrey-mcclendons-financier-settles-l...

Permalink Reply by Philip Brutz on April 21, 2015 at 1:15am

You are correct, but it did have a quote from Aubrey that was not in the other articles:

 "apparently chose to settle with Chesapeake before any discovery was taken, evidently for the business purpose of mitigating further damage that Chesapeake's litigation has been having on AEU's business and financing activities," he said in a statement. "This resolution should not be mistaken as reflecting an informed view of the merits of Chesapeake's claims or a concession of any liability by any party to Chesapeake."

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