Glen C. Schmidt, President and Chief Executive Officer of Laricina Energy Ltd.Tobin Grimshaw/The Globe and Mail
Institutional investors have long funded Laricina Energy Ltd., grabbing stakes in the privately-held company in exchange for cash. The rest of the market has been watching closely, waiting for the oil sands company to go public.
Wannabe Laricina investors, however, are going to have to sit tight, Glen Schmidt, Laricina's chief executive said Tuesday on the sidelines of a heavy oil conference in Calgary.
"First we need stable capital markets and we have to achieve the operating state that we're comfortable with -- that we have the right information to address the needs of the public market," he said.
"And we're managing quite well what we can control, which is our operations, so we're pleased with the progress. But today, capital markets look weak, and so our expectations are it is more likely 2013 than 2012."
A large chunk of Laricina stock sold on the grey market for $30 per share two weeks ago, and sellers are now asking about $28, according to Liquidity Source.
Laricina on Tuesday unveiled a new oil sands technology it, along with its partners, hope will eliminate the need for water in in-situ projects, as well as cut greenhouse gas emissions by up to a third. The extraction concept worked in preliminary tests, the consortium said, but a pilot project will not start until next year. If it proves successful, Laricina's extraction costs will drop and it believes it will be able to suck more oil out of the ground. Even if it works, commercialization is also years away.
Carrie Tait