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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited

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FY2013 Annual Report · Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited
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Annual report and accounts 2013

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About us

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited is an 
independent exploration and production 
company, with five discoveries across 
a world-class portfolio of exploration, 
development and production assets in 
the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, including the 
Shaikan field, one of the largest onshore 
developments in the world today.

2013 was another successful year for Gulf Keystone as 
we made the transition from pure exploration player to 
exploration, development and production company.

As we head towards a phase of significant production from 
Shaikan, we strive to continuously improve our operational 
performance, utilising the funding we have in place, with 
our ongoing exploration and appraisal activity expected to 
result in further upside.

visit us online at  
gulfkeystone.com

01
Contents

what’s inside ?

Read more 
on page 02

An overview of key actions and 
events in 2013 and early 2014 
together with our priorities as 
we move forward.

Read more 
on page 26

More detailed reporting on 
activity across the Group 
during 2013 and early 2014.

Read more 
on page 44

Introduced by our Chairman, 
Simon Murray, this section 
provides information on how the 
company is governed including 
risk management and activities 
of the board.

Read more 
on page 83

Includes our financial statements, 
notes and auditor’s reports for the 
Group as well as a glossary.

Strategic report
02   Year in review
06   Chairman’s statement
08  CEO’s statement
10  Our business model
12  Strategy and performance
16  Competent Person’s report
18  Strategic priorities
24   Corporate social responsibility review

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Performance review
26  Operational review
28   Production: Shaikan
31   Appraisal: Sheikh Adi
32   Development & appraisal: Akri-Bijeel
33   Discovery: Ber Bahr
34  Management of principal risks and uncertainties
38  Financial review

Governance
44  Chairman’s introduction
46  Board of Directors
50  Senior management
51  Directors’ report
54  Corporate governance report
60  Audit Committee report
65  Nominations Committee report
67   Remuneration Committee report

4,000

3,500

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0

3,476

39%

39%

2,261

30%

36%

776

100%

34%

22%

Fixed

In line with 
expectations

Maximum

Long-term incentive
Annual variable
Fixed

Financials
83  Directors’ responsibilities statement
84 
Independent auditor’s report 
88  Consolidated income statement
88   Consolidated statement of comprehensive income
89   Consolidated balance sheet
90   Consolidated statement of changes in equity
91   Consolidated cash flow statement
92  Summary of significant accounting policies
100   Notes to the consolidated Financial statements

Additional information
122  Directors, advisers and officers
IBC  Glossary

Front cover 
Shaikan production facility 
(“PF–1”)

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
02
Year in review

progress during the year

19 June 2013
Drilling Shaikan -7

Shaikan-7 deep exploration well, 
spudded in June 2013 to gain 
insight into deep undrilled horizons 
in the Triassic and potentially 
the Permian to add to already 
discovered resources.

Trucks for loading at Shaikan PF-1

26 June 2013
Field Development Plan

The approval of Shaikan Field 
Development Plan in June 2013 was 
a historic moment in the evolution 
of the Company. We are currently 
ramping up production to achieve 
the initial target of 40,000 bopd 
and then on to the Phase-1 target 
of 100,000 bopd, allowing further 
expansion of export crude oil sales.

Petroleum engineering students at Shaikan PF-1

24 July 2013
Commercial Production 
&  Exports

In July 2013 the Company 
commenced commercial 
production at Shaikan 
from PF-1. In December 
2013 Shaikan crude export 
deliveries by truck to 
Turkey, in line with the 
Company’s marketing 
strategy developed 
in co-operation with 
the Kurdistan Regional 
Government’s Ministry of 
Natural Resources, began.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

03

Gulf Keystone is moving 
into large-scale phased 
development of the 
Shaikan Field
Our target is to increase production 
capacity to 40,000 bopd in 2014 
and 66,000 bopd by 2016 before 
progressing to the medium-term 
target of 100,000 bopd in line with 
the approved Phase 1 of Shaikan FDP

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10 September 2013
Litigation success

Completion of the trial in the English 
Commercial Court in London of all 
the claims asserted by Excalibur 
Ventures LLC (“Excalibur”) against 
Gulf Keystone, two of its subsidiaries 
(together the “Companies”) and 
Texas Keystone Inc. with all claims 
dismissed and all issues ruled in 
favour of and costs awarded to the 
Companies and Texas Keystone Inc.

November 2013
Tap issue of Convertible Bonds

A successful “tap issue” of the 
unsecured convertible bonds in 
the amount of US$50 million, was 
completed, consolidated with the 
US$275,000,000 convertible bonds 
issued in October 2012 and due 
October 2017, confirming investor 
interest to invest in the Company’s 
evolving story.

Shaikan production facility PF-1

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
04
Year in review
continued

progress CONTINUES in 2014

13 March 2014
Competent Person’s Report (“CPR”)

The release of the CPR in March 
2014 was an important step in 
Gulf Keystone’s transition from an 
independent oil and gas exploration 
company to an exploration and 
production company, providing a 
baseline for continued development 
of Shaikan and our other assets. 

Storage tank at Shaikan PF-1

25 March 2014
Move to Main Market

On 25 March 2014 the 
Company moved from AIM 
and was admitted, with 
a Standard listing, to the 
Official List of the United 
Kingdom Listing Authority 
(“UKLA”) and to trading 
on the Main Market, 
at The London Stock 
Exchange plc.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

Loading bay at Shaikan PF-1

05

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Acknowledgement of our community investment and 
engagement from the Mayor of Shaikan

9 April 2014
Funding in place

On 9 April 2014 the 
Company successfully 
raised US$250 million 
in debt financing. This 
is our first conventional 
high-yield bond.

1 April 2014
CSR Plan

During 2013 we had a dedicated CSR team working on the 
development of a corporate social responsibility (“CSR”) long 
term plan, which was approved by the Ministry of Natural 
Resources in April 2014, setting out a comprehensive range 
of actions demonstrating our long-term commitment to the 
region and its people.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
06
Chairman’s statement

ADDRESS of Non-Executive Chairman

It is a great privilege to 
address shareholders of 
Gulf Keystone in this, my 
first Chairman’s statement 
since joining the Company 
in July 2013.

In the past twelve months, Gulf Keystone has continued 
its remarkable journey and has further consolidated 
its position as one of the leading independent 
exploration companies in the Kurdistan Region of 
Iraq. Most significantly, however, your company has 
successfully transitioned from a pure exploration player 
into being a meaningful development and production 
company with a clear path to producing 100,000 bopd. 
The approval in June 2013 of the Field Development 
Plan (“FDP”) for the world-class Shaikan commercial 
discovery, the first among the Production Sharing 
Contracts awarded in or after 2007 in the region, is a 
clear highlight of the reporting period and a resounding 
endorsement of the Company by the Kurdistan Regional 
Government’s Ministry of Natural Resources (“KRG” 
and “MNR”) . 

I am acutely conscious that since the time when 
commercial production from the Shaikan field began in 
late July we have not achieved the levels of oil sales that 
we had hoped to achieve during 2013, despite having a 
higher level of production capacity available since the 
summer. However, since December 2013, when Shaikan 
crude oil deliveries by truck commenced to export 
markets, our ramp-up in production has been increasing 
steadily and we are determined to continue in the same 
vein in 2014. 

Simon Murray
Non-Executive Chairman

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

07

As one of the genuine early movers into the Kurdistan Region 
of Iraq, Gulf Keystone is a trusted and long standing partner of 
the KRG and people of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Not only 
are we playing a key part in the development of Kurdistan’s 
considerable oil wealth, but we continue to make a significant 
contribution to the economic and social fabric of the region 
through our community relations programme. As you will read 
in this report, this includes a number of sustainable initiatives 
primarily focused around training, education and healthcare, 
designed to not only improve the standard of living of those 
closest to our areas of operations, but to ensure that the region’s 
hugely talented population have the opportunities to fulfil their 
potential, including in future generations having the requisite 
skillset to develop their extensive natural resources for the long 
term good of the country. In 2013, in consultation with the 
MNR, we commenced the work on the Company’s long-term 
corporate social responsibility (“CSR”) plan, encompassing 
all aspects of our operations. We are pleased to report that 
this work has now been completed and the plan has been 
submitted to the MNR for final approval. 

In addition, in response to the MNR’s request to support its 
activities to alleviate the plight of hundreds of thousands 
of Syrian refugees fleeing their homeland and crossing the 
border into the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, we made an industry 
leading pledge to support the KRG and to help avoid a 
humanitarian crisis.

In preparation for our transition from AIM to the Standard 
Segment of the Official List and admission to trading on the 
Main Market of the London Stock Exchange (“LSE”), which 
was successfully accomplished in March 2014, considerable 
progress was made to ensure that the business was 
structured accordingly. Part of that preparation included the 
commissioning of a Competent Person’s Report (“CPR”), which 
established an important and understandably conservative 
initial baseline for Gulf Keystone’s reserves and resources and 
which we can build on going forward. AIM has been a very 
good home for Gulf Keystone since our IPO in 2004, but as we 
continue to grow and realise the potential of our world class 
acreage, we felt it was the appropriate moment to move up. 
With the support of our advisers (we were pleased to welcome 
Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch into the team during the 
year), a considerable amount of endeavour has gone into 
preparing for life as a Main Market company.

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One key work stream has been ensuring the highest standards 
of corporate governance, a review which started with the 
splitting of the Chairman and Chief Executive roles. I joined 
in July and thereafter we welcomed five new Non-Executive 
Directors during the year. In 2013 and the year to date we 
have made good progress towards many of our objectives, 
even though we have a great deal further to go in the year 
ahead. Among our achievements I would like to underline the 
establishment of a new remuneration policy in line with the 
advice of external advisers and a general tightening of internal 
and external procedures consistent with the move to the Main 
Market. I should also mention that our executive directors 
volunteered directly to forego any short-term bonuses in 
respect of 2013.

On behalf of everyone at Gulf Keystone, I would again like 
to thank Ali Al-Qabandi, the co-founder of the Company, 
and Mehdi Varzi, a long-standing Non-Executive Director, for 
all of their input and contributions in helping to build Gulf 
Keystone into the company it is today. 

I am pleased to report that the Board and its various 
committees, including the most recent addition of the 
“Health, Safety, Security and Environment” and CSR Committee, 
are functioning well and, in advance of the move to the Main 
Market of the LSE, we have adopted the practices and standards 
befitting of a Main Market company. 

Personally, I am extremely excited about the future. 
The business is uniquely well placed to build upon its leading 
position in the region. With the full support of our hosts, our 
world class asset base and the right team in place, including 
our 250-strong workforce in-country, we are well positioned 
to create more value for all of our stakeholders. 

On behalf of the Board I would like to thank the KRG and the 
people of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq for their ongoing faith 
in us. I would also like to thank all our partners and investors, 
as well as everyone within the Company for their unswerving 
commitment to continuing to help Gulf Keystone on its 
remarkable journey. 

Simon Murray
Non-Executive Chairman

26 March 2014

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
08
CEO’s Statement

Strategic review By the CEO

2013 was another year 
of important operational 
progress for Gulf Keystone, 
as the Company completed 
the transition from 
explorer to producer with 
the commencement of 
commercial oil production at 
our flagship Shaikan field in 
the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

I would like to thank the Government of the Kurdistan 
Region of Iraq for their support as we move towards our 
vision of being a significant independent exploration, 
development and production company listed on the 
Main Market of the London Stock Exchange. 

In 2013, the Company continued to appraise the Sheikh 
Adi discovery, while two additional discoveries were 
made by our partners on the Akri-Bijeel and Ber Bahr 
blocks. This remarkable exploration success means that 
today Gulf Keystone has a share in four contiguous 
blocks with five discoveries with one of them already 
being at an early stage of commercial production. 

The commencement of commercial oil production 
from the Shaikan field followed approval in June of the 
Shaikan FDP by the MNR. This was a historic moment 
for Gulf Keystone, and we are proud to be working with 
the MNR and our partner MOL to continue to develop 
the field. We have been a pioneer in the region from 
the outset and this milestone reconfirmed our goal 
to become a key player in the upstream oil industry 
in Kurdistan.

The first Shaikan production facility (PF-1), capable 
of producing 20,000 barrels of oil per day, was fully 
commissioned in July with domestic sales achieved 
shortly after in August. The Company continued to 
monetise its production through domestic sales until 
December 2013 when crude oil export deliveries by 
truck to Turkey commenced, in line with the Company’s 
marketing strategy developed in co-operation with 
the MNR. 

Todd F Kozel
Chief Executive Officer

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

09

Total production from Shaikan, since the early production 
operations began in late 2010, is now rapidly approaching 
2.6 million barrels, out of which three cargoes totalling 
approximately 690,000 barrels have already been trucked to 
Turkey and loaded for delivery to international markets with the 
fourth cargo expected to be loaded by the end of March 2014. 

Three wells are currently tied to the facility, namely Shaikan-1, 
-3 and -4. Production from PF-1 has recently increased from 
10,000 bopd to approximately 16,000 bopd and we plan 
to reach 20,000 bopd of production in the near term. The 
second Shaikan production facility (“PF-2”) is currently being 
commissioned with two wells, Shaikan-2 and -5, already tied 
into the facility. Production from PF-2, which ultimately will be 
capable of producing 20,000 bopd, will commence in Q2 2014. 
Our immediate focus remains on achieving the target of 40,000 
bopd of production capacity by the end of 2014. 

These operational highlights were followed early in 2014 by 
the first third party evaluation of the Reserves, Contingent 
Resources and Prospective Resources of our interests in the 
Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The CPR, prepared by ERC Equipoise 
Limited, identified 12.5 billion barrels of gross oil in place 
and 1.2 billion barrels of oil of combined gross 2P and 2C 
recoverable reserves and resources across the Company’s 
portfolio, comprising the Shaikan, Sheikh Adi, Ber Bahr and 
Akri-Bijeel blocks. It is an important step in the growth of Gulf 
Keystone, demonstrating the size of our assets and significant 
potential for future increases in the existing numbers of 
reserves and resources. Shaikan is a significant industry asset 
with 2P value of US$1 billion, as indicated in the CPR, which 
does not take into account our extensive contingent resources. 
It is important to remember that we have not yet appraised the 
full potential of the field. As we drill more wells and increase 
production we will get a fuller understanding of its geology and 
the recovery factor assumptions are expected to increase. 

Shaikan is a phased development and the Company today is 
at an important juncture in this process. We have achieved 
several months of stable production and exports record, 
following which we are on a clear path to ramp up production 
from Shaikan, while fully expecting to receive the first payment 
for Shaikan crude export deliveries in line with the terms of 
the Shaikan Production Sharing Contract. The increase of 
production from 20,000 bopd to 40,000 bopd will enable us to 
generate substantial cash flow and help us progress to the full 
implementation of Phase 1 of the Shaikan FDP. Being operator 
of Shaikan means that we control the pace of development and 
capital expenditure and we will continue to seek funding at an 
appropriate cost of capital and a structure for the continued 
development of the Shaikan field and activities related to 
other fields in which the Company has participating interests. 
Financing decisions in order to fund the Shaikan Phase 1 
activities will be made in conjunction with an anticipated 
increase in production capacity and sales of up to 40,000 bopd 
in 2014 and the recurring revenues this will provide. 

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As Gulf Keystone matures as a producer, an increasingly 
diversified base of funding opportunities will become available.

In December, we were extremely pleased to have reached the 
end of the trial of the claims asserted by Excalibur against the 
Company, its two subsidiaries and Texas Keystone Inc. After a 
three year long process, which required a lot of time and effort 
from the Company and created unfortunate and significant 
uncertainty for our shareholders, the English Commercial 
Court ruled in our favour in the most unequivocal manner, 
acknowledging the speculative nature of Excalibur’s claims, 
all of which have been dismissed. We worked hard to defend 
our position in the interests of our shareholders and the Court 
ruled all issues in favour of and awarded costs to the Companies 
and Texas Keystone Inc. In January 2014, the Company received 
£16.9 million of litigation costs incurred by the Companies 
and Texas Keystone Inc. and commenced proceedings to 
recover additional £5.61 million of the litigation costs from 
Excalibur’s funders. 

I strongly believe that the Company’s move to the Main Market 
in March 2014 has been an important and necessary hurdle for 
us to demonstrate the Company’s increased size and maturity 
as an E&P player, as well as our desire to target a broader 
institutional investor audience. Having now passed this hurdle, 
the Board and the management team are aligned and focused 
on delivering the Company’s strategy. 

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my fellow Board 
members, my management team and all the Company’s 
employees for their commitment, dedication and hard work 
over the past twelve months. 2013 was another year of growth 
and delivery for Gulf Keystone and this is down to the efforts of 
our team.

Finally, at the end of 2013, important political momentum was 
gained with the completion of the Kurdistan-Turkey export 
oil pipeline, which became fully operational early in 2014. 
It is a major achievement for the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and, 
having made the significant leap from explorer to producer, 
Gulf Keystone will continue to progress with the development 
of the Shaikan field in 2014, making an increasing contribution 
to Kurdistan’s production and exports. We look forward to 
continuing to work for the benefit of the Kurdistan Region 
of Iraq and all our stakeholders. 

Todd F Kozel
Chief Executive Officer

26 March 2014

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
10
Our business model

Balanced portfolio

Our portfolio of exploration, development and production assets 
enables us to sustain continuous growth and value creation.

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OUTLOOK

Production and sales
We aim to ramp-up Shaikan production 
capacity to 40,000 bopd by the end of 
2014 and then to 66,000 bopd in 2016, 
before progressing to the medium-term 
target of 100,000 bopd in line with 
the approved Phase 1 of the Shaikan 
FDP, which will allow expansion of 
export sales in order to generate steady 
revenues. We then aim to utilise cash 
generated from increasing oil sales, in 
addition to the available debt financing, 
for drilling development wells and 
implementing further production facilities.

Reserves and resources upside
With the potential to add significant 
further upside to reserves and resources 
we hope to obtain and evaluate results of 
the Shaikan-7 exploration well, currently 
targeting deeper Triassic and potentially 
Permian horizons in the Shaikan block, 
we plan to side-track the original 
Shaikan-6 appraisal well to allow better 
understanding of the oil water contact 
levels in Shaikan. Subject to the results 
from Shaikan-7 we will need to prepare 
a review of the Shaikan FDP to include 
Cretaceous, Triassic and potentially 
Permian developments.

We will continue to appraise the Sheikh 
Adi discovery and target additional 
exploration prospects on the block 
while we make decisions regarding early 
production and development.

Pipeline
At the end of 2013, important political 
momentum was gained with the 
completion of the Kurdistan-Turkey 
export oil pipeline, which became 
fully operational early in 2014 and 
as we continue to progress with the 
development of the Shaikan field in 2014 
we hope to conclude discussions with 
the MNR on a connection of the Shaikan 
field to the regional oil export pipeline 
infrastructure.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

11

BB-1

Ber Bahr

ASSET OVERVIEW

SA-2

SA-1

Sheikh Adi

SA-3

SH-4

SUMMARY OF CPR

Across the Company’s portfolio
Aggregate STOIIP 

12.500 MMstb

Aggregate 2P + 2C  Over 1.2 bn barrels of recoverable oil

Shaikan block only
SSTOIIP 

Jurassic STOIIP  

2P  

2C  

2P + 2C recoverable  

9,215 MMstb 

6,194 MMstb

299 MMstb

702 MMstb

1,001 MMstb

2P based on the Shaikan Phase 1 Jurassic development  
comprising only first 26 wells
Ber Bahr
Indicative Jurassic recovery factor (2P+2C) is 12%

BB-1

SA-2

SH-1/SH-3

SH-10

SH-7

SH-8

SH-2

SH-5

SH-6

Bakrman-1

Bijell-3

Bijell-6

Central
Dohuk

Ber Bahr

Sheikh Adi

Akri-Bijeel

Sarsang

Bijell-4

Bijell-1

Bijell-2

Bijell-7

Dohuk

Al Qosh

Gulf Keystone operated block

Development area

Discovery

Under evaluation

Complete

Drilling

Planned

Pipeline

Shaikan

Akri-Bijeel

Jabal
Kand

Rovl

Ain
Sifnl

Bashiqa

Sarta

Bardarash

Harir

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SH-1/SH-3
Ber Bahr
SH-7

PF-1

SH-4

SH-10

BB-1

SH-5

SH-2

SA-2

Sheikh Adi

PF-2

SA-1

SH-6

SH-1/SH-3

SH-10

SA-3

SH-4

SH-7

SH-8

SH-2

SH-8

Shaikan

Bakrman-1

SH-5

SH-6

SH-5

SH-6

Bakrman-1

Akri-Bijeel

Bijell-3

Bijell-6

Bijell-1

Bijell-4

Bijell-2

Bijell-7

Sheikh Adi

SA-1

SA-3

SH-4

SH-7

SH-8

SH-2

SH-1/SH-3

SH-10

CPR: OTHER ASSETS
Sheikh Adi
STOIIP 

2,256 MMstb (discovered)

Akri-Bijeel

Bijell-3

Bijell-6

Bijell-1

Bijell-4

Bijell-2

Bijell-7

2C (Jurassic)  

657 MMstb (undiscovered)

2,913 MMstb (total)

152 MMstb

Ber Bahr

BB-1

SA-2

Indicative Jurassic recovery factor 8% (scope for upward revision)

Sheikh Adi

SA-1

Further prospectivity identified

SH-1/SH-3

SH-10

SA-3

SH-4

SH-7

SH-8

SH-2

SH-5

SH-6

Bakrman-1

Ber Bahr
STOIIP 

2C (Jurassic)  

3D seismic and further well in 2014

656 MMstb (discovered)

102 MMstb (undiscovered)

758 MMstb (total)

22 MMstb

Ber Bahr

BB-1

SA-2

Sheikh Adi

SA-1

SA-3

SH-4

SH-7

SH-8

SH-2

SH-1/SH-3

SH-10

Ber Bahr

BB-1

SA-2

SH-1/SH-3

Sheikh Adi

SA-1

379 MMstb (discovered)
SA-3
SH-8

SH-4

SH-7

41 MMstb

2 MMstb

Akri-Bijeel
STOIIP 

2C (Jurassic)  

2C (Triassic)  

Early production and FDP in 2014

Considerable upside; the Company’s (and Operator’s)  
OIP estimates are significantly higher than CPR 

Note, all numbers are gross.

SH-10

SH-2

SH-5

SH-6

Bakrman-1

Akri-Bijeel

Bijell-3

Bijell-6

Bijell-1

Bijell-4

Bijell-2

Bijell-7

Ber Bahr

BB-1

SA-2

SH-1/SH-3

Akri-Bijeel

SH-5

SH-6

Bakrman-1

Akri-Bijeel

Bijell-3

Bijell-6

Bijell-1

Bijell-4

Bijell-2

Bijell-7

Bijell-3

Bijell-6

Bijell-1

Bijell-4

Bijell-2

Bijell-7

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013
Bakrman-1

SH-10

SH-5

Sheikh Adi

SA-1

SA-3

SH-4

SH-7

SH-8

SH-2

SH-6

Bijell-3

Bijell-6

Bijell-1

Bijell-4

Bijell-2

Bijell-7

Akri-Bijeel

Ber Bahr

BB-1

SA-2

SH-1/SH-3

Sheikh Adi

SA-1

SA-3

SH-4

SH-7

SH-8

SH-2

SH-10

SH-5

SH-6

Bakrman-1

Bijell-3

Bijell-6

Bijell-1

Bijell-4

Bijell-2

Bijell-7

Akri-Bijeel

Ber Bahr

BB-1

SA-2

SH-1/SH-3

Sheikh Adi

SA-1

SA-3

SH-4

SH-7

SH-8

SH-2

SH-10

SH-5

SH-6

Bakrman-1

Bijell-3

Bijell-6

Bijell-1

Bijell-4

Bijell-2

Bijell-7

Akri-Bijeel

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
12
Strategy and performance

STRATEGY AND KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

Vision to build major independent exploration and production company 

Strategy

Objective

KPIs

Execute development 
plan, ramp-up 
production

•	 Increase reserve base
•	 Maximise production 
•	 Efficient development and production 
•	 Achieve positive operating cash flow as 

we progressively develop our assets

operations

Increase reserve and 
resource base 

•	 Increase value of assets

•	 Reserve additions
•	 Average gross production
•	 Gross operating cost per barrel
•	 Cash flow from operating activities
•	 Shaikan reserves - 299 mmboe 

gross 
(first independently assigned in the March 
2014 ERC Equipoise CPR )

and revisions

•	 Reserve additions
•	 Contingent resource additions 
•	 Conversion of 2C contingent 
•	 Submission of development plans

resources to 2P reserves

Pursue quality 
investment 
opportunities

Attain highest 
levels of corporate 
governance

Ensure leading 
corporate social 
responsibility 
standards in line with 
company status

•	 Maintain balanced portfolio of assets
•	 Generate value for investors
•	 Seek new exploration opportunities
•	 Market non-core assets

•	 Assets’ NPVs
•	 Share price and debt price

is appropriate

•	 Ensure remuneration framework 
•	 Ensure appropriate independent 
•	 Increase shareholder confidence

challenge of executive management

•	 Compliance with the UK Corporate 
•	 Results of the shareholders’ vote at 

Governance Code

the AGM

•	 Delivery against the Company’s 

long-term CSR plan

openness, integrity and accountability

•	 Carry out all operations with 
•	 Creating opportunities to develop 
•	 Maintain exceptional relationships 

and acquire talent

with KRG/MNR and other 
stakeholders in the area of our 
operation in an environment of 
mutual respect and co-operation

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

13

2013
2012
2011
2010

2013
2012
2011
2010

2013
2012
2011
2010

Gross operating cost per barrel $/bbl

18.7
14.9
17.5
5.9

0

5.0

10.0

15.0

20.0

Average gross production bopd

1,361
2,282
548
155

0

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

Cash flow from operating activities $ million

0

-10

-20

-30

-40

-50

-60

-70

-42.1
-59.4
-23.7
-26.5

Progress made in 2013/14

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•	 Construction of PF-1 and -2
•	 Shaikan FDP approval
•	 Start of Shaikan commercial production 
•	 Publication of the CPR (first third-party 

and exports

evaluation of the Company’s reserves 
and resources)

•	 Shaikan reserves –299 mmboe gross 

(first independently assigned in the March 2014 ERC 
Equipoise CPR)

•	 Contingent resource (3C) across four blocks 

– 2,041 mmboe gross 
(first independently assigned in the March 2014 ERC 
Equipoise CPR)

•	 Publication of the CPR (first third-party 

evaluation of the Company’s reserves 
and resources)

•	 Drilling of Shaikan -7 to evaluate the 

previously undrilled mid to lower Triassic 
and potentially Permian horizons

•	 Ber Bahr Jurassic discovery
•	 Sheikh adi appraisal

•	 Akri-Bijeel: Bakrman discovery
•	 Akri Bijeel: declaration of the block as 

commercial based on Bijell and Bakrman 
discoveries; FDP under preparation

•	 Akri Bijeel: commencement of early 

production from the Bijell discovery

•	 Shaikan 2P value at 10% discount rate is 

$1,064 million 
(source: March 2014 ERC Equipoise CPR)

•	 Progress made on all four blocks which 

are at different stages of exploration, 
appraisal and/or development

•	 Divestment of the Company’s 20% 

working interest in the Akri-Bijeel block 
is ongoing

•	 The Company currently notes three instances 

of non-compliance with the UK Corporate 
Governance Code, which it wants to address

•	 The vote on the remuneration policy and 

annual report on remuneration will be first 
introduced for the 2014 AGM

March 2014

•	 Move from AIM to the Main Market in 
•	 Splitting of Chairman and CEO roles
•	 Voluntary adoption of the UK Corporate 

Governance Code

•	 Determination of Shaikan NPV based 

on the reserves as per the March 2014 
ERC Equipoise CPR

•	 Appointment of 5 additional 
•	 Appointment of Non-Executive 

Non-Executive Directors to the Board

Chairman Simon Murray

•	 The Competency based framework 

(CBF), was rolled out at Shaikan PF-1 
in September 2013 with 50 personnel 
enrolled in the programme. To date there 
have been 22 promotions as a direct result 
of the CBF

•	 9 community investment projects 

completed in 2013

long-term CSR plan

•	 Development and MNR approval of the 
•	 Significant increase in 
•	 Competency based training programmes 

community projects

for staff put in place

•	 Increased manpower on the ground
•	 Company’s launch of a regular CSR 

newsletter in English, Kurdish and Arabic

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
14
Strategy and performance
continued

SHAIKAN Field development plan

The approval of the Shaikan Field Development Plan in June 2013  
by the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Ministry of Natural Resources 
was a historic moment for the Company.

Additional Wells

Crude oil export deliveries by truck

phase 1

Initial stage

The next step

Medium-term target

The approved Shaikan FDP envisages 
initial production building from 
20,000 bopd at PF-1 to 40,000 bopd 
by the end of Q4 2014 following the 
commissioning and ramping up of 
PF-2 and allowing further expansion 
of export crude oil deliveries. 

The planned next step of the Shaikan 
project execution will see production 
capacity increasing from 40,000 bopd 
to 66,000 bopd in Q1 2016, which will 
require more wells and an additional 
production facility.

The medium-term target is 100,000 
bopd in line with the approved 
Phase 1 of Shaikan FDP.

Shaikan Phase 1 is focused on the 
first 26 development wells targeting 
299MMstb of 2P reserves and the 
ramp-up of commercial production.

40,000 BOPD

66,000 BOPD

100,000 BOPD

Phase 1 development

PF-1

SH-4

SH-1

SH-7

SH-3

SH-8

SH-10

SH-2

SH-5

SH-6

PF-2

Maraiba
Pipeyard

0

2.5

5

Kilometers

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

15

The approval meant that we could begin Phase 1 of the staged large-scale development of 
Shaikan and fully permitted us to commence commercial production from the Shaikan field, 
thus representing a key milestone in the Company’s growth. 

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Additional production facilities

Crude oil deliveries via pipeline

full field development

Further reserves

Shaikan Full Field Development envisages approximately 
109 development wells targeting 1,001MMstb of 
2P + 2C reserves and contingent resources. Further 
reserves are fully expected in time through drilling 
more wells and obtaining more production data. 

Conversion from 2C contingent resources to 2P reserves 
will be driven by approval of the next phase of the 
Shaikan development.

109 wells

Full field development

PF-1

SH-4

SH-1

SH-7

SH-3

SH-8

0

2.5

5

Kilometers

SH-5

SH-6

Maraiba
Pipeyard

SH-10

SH-2

PF-2

Legend
Legend
Legend

Licence
Licence
Licence

GKP field location
GKP field location
GKP field location

Existing well
Existing well
Existing well

Phase 1 well
Phase 1 well
Phase 1 well

Fullfield development 
Full field 
development well
envisaged well

Pipeline proposed
Pipeline existing
Pipeline proposed

Flowline
Pipeline proposed
Pipeline existing

Shaikan discovery
Shaikan discovery
Shaikan discovery

Development area
Development area
Development area

Well locations are approximate 
Well locations are approximate 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
16
CPR report

Competent Person’s Report

Publication of the CPR prepared by ERC Equipoise Limited is the first 
third-party evaluation of the Company’s Reserves, Contingent Resources 
and Prospective Resources across the portfolio in the Kurdistan Region of 
Iraq, comprising the Shaikan, Sheikh Adi, Ber Bahr and Akri-Bijeel blocks. 
The CPR is an important step in Gulf Keystone’s transition from an independent oil and gas 
exploration company to an exploration and production company providing a baseline for 
continued development of our assets.

GROSS AND NET Oil In Place, RESERVES & RESOURCES

Gross and net oil in place,  
reserves & resources 

Oil 
 (mmbbls) 

Gas 
 (bcf ) 

Total 
 (mmboe)(1) 

GKP WI 
(diluted) 

Oil 
(mmbbls) 

Gas 
 (bcf )  

Total 
(mmboe)(1)

Gross 

Working Interest (“WI”)

STOIIP (Best)

Shaikan 

Sheikh Adi 

Ber Bahr 

Bijell 

Bakrman 

Total 

2P reserves

Shaikan 

2C resources

Shaikan 

Sheikh Adi 

Ber Bahr 

Bijell 

Bakrman 

Total 

2P + 2C 

Notes: 
Reserves and resources as at 1 January 2014 
(1)  6bcf of gas = 1mmboe 
Source: March 2014 ERC Equipoise CPR

operator and partner

Block 

Shaikan 

Sheikh Adi 

Ber Bahr 

Akri-Bijeel(1) 

9,215 

2,256 

656 

371 

8 

988 

— 

— 

— 

— 

9,380 

2,256 

656 

371 

8 

54.4%* 

80.0% 

40.0% 

12.8% 

12.8% 

5,013 

1,805 

262 

47 

1 

537 

— 

— 

— 

— 

5,013

1,805

262

47

1

12,506 

988 

12,671 

54.4%* 

7,129 

537 

7,218

299 

702 

152 

22 

41 

2 

919 

1,218 

— 

575 

36 

4 

10 

3 

628 

628 

299 

798 

158 

23 

43 

3 

1,024 

1,323 

54.4%* 

80.0% 

40.0% 

12.8% 

12.8% 

163 

— 

382 

122 

9 

5 

— 

518 

681 

313 

29 

2 

1 

— 

345 

345 

163

434

127

9

5

—

576

739

WI 

75% 

80% 

40% 

20% 

Diluted 

Operator 

  Other Partner

51%(3) 

80% 

40% 

12.8% 

GKP 

GKP 

Genel 

MOL 

MOL (20%), TKI (5%)(2)

KRG (20%)

Genel (40%), KRG (20%)

MOL (80%)

Notes:  
(1)  Gulf Keystone Petroleum International (“GKPI”) holding subject to third party and Kurdistan Regional Government’s (“KRG”) back-in-rights.
(2)  Texas Keystone inc. (“TKI”) holds its interest in trust for GKPI, pending transfer of its interest to GKPI.
(3) 

Inclusive of TKI’s holding increases to 54.4%*.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
17

The CPR INCLUDES
•	 Total 12.5 billion barrels of discovered gross oil-in-place across 
•	 1.2 billion recoverable barrels of gross 2P reserves and 2C 

the portfolio

contingent resources 

UPSIDE TO THE CPR

Shaikan block

No exploration upside is considered in the CPR
•	 Significant undiscovered resource in the Cretaceous in the 
•	 Deeper Triassic and Permian prospectivity across the portfolio
•	 Exploration prospects in the northern part of the Sheikh Adi block
•	 Possible field extensions in the Sheikh Adi block
•	 Additional exploration prospects in the Akri-Bijeel block

UNLOCKING FURTHER POTENTIAL 
•	 Shaikan project execution will drive the move of 2C contingent 
•	 Shaikan-7 is testing deeper Triassic and potentially Permian horizons
•	 Shaikan-6 will be side-tracked and re-tested to confirm the 

resources into 2P reserves through the implementation of the FDP

Company’s belief of the deeper OWC level

Shaikan oil-in-place 
•	 Total gross oil-in-place (discovered and undiscovered) of 
•	 Shaikan Phase 1 is targeting the Sargelu, Alan and Mus formations 

13.265 billion of barrels

only in the Jurassic interval

•	 759 million barrels of undiscovered gross oil-in-place across 

Sheikh Adi, Ber Bahr and Akri-Bijeel

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Oil water contact (“OWC”)
•	 Deepening of the OWC level by 10 metres in Shaikan will confirm 

significant volumes of new oil in fractures

Fracture porosity 
•	 Current conservative fracture treatment has considerable scope 
•	 Increase of 0.2% in fracture porosity will confirm significant volumes 

for upward revision

of new recoverable oil

•	 New drilling and production data will be acquired to support the 
•	 Shaikan production and exports will generate cash flows and 

Company’s belief that fracture porosity is higher

enhance the Company’s financial capacity to exploit the full 
potential of its resource base

•	 Significant undiscovered resource in the Cretaceous, Triassic 

and Permian

Cretaceous – discovered 
26%

Jurassic Butmah 
26%

Phase 1  
will develop 
sargelu, Alan  
and mus only

Triassic 
6%

Jurassic Sargelu 
6%

Jurassic Alan 
13%

Jurassic Mus 
20%

Jurassic Adaiyah 
3%

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
18
Strategic priorities

EXPLORE
As the most successful explorer 
in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq 
with five discoveries across 
four contiguous blocks we 
have now made the complete 
transition from exploration 
to production.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
20
Strategic priorities

PRODUCE
EXPLORE
We are increasing 
As the most successful 
production to meet the 
explorer in the Kurdistan 
Company’s targets in line 
Region of Iraq with five 
with the Kurdistan Regional 
commercial discoveries across 
Government’s expectations 
four contingent blocks we 
have now made the complete 
and generate revenues to 
grow the business using the 
transition from exploration to 
production.
best capabilities built over 
a decade of operations.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
22
Strategic priorities

Deliver
EXPLORE
We aim to maximise the value 
As the most successful 
of the assets through fast and 
explorer in the Kurdistan 
flexible project execution and 
Region of Iraq with five 
additions to the reserve and 
commercial discoveries across 
resource base.
four contingent blocks we 
have now made the complete 
transition from exploration to 
production.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
24
Corporate social responsibility review

making a positive contrIBution

Production from the Shaikan field is set to play a crucial role in helping 
the Kurdistan Region of Iraq achieve its overall oil production and export 
targets, which will be of huge significance to the development of the 
region as a whole. 

Alongside our operational progress in the Shaikan field 
Gulf Keystone has developed a long-term corporate social 
responsibility (CSR) plan, approved by the Ministry of Natural 
Resources, outlining ways in which we are working with the 
Kurdistan Regional Government and local authorities to achieve 
common corporate responsibility aims, with a particular focus 
on community engagement and investment, including training, 
education and healthcare. As the home of our operations, 
we are fully focused on our commitment to the people and 
environment of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

People
We are sensitive to the diverse cultures with whom we interact 
in the course of our operations and we aim to make a positive 
contribution to the communities who are our neighbours. We 
value our diverse workforce, and we are committed to providing 
a workplace free of discrimination where all employees are 
afforded opportunities and are rewarded upon merit and ability.

Community engagement is also an important part of our 
business. We need support of surrounding communities in 
order to run our operations effectively and encouraging mutual 
respect and co-operation through implementation of our 
CSR strategy. 

Health, safety, security and environment
Health, safety, security and environmental considerations are 
core values for Gulf Keystone. We recognise our obligation 
to identify and reduce risks, safeguard people and protect 
the environment, assets and the communities surrounding 
our operations, through commitment to ensuring positive 
leadership, hazard assessment, risk management and excellent 
communication channels on the ground.

Corporate social responsibility report
This year we felt it important to create a separate document in 
order to report on some of the schemes we are engaged with 
in greater detail and enhance understanding of our approach 
to corporate social responsibility. The document contains 
information about our work to date, key elements of our policy 
and future plans which include:
•	 School and medical supplies
•	 Water supplies
•	 Competency based training programmes
•	 Work experience
•	 Health and safety procedures
•	 Environment preservation
•	 Waste management
•	 Support of refugee relief effort
The report also addresses the recognition we have received for 
our community investment and engagement achievements 
to date.

For more information 
please see our Corporate 
social responsibility report

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

25

Refugee crisis
As a company with strong long-standing links to the 
Kurdistan Region of Iraq, we felt it was important to 
show solidarity with the KRG’s decision to provide 
emergency relief to the large number of displaced 
people who arrived in the region from Syria in 
2013. Gulf Keystone pledged $1.00 per each barrel 
produced from 1 September 2013 for a period of 
one year to assist the KRG in their humanitarian 
relief effort

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Atrush Youth Centre on Shaikan block

Total solid waste incinerated in 2013 
stood at 10611.72 KG (approx.) which 
equates to 884.31 KG per month 
(approx.). Organic and metallic ash 
from the incinerator is separated and 
then recycled, significantly reducing 
residual waste volumes

9

community investment projects 
completed in 2013

Petroleum engineering students at Shaikan PF-1

22 promotions

The Competency Based Framework 
(CBF), was rolled out at Shaikan 
PF-1 in September 2013 with 
50 personnel enrolled in the 
programme. To date there have been 
22 promotions within the in-country 
workforce as a direct result of the CBF

Atrush Youth Centre on Shaikan Block

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
26
Operational review

Chief operating officer’s statement

Gulf Keystone achieved 
a number of significant 
milestones in its operations 
in the Kurdistan Region of 
Iraq in 2013. 

After the MNR approved the FDP for the Shaikan field, 
which the Company operates, commercial production 
from this key asset began in late July 2013. Against the 
backdrop of the significant progress being made on 
the independent pipeline infrastructure from Kurdistan 
to Turkey, the Company achieved its goal of having 
Shaikan crude delivered to the export market ahead of 
2014. In December 2013, oil crude trucking operations 
commenced from Shaikan PF-1 with approximately 
690,000 barrels delivered by truck to Turkey by  
mid-March 2014.

Last year, we commenced the implementation of the 
approved Phase 1 of the staged large-scale development 
of Shaikan with the drilling of Shaikan-10, our first 
development well, and achieving stable production 
levels of 10,000 from PF-1 by early 2014, which are 
expected to increase to 20,000 in Q2 2014. Shaikan 
PF-2 is being commissioned and our target is to reach 
cumulative production capacity of 40,000 bopd by the 
end of 2014. 

In an important step in Gulf Keystone’s transition from 
an oil and gas exploration company to a production 
company and as part of our move from AIM to the Main 
Market of the LSE, in March 2014 we released the CPR 
prepared by ERC Equipoise Limited. This report provided 
the Company and the market with the first baseline 
indication of reserves and resources across our portfolio 
in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, against which we will 
now be measuring our future progress. 

John Gerstenlauer
Chief Operating Officer

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

27

key strategic position

Ber Bahr

Shaikan

Akri-Bijeel

BB-1

SA-2

SH-1/SH-3

SA-1

SA-3

SH-4

SH-7

SH-10

SH-8

SH-2

SH-5

SH-6

Bakrman-1

Sheikh Adi

Gulf Keystone operated block

Development area

Discovery

Under evaluation

Complete

Drilling

Planned

Pipeline

Bijell-3

Bijell-6

Bijell-1

Bijell-4

Bijell-2

Bijell-7

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Elsewhere across our portfolio, we began appraising the 
Jurassic discovery on the Sheikh Adi block with the Sheikh Adi-3 
well, which spudded in December 2013. Subject to the outcome 
of the appraisal programme, decisions will be made regarding 
early development and production from Sheikh Adi, which 
we operate. 

In May 2013, Genel Energy, the operator of the Ber Bahr block, 
announced that Ber Bahr-1, the first exploration well on the 
block, confirmed existence of a Jurassic commercial discovery. 
A 3D seismic survey is ongoing and the first appraisal well is 
expected to spud by the end of 2014. Earlier in 2013, MOL, 
the operator of the Akri-Bijeel block, announced a new Triassic 
discovery made with the Bakrman-1 exploration well, before 
declaring the block commercial in October 2013, based on the 
Bijell-1 and Bakrman-1 discoveries. Finally, early production 
from the Bijell Extended Well Test facility commenced with 
initial flow rates of 3,500 bopd, while the operator is planning 
to submit an FDP for the Bijell and Bakrman discoveries in 
Q2 2014.

Reserves and Resources
The CPR identified 12.5 billion barrels of gross oil in place 
and 1.2 billion barrels of oil of combined gross 2P and 2C 
recoverable reserves and resources across the Shaikan, Sheikh 
Adi, Ber Bahr and Akri-Bijeel blocks. All 2P reserves and the 
majority of 2C contingent resources have been identified 
within the Company-operated assets of Shaikan and Sheikh 
Adi, and most of these reserves and resources, based on 
current information, are in the Jurassic formation. 299 million 
barrels of gross 2P oil reserves in the Jurassic formation of the 
Shaikan field, with 163 million barrels of net 2P reserves to Gulf 
Keystone, have been assigned on the basis of the planned 26 
development wells of the Shaikan FDP Phase 1. 

These wells, which will mainly target the Sargelu, Alan and Mus 
formations only in the Jurassic, represent fewer than 25% of 
approximately 109 wells currently envisaged for the Shaikan full 
field development. The CPR establishes an NPV valuation using 
a 10% discount rate of US$1,004 million nominal based on the 
Company’s net entitlement and a “base case” oil price scenario. 
The assumptions dealing with the derivation of the 2P valuation 
are contained in the CPR Section 9 “Shaikan Fiscal Terms” 
and should be referred to in order to understand the basis of 
calculation. The CPR is available on Gulf Keystone’s website at 
http://www.gulfkeystone.com/investor-centre/presentations-
and-technical-reports.

The CPR is an important baseline indication of resources and 
reserves, with potential for future increases through the full 
implementation of Phase 1 of the Shaikan Field Development 
Plan and its further project phases, which will include the 
drilling of a substantial number of development wells, 
acquisition of additional production data from the existing 
and additional production facilities and further exploration 
drilling in and development of the Cretaceous, Triassic and 
potentially Permian formations. The CPR does not take into 
account undrilled and untested horizons, which are currently 
being targeted by our first deep exploration well on Shaikan, 
and we see a clear route for unlocking the upside to these 
initial 2P and 2C numbers through drilling more wells and thus 
obtaining a better understanding of the oil water contact levels 
and the actual fracture porosity. We also anticipate that our 2C 
contingent resources will be converted to 2P reserves as the 
next phase of the Shaikan development gets approved. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
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Operational review

SHAIKAN

The Shaikan block is situated about 85 km to the north-
west of Erbil covering an area of 283 km² and is one of the 
largest onshore developments in the world today. Significant 
operational progress has been made on the Shaikan block since 
the Shaikan-1 world-class discovery in 2009 to the approval 
of the Shaikan field Development Plan and commencement 
of commercial production in July and export deliveries in 
December 2013.

Unlocking value through phased development

PF-1

PF-2

Shaikan 1

Shaikan 3

Shaikan 4

Additional 
Shaikan well

Shaikan 2

Shaikan 5

Shaikan 10

Additional 
Shaikan well

•	 Operational since June 2013
•	 Commercial production commenced in 

July 2013

•	 Production capacity of 20,000 bopd
•	 In March 2014 PF-1 output reached 

16,000 bopd

•	 Shaikan 1, 3 and 4 tied in
•	 Potential re-configuration of Shaikan 8 

into fourth producer

•	 Mechanically complete with 
commissioning ongoing
•	 Shaikan 2 and 5 wells tied-in
•	 Shaikan 10 connection to be completed 

Q2 2014

•	 Production capacity 20,000bopd
•	 Combined with PF-1 we will have the 
production capacity of 40,000 bopd

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

29

75%

Working interest; 
Operator

Further to the MNR’s approval of the Shaikan FDP, Gulf Keystone 
obtained the right to commence commercial production from 
the field in June 2013. The approved Phase 1 of the Shaikan FDP 
envisages the first initial stage with production building from 
20,000 bopd to 40,000 bopd and then progressing to 100,000 
bopd. The Company’s immediate target is to reach 40,000 bopd 
of production capacity by the end of 2014, before initiating 
the next stage of the Shaikan project execution and increasing 
production capacity from 40,000 bopd to 66,000 bopd by 
Q1 2016.

Shaikan PF-1 became operational in late July and achieved 
a steady ramp-up of production resulting in total gross 
production of 183,000 barrels as at 1 September 2013, at 
which point production had increased to 12,400 bopd. By late 
December production operations and sales from PF-1 stabilised 
and continued in January, February and March 2014 at the level 
of approximately 10,000 bopd (gross) with total cumulative 
production from late 2010 to early 2014 from the early Jurassic 
Sargelu producers Shaikan-1 and -3 having surpassed 2.1 
million barrels. In addition to the Shaikan-1 and Shaikan-3 wells, 
Shaikan-4, also a Jurassic Sargelu producer, was tied into PF-1 in 
March 2014, increasing total PF-1 output to about 16,000 bopd 
with a further increase to 20,000 bopd anticipated in Q2 2014. 
With the addition of Shaikan-4, our cumulative production from 
the field to date is approaching 2.6 million barrels. 

PF-1

PF-2

Shaikan
Location of Shaikan 
production facilities

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Shaikan production facility PF-1

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
30
Operational review

SHAIKAN

The Shaikan-2 and Shaikan-5 wells are tied into PF-2 and the 
production facility is currently being commissioned with first 
Jurassic production, initially of approximately 10,000 bopd, 
expected in Q2 2014. 

The connection of Shaikan-10 to PF-2 will be completed in Q2 
2014, increasing PF-2 production capacity. In order to achieve 
40,000 bopd of production capacity from PF-1 and PF-2 in 2014, 
the Company intends to re-configure Shaikan-8, initially drilled 
as a gas injection well, into a fourth producer tied into PF-1, as 
well as to tie in the deep exploration well Shaikan-7, which is 
currently being drilled, to become the fifth producing well at 
PF-1. Additionally, productivity of the Shaikan-1 and Shaikan-3 
wells will be enhanced through the replacement of the existing 
3 ½” tubing by 4 ½” tubing. An additional production well will 
be drilled and connected to PF-2, alongside Shaikan-2, -5 and 
-10, the latter being our first development well drilled and 
completed as a producer in October 2013.

Since Shaikan crude oil export deliveries commenced 
in December 2013, three cargoes totalling in excess of 

105,000 tonnes (690,000 barrels) of oil have been delivered 
from PF-1 to Turkey by truck and loaded at the port of 
Dortyol. The fourth cargo of approximately 33,000 tonnes 
(215,000 barrels) of Shaikan crude is expected to be loaded by 
the end of March 2014. 

The move to 40,000 bopd of production capacity will allow 
further expansion of export crude oil sales and the additional 
cash generated, in addition to the Company’s near term debt 
financing options, will facilitate the move to the next stage 
of the Shaikan project execution. This next stage envisages a 
further 60,000 bopd of additional production capacity in order 
to reach the medium-term target of 100,000 bopd, which will 
require construction of additional production facilities with gas 
injection and water handling capabilities, as well as the drilling 
of a substantial number of development and production wells. 

Trucks loading at Shaikan PF-1

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

3131

Sheikh Adi 

The Sheikh Adi block covers an area of 180 km² and lies 
to the west and on trend with the Shaikan structure. In 
November 2012, Gulf Keystone made a discovery following 
a successful well testing programme of the second 
exploration well.

80%

working interest; 
Operator

After making the Jurassic discovery with the Sheikh Adi-2 well 
in November 2012, the Company and the KRG, our partner 
in the block, unanimously agreed to move to an appraisal 
programme for the Sheikh Adi field to appraise Jurassic targets 
and evaluate the Triassic upside. Sheikh Adi-3, the first well 
to appraise the Sheikh Adi discovery, spudded in December 
2013, and is currently drilling below 2,240 metres in the Alan 
formation in the Jurassic. A well testing programme to evaluate 
the potential of the Jurassic reservoirs in the Sheikh Adi footwall 
is currently being designed, before the well enters the Triassic. 
Subject to the outcome of the appraisal programme, decision 
will be made regarding early development and production from 
Sheikh Adi.

Approximately 111 km of new 2D seismic data acquired in the 
north of the block during 2013, has been processed to evaluate 
potential new structures.

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Sheikh Adi
Location of Sheikh Adi

Sheikh Adi-3 appraisal well

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
32
Operational review

AKRI-BIJEEL

The Akri-Bijeel block is situated to the east of the Shaikan block 
and covers an area of 889 km². Significant progress has been 
achieved in the extensive exploration and appraisal programme 
of the massive block with two commercial discoveries made to 
date, Bijell and Bakrman-1.

20%

working interest; 
operator: MOL

In November 2013, MOL Hungarian Oil and Gas plc, the 
operator of the Akri-Bijeel block, declared the block commercial 
based on the discoveries made by the Bijell-1 well in the Jurassic 
in 2010 and the Bakrman-1 well in the Triassic in February 2013. 
While appraisal drilling continues, the operator is in the process 
of preparing the Field Development Plan for the Bijell and 
Bakrman discoveries, which is expected to be submitted to the 
MNR in Q2 2014 and approved later in 2014. 

In early 2014, following the successful side-tracking and testing 
of the Bijell-1B well and the completion and commissioning of 
the Bijell Extended Well Test (“EWT”) facility, early production 
operations began from the Bijell field. Early flow rates from 
the Bijell-1B well are around 3,500 bopd with an anticipated 
increase to the facility’s full capacity of 10,000 bopd by the end 
of 2014.

Akri-Bijeel
Location of Akri-Bijeel

Bijell Early well test facility (EWT)

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

33

Ber Bahr

The Ber Bahr block covers an area of 206 km and lies to 
the north-west and on trend with the Shaikan and the 
Sheikh Adi blocks. The Ber Bahr-1 exploration well made 
a commercial Jurassic discovery in May 2013. The first 
appraisal well will spud in 2014.

The Ber Bahr-1 exploration well was successfully side-tracked in 
the first half of 2013 and tested 2,100 bopd of 15 degree API oil 
from the Jurassic Sargelu formation. Genel Energy, the operator 
of the block, stated in May that the results of the Ber Bahr-1 well 
confirmed the existence of a commercial oil discovery. A 3D 
seismic survey is underway, planned for completion by mid-year 
2014. The operator plans to spud an appraisal well in the fourth 
quarter of 2014.

40%

Working interest; 
operator: Genel

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John Gerstenlauer
Chief Operating Officer

26 March 2014

Ber Bahr
Location of Ber Bahr 

Ber Bahr-1 exploration well

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

SA-2SA-1SA-3SH-4SH-1/SH-3SH-8SH-7SH-2SH-10SH-6SH-5Bakrman-1Bijell-3Bijell-6BB-1Bekhme-1Bijell-1Bijell-2Gulak-1Bijell-5Bijell-7Bijell-4 
34
Management of principal risks and uncertainties

managing risk

Getting risk management right is an essential component of business 
success. It supports the achievement of our strategic objectives and 
protects our business, our people and our reputation.

Identifying, understanding and mitigating the risks we 
face, whilst being able to maximise the value from business 
opportunities, supports effective decision making. Responding 
quickly when risks crystallise to mitigate their impact is a key 
element of our risk management process which underpins the 
safe delivery of our business plans and strategic objectives, 
protects our licence to operate, and helps to create a long-term 
competitive advantage. 

The Board, its Committees and the senior management 
team are actively engaged in monitoring and limiting, where 
possible, the risks to which the Company and its subsidiaries 
(together “the Group”) are exposed. During 2013, we have 
regularly considered our risk profile and updated the Group risk 
register. The following table indicates the key risks the Group 
faces, their potential impact and the mitigation measures that 
we have in place. The list is not exhaustive or in priority order, 
and may change at any time.

Strategic risks

Key risk factor 

Potential impact

Mitigation

Meeting shareholder expectations, 
particularly with regard to the 
Group’s long-term strategy, 
production profile and funding

Ineffective or poorly executed strategy fails to 
create shareholder value and to meet shareholder 
expectations. It may lead to loss of investor 
confidence and reduction in the Company’s share 
price, which reduces the Company’s ability to 
access finance and increases vulnerability to a 
hostile takeover.

Organisational capability

With the Group’s transition from exploration to 
development and production, it is of utmost 
importance to ensure that the capability of the 
organisation is adequate to deliver plans for 
growth.
Organisational capability is a function of both 
the strength of the Group’s human resources and 
internal controls. 
Inability of the Group to recruit and retain staff 
with the right skills and to implement succession 
plans may lead to a loss of knowledge and skills 
to the Group and other short- and long-term 
disruption to the business.
Weak controls or lack of compliance may lead to 
loss of value and failure to achieve growth targets.

The Company maintains a regular dialogue 
with the Company’s shareholder base and 
the general public.
A website is maintained to disseminate 
information widely and in a timely manner.
Gulf Keystone employs an investor 
relations team. All key developments 
are released to the market through the 
Regulatory Information Service, also 
available on the Company’s website.

Gulf Keystone has created competitive 
remuneration packages including bonus, 
share options and long-term incentive 
plans that are reviewed regularly to ensure 
key executives and senior management are 
appropriately compensated. 
Executive and senior management 
turnover rate in the Group continues to 
remain at low levels. 
The Group’s internal audit function 
performed by PricewaterhouseCoopers 
(‘PwC’) carries out a variety of internal 
control procedures audits with a risk 
based focus. The areas of focus for the 
internal audit reviews are determined by 
the Audit Committee, who also monitor 
timely and adequate implementation of 
the recommendations made. For further 
details on the reviews carried out in 2013, 
please refer to the Audit Committee Report 
on page 60.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

35

Strategic risks continued

Key risk factor 

Potential impact

Mitigation

Political and regional risk, including 
risks relating to disputes regarding 
title and exploration and production 
rights

Risks associated with infrastructure 
and export market

Unfavourable developments in politics, laws and 
regulations can affect our operations, earnings 
and our ability to deliver the strategy.
The Group has the right to explore its assets in 
the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and, to the best of 
its knowledge, those rights are in good standing. 
However, The Iraq Oil Ministry has publicly stated 
that the PSCs entered into by the KRG are not 
valid. If the validity of the PSCs was successfully 
challenged, the Group could be required by the 
KRG to accept contractor entitlements that are 
materially less favourable than the current PSCs.
Consequences may include limits on production 
or cost recovery, import and export restrictions, 
price controls, uncertainty over payment 
mechanisms for the export sales, tax increases 
and other retroactive tax claims, expropriation 
of property, cancellation of contract rights and 
increase in regulatory burden.

The Group’s ability to export oil may be curtailed 
by current uncertainty relating to the export 
market and the payment mechanism for export 
oil in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. 
The construction of a pipeline connecting 
the Company’s blocks to the export market is 
critical to the future operations of the Group 
as transportation by truck has limited capacity, 
is costly and carries inherent risk relating to 
potential safety and environmental concerns in 
the event of any accidents.

Business conduct and bribery act

Due to the nature of the industry sector and 
the regions in which Gulf Keystone operates, 
the Group is potentially exposed to accusations of 
poor practice when it comes to the requirements 
introduced by the UK Bribery Act in 2010. 
Violations of this Act, by the Group or those acting 
on its behalf, may result in a criminal case against 
Gulf Keystone and/or our employees, leading to 
reputational damage, possible imprisonment 
and fines.

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The history of political and social instability 
of Iraq, including the Kurdistan Region 
of Iraq where the majority of the Group’s 
operations are concentrated, is noted by 
the Board who mitigate the political risk 
as far as possible. While the Group cannot 
control or completely mitigate the risks of 
disputes between the Kurdistan Region of 
Iraq and the Republic of Iraq in relation to 
the Kurdistan PSCs, it maintains continuous 
dialogue with appropriate government 
departments and closely monitors the local 
situation for emerging risks to the business 
and has business continuity plans in place.
Gulf Keystone strives to be a good 
corporate citizen globally, and fosters 
reputation by strong and positive 
relationships with the governments and 
communities where we do business. 
The Group has a number of ongoing 
corporate social responsibility initiatives.

The Group continues to have a regular 
dialogue with the KRG as part of its 
engagement with stakeholders. 
Gulf Keystone has been selling into the 
local market in the Kurdistan Region of 
Iraq, which has provided a reliable revenue 
stream for the Group to date. The export 
of crude oil by the KRG via truck from the 
Shaikan Block in December 2013 and, 
to date, three exports totalling in excess 
of 105,000 tonnes (690,000 barrels) have 
been delivered from Shaikan PF-1. 
The Group monitors the developments in 
the Kurdistan Region of Iraq infrastructure 
and availability of transport options. As a 
short-term solution, Gulf Keystone can rely 
on transportation by truck pending the 
Group’s anticipated access to the regional 
pipeline infrastructure from Kurdistan 
to Turkey in 2015. However, the Group 
recognises all the limitations associated 
with trucking.

The Audit Committee designated a senior 
executive as the anti-Bribery Officer for 
the Group. His role is to ensure that the 
Group has appropriate procedures in 
place to mitigate the risk of bribery and 
that all employees, agents and other 
associated persons are made fully aware 
of the Group’s policies and procedures 
with regard to ethical behaviour, business 
conduct and transparency. 
PwC performed an independent 
Bribery Act compliance review in 2013. 
The Audit Committee is monitoring 
the timely implementation of PwC’s 
recommendations. 
A detailed bribery risk assessment has 
been performed by management and 
reviewed by the Board. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
36
Management of principal risks and uncertainties 
continued

Operational risks

Key risk factor 

Field delivery risk

Health, safety, security and 
environment (HSSE)

Potential impact

Mitigation

Field delivery risk applies to all phases of the 
exploration and production (“E&P”) cycle from 
seismic acquisition through to production 
operations. At each phase the mitigating 
measures will be different, however, failure to 
control risks will manifest itself as project delays, 
cost overruns, high production costs, early field 
decommissioning and, ultimately, lower than 
expected reserves.

The Group may be exposed to specific risks in 
relation to social and environmental factors as 
well as health and safety matters. The security risk 
is addressed in additional detail below.
Identified risk areas include H2S leaks at the 
production facilities, road traffic accidents and 
other accidents at production facilities and 
well sites. 
Consequences may include accidents resulting 
in loss of life, injury and/or significant pollution 
of the local environment, destruction of facilities, 
disruption to business activities, risk of litigation 
and reputational damage, with an associated 
financial loss.

Technical, financial and Board approvals 
are required for all projects, and for all 
dedicated project teams.
The technical team analyse results 
from appraisal wells and determine the 
appropriate course of action in terms of 
drilling programme and facility design.
All projects are closely monitored to 
ensure the project delivers against plan 
and to enable actions to be taken to 
maintain progress.
Project finances are monitored against 
budget to minimise overruns.

The Group has established a Health, 
Safety, Security and Environment and 
Corporate Social Responsibility (“HSSE 
and CSR”) Committee in September 
2013, ensuring that HSSE strategy is 
directed from the Board level, in order to 
warrant accountability and commitment 
throughout the organisation.
Gulf Keystone has put in place 
comprehensive HSSE and operations 
management procedures including 
emergency and incident response plans. 
The Group actively engages with local 
communities and governments using 
specialist consultants.
PwC performed an independent HSSE 
procedures review in 2013. Management 
is continuously working on the 
improvements to the HSSE procedures 
including the implementation of the 
recommendations that arose from 
PwC’s review.

Security

The Group is exposed, by virtue of the location of 
its operations, to a number of security risks. These 
include the threat of terrorist attack and local 
protests and unrest at Gulf Keystone sites.
Both of these threats may lead to death or injury 
to personnel, disruption to operations, costs 
to repair facilities and reputational damage to 
the Group.

The Group has employed external 
consultants to assess the security risks, 
monitor the threat level and advise on 
security procedures and contingency plans. 
Good relations with local communities are 
also considered essential as they provide 
intelligence about the nature, severity and 
likelihood of any threat.

Prohibition on flaring and 
undeveloped options for monetising 
natural gas discoveries

Under the terms of the Kurdistan PSCs, to the 
extent that the Group is unable to re-inject 
or sweeten natural gas, prior authorisation is 
required for the prolonged flaring of natural 
gas. The Group currently has all necessary 
flaring permits but these are due to expire in 
August 2014.
Expiration of the flaring permit will result in the 
suspension of production and sales.

The Group maintains active dialogue with 
the regional authorities to ensure that it 
complies with the existing regulations. 
Harmful gases emissions are closely 
monitored by the HSSE department 
with any variances outside the norms 
investigated and reported to the executive 
management. 
The Group is currently discussing the 
terms of a possible extension to the flaring 
permits and has no reason to believe that 
the permits will not be extended. However, 
there can be no assurance that these 
permits will be renewed by the Kurdistan 
Ministry of Natural Resources.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

37

Financial risks

Key risk factor 

Potential impact

Mitigation

Capital availability and 
expenditure control

Access to financing to maintain the ongoing 
operations of the business is critical. 
If the Group’s financial performance and access to 
funding do not match the capital requirements, 
it will be impossible for Gulf Keystone to fulfil 
commitments and deliver the exploration and 
development programme. 
In the extreme case, this could impact the Group’s 
ability to continue as a going concern. 

Liquidity and credit risk

The Group’s required capital expenditures exceed 
the currently available working capital.
The Directors believe that a material uncertainty 
exists around the Group’s ability to continue as a 
going concern.
As a result of the shortfall in working capital, the 
Group may not be able to pay liabilities as they 
fall due and, in extreme cases, this may lead to 
insolvency. 
The Group also has convertible bonds in issue, 
thereby increasing its exposure to credit risk.

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Finances are controlled through a 
comprehensive annual budgeting process 
and periodic forecast updates, including 
sensitivity reviews. The projected cash 
balance is reviewed on an ongoing basis. 
All significant expenditure is approved by 
the Board. 
Short-term and long-term cash forecasts 
are monitored and reported regularly to 
senior management and the Board.
Active dialogue is maintained with financial 
institutions and investors and potential 
sources of funding the Group’s ongoing 
work programme are considered.
Gulf Keystone’s management have a strong 
track record of successful fundraisings. 

In order to address this potential shortfall 
in working capital, the Group is currently 
seeking to raise additional debt financing 
by the end of April 2014. The Group has 
mandated Deutsche Bank and Pareto 
Securities to arrange a series of fixed 
income investor meetings in the US, 
Europe and Asia, which commenced on 
20 March 2014. A debt offering of up to 
US$250 million in accordance with Reg 
S/144A is expected to follow, subject to 
market conditions. 
The Group also has a number of other 
potential sources of cash inflows which are 
detailed in the “Going Concern” section of 
the Directors’ report.
The Group has a strong track record 
of fundraising and the Directors have 
a reasonable expectation of securing 
the necessary funds to fulfil the Group’s 
working programme. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
38
Financial review

Results for the Year

KE Ainsworth
Finance Director

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

2013 has been a year 
in which the Company 
achieved important 
operational and financial 
milestones including the 
approval of the Shaikan FDP 
and the commencement of 
commercial production.

Operating results
2013 was a landmark year for Gulf Keystone Petroleum. 
Following the approval of the Shaikan FDP in June 
2013, the Group has entered a critical phase in its 
development as it transitions from pure explorer to oil 
producer. The approval of the FDP, together with the 
commissioning of the PF-1 in the summer of 2013, has 
led to the Group recognising commercial production 
from the Shaikan block in July 2013 and commercial 
sales thereafter. Commercial production and sales have 
been shortly followed by the commencement of the 
export of crude oil in December 2013. 

Gross production for the year totalled 496,921 barrels 
of oil (2012: 832,859 barrels of oil) and gross sales 
were 304,680 barrels of oil (2012: 825,485 barrels of 
oil). These sales, all of which came from domestic 
sales from the Shaikan block, generated $6.7 million 
of revenue in 2013 (2012: $32.2 million). Revenue for 
sales from commercial production was recognised 
in line with the terms of Shaikan PSC, with the price 
achieved on domestic sales in 2013 being $41.2/bbl. 
For all commercial production during 2013, the point 
of delivery to the customer is considered to be the 
metering point at the Shaikan field. 

39

Selected operational and financial data

Average gross production  
bopd

Price per bbl achieved on sales 
$ / bbl

Total cash capital investment 
$ million

Operating costs per barrel 
$ / bbl

2,282

1,361

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0

155

548

60.0

50.0

40.0

30.0

20.0

10.0

0

26.8

2,282

48.7

41.2

41.6

250

200

150

100

50

0

190.9

191.9

152.5

145.6

33.97

27.20

28.31

40.0

35.0

30.0

25.0

20.0

15.0

10.0

5.0

0

8.84

2010

2011

2012

2013

2010

2011

2012

2013

2010

2011

2012

2013

2010

2011

2012

2013

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Trucking of Shaikan crude to the export market commenced 
in December 2013 with a total of 189,746 barrels (gross) 
leaving the Shaikan facility by 31 December 2013. Given 
the payment mechanism for sales to the export market is 
currently developing within the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and 
the fact that the Group is in the early stages of producing 
oil for this market, revenue is being recognised on the basis 
of cash receipt, consistent with our producing peers in the 
region. The Group expects to receive its full entitlement for 
Shaikan crude trucked to international markets and estimates 
that the value of the production sent during 2013, net to the 
Group, is approximately $7 million, gross of royalty. Further 
details of sales revenues and the assumptions associated 
with their recognition and measurement can be found in the 
summary of significant accounting policies, critical accounting 
estimates and judgements and note 2 to the consolidated 
financial statements. 

The recognition of commercial sales has resulted in the Group 
recognising a gross profit margin associated with Shaikan block 
production for the first time in 2013. In contrast, during 2012, all 
$32.2 million of revenue related to test production, where test 
production revenue is recognised with an equal and offsetting 
amount against cost of sales. This resulted in an amount 
equal to revenue being credited to intangible assets against 
exploration and evaluation costs, reducing the net book value 
in the balance sheet and showing a $nil gross profit.

Operating costs on a per barrel basis, excluding royalty, 
inventory movements, production payments due under the 
PSC terms to the KRG, depreciation, depletion and amortisation 
costs and share-based payment charges were $44.00 per 
barrel on an entitlement basis reflecting the lack of consistent 
production achieved throughout 2013 (2012: $28.31 per barrel) 
and the production sent to the export market, for which no 
entitlement has been recognised until the associated cash 
is received. Adjusting for the production sent to the export 
market, operating costs would be $27.20 per barrel net to 
the Group. 

At 30 June 2013, the Shaikan block assets, with a carrying 
value at time of transfer of $443.5 million (31 December 2012: 
$357.7 million), were transferred from intangible assets to 
property, plant and equipment. This reflects the fact that assets 
in this block are now considered developing and producing 
assets following the Group’s criteria for the transfer being met 
with the approval of the FDP. The Group’s internal determination 
of commercial reserves has been supplemented by the CPR 
report from ERC Equipoise, which was finalised during the first 
quarter of 2014 (see Operational Review for further details). 
The property, plant and equipment balance for the Shaikan 
block is now being depreciated using the unit of production 
method based on entitlement production and reserves. 
The depreciation charge relating to these assets for 2013 was 
$2.4 million (2012: $nil), and is recorded within cost of sales; see 
notes 3, 10 and 11 to the consolidated financial statements for 
further details.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
40
Financial review 
continued

Cumulative production  
mboe

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0

Trucks loading at Shaikan PF-1

30 Sep 
2010

31 Mar 
2011

30 Sep 
2011

31 Mar 
2012

30 Sep 
2012

31 Mar 
2013

30 Sep 
2013

31 Mar 
2014

Non-operating results
General and administrative expenses for 2013 were 
$15.8 million (2012: $82.1 million), a reduction of 
$66.3 million. This can be attributed to a number of factors 
as discussed below.

On 13 December 2013, the English Commercial Court (the 
“Court”) handed down its full judgment dismissing all the claims 
asserted by Excalibur Ventures LLC (“Excalibur”) and deciding 
all issues in favour of the Group and Texas Keystone (the 
“Defendants”) (see Excalibur Claims section for further details). 
The Court ordered that the full sum paid into the Court as 
security for the Defendant’s costs be paid out to the Defendants 
and the amount received by the Company (£17.5 million, net of 
outstanding legal fees of £0.6 million) has been credited against 
2013 administrative expenses (see note 4 to the consolidated 
financial statements). The Company received this amount in 
January 2014. The Company was awarded a further £3.2 million, 
and Texas Keystone, an additional £2.4 million to be recovered 
from Excalibur and their financial backers, following an 
assessment of costs on an indemnity basis. As at the date 
of this report, these funds have not yet been received, and 
while the Company intends to pursue these claims, it cannot 
be certain that any further amounts will be paid by Excalibur 
and its financial backers. For further details of the claim, and 
the circumstances of its resolution, please refer to note 23 
to the consolidated financial statements. This refund of legal 
costs has resulted in a reduction of administrative expenses of 
$45.8 million (2013: $19.0 million net credit to costs incurred 
in relation to the Excalibur litigation; 2012: $26.8 million 
costs incurred).

The costs associated with the share bonus awards and the 
options awarded under the Company Share Options Plan and 
Long Term Incentive Plan decreased from $25.9 million in 2012 
to $12.6 million, reflecting no new grants during the year. 
Of these costs, $2.9 million has been included within intangible 
assets and property plant and equipment (2012: $6.0 million), 
as these employment costs are directly attributable to technical 
staff working on capital oil and gas projects. In addition, cash 
bonuses for senior management have reduced by $6.4 million 
to $7.6 million (2012: $14.0 million), in line with Group 
remuneration policy and no new awards granted to Executive 
Management for the year ended 31 December 2013. 

Other losses of $1.2 million (2012: other gains of $5.2 million) 
comprise foreign exchange losses of $1.2 million 
(2012: $6.4 million gain), with the Group holding no derivative 
financial instruments at year end requiring mark-to-market 
valuation (2012: $1.2 million mark-to-market valuation loss). 
The currency and interest rate hedges which the Company 
entered into to partially mitigate the risk associated with 
converting US dollars to sterling were all held to maturity.

Interest revenue remains low in accordance with prevailing 
interest rates and has reduced from 2012 due to a lower 
average cash balance (2013: $0.8 million; 2012: $1.2 million). 
Finance costs of $10.4 million (2012: $4.5 million) are made up 
of the accretion charge on the decommissioning provision of 
$0.4 million (2012: $0.3 million) and interest payable in respect 
of the Convertible Bonds of $23.4 million (2012: $4.6 million) 
out of which $13.4 million (2012: $0.5 million) was capitalised 
within intangible assets. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

41

The increase in convertible bond interest expense is due to 
the fact that the original $275.0 million issue was in place 
for the whole of 2013, compared to the last two months of 
2012, and a “tap” issue of $50 million was completed during 
November 2013 (see Convertible Bonds section).

The tax cost for 2013 is $0.1 million (2012: $1.6 million) and 
arises on UK activities.

The results for 2013 show a decreased loss after tax of 
$32.0 million (2012: $81.8 million) reflecting the reduction in 
administrative expenses discussed previously, offset by a gross 
operating loss of $5.3 million and increased finance costs. 

Cash Flow
Net cash outflow from oil and gas operations after 
operational and administrative expenses was $25.1 million 
(2012: $59.0 million). The loss from operations of $21.1 million 
(2012: $82.1 million) was adjusted for non-cash expenditure 
of $13.0 million (2012: $25.4 million), that includes  
share-based payments and depreciation, depletion and 
amortisation costs. Non-cash expenditure was reduced by a 
decrease in share-based payment expense from $20.0 million to 
$9.8 million, there being no change to the value of the Algeria 
decommissioning provision (2012: $3.5 million) but offset by 
an increase in depreciation to $3.0 million (2012: $0.6 million), 
including the charge to the Shaikan oil and gas assets. See note 
21 to the consolidated financial statements for further details.

Working capital adjustments result in a $17.0 million cash 
outflow (2012: $2.2 million outflow) increasing operational 
cash outflow relative to accounting loss from operations. 
The increases in inventories and payables are in line with the 
level of increase in the Company’s activities during the year, 
while the significant increase in receivables results from the 
outstanding Court costs receivable, which was paid shortly 
after year end.

Convertible bond coupon payments of $17.2 million were made 
during 2013 (2012: $nil) and are included within cash used in 
operating activities. 

Tax paid in 2013 was $0.7 million (2012: $1.7 million) and 
interest received was $0.8 million (2012: $1.2 million). 
Net cash outflow from operating activities after tax and 
interest  was $42.1 million (2012: $59.4 million). 

Cash used in investing activities totalled $182.3 million 
(2012: $172.3 million), which comprises $131.8 million spent 
on intangible assets (2012: $191.9 million) and $59.0 million 
(2012: $1.3 million) spent on property, plant and equipment 
offset by a reduction in liquid investments of $8.6 million 
(2012: $20.9 million decrease). The spend on property, plant and 
equipment has increased following the transfer of the Shaikan 
assets from intangible assets to property, plant and equipment 
at 30 June 2013. All Shaikan block capitalised spend during the 
second half of the year has been recorded as property, plant 
and equipment. 

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The majority of the $131.8 million cash spent on intangible 
assets relates to the Company’s exploration activities in the 
Kurdistan Region of Iraq, including the drilling, testing and 
workovers of wells on the Sheikh Adi, Ber Bahr and Akri- Bijeel 
blocks, Akri-Bijeel surface facility construction and the 
acquisition and processing of seismic data as well as additions 
to the Shaikan block in the first half of 2013. Overall, cash spend 
on intangible assets and property plant and equipment was 
comparable to 2012 (2013: $190.9 million; 2012: $193.2 million).

Cash generated by financing activities amounted to 
$53.9 million (2012: $270.2 million) and primarily results from 
the “tap” issue of the $50 million convertible bonds during 
November 2013. In 2012, significant funds were raised through 
the $275.0 million convertible bonds in October 2012 to 
fund the Group’s capital work programme throughout 2013. 
A further $4.7 million was raised in 2013 through the funds 
received following the exercises of the warrants previously 
granted and options under the Company’s share option plan 
(2012: $1.3 million).

The net overall decrease in cash and cash equivalents during 
the period was $170.4 million (2012: $38.5 million increase). 
Foreign exchange losses on cash balances were $1.3 million 
(2012: $7.1 million gain). 

Cash and cash equivalents totalled $82.0 million at 
31 December 2013 (31 December 2012: $253.7 million). 
Cash, cash equivalents and liquid investments totalled 
$82.0 million at 31 December 2013 and $141.1 million at 
30 June 2013 (31 December 2012: $262.3 million). 

Excalibur claims 
On 13 December 2013, the English Commercial Court handed 
down its full judgment dismissing all of the claims asserted by 
Excalibur against the Defendants. Excalibur has announced that 
it does not intend to appeal this judgment. Up until the date of 
the judgment, Excalibur had paid £17.5 million into the court 
as security for costs, comprising £10.7 million for Gulf Keystone 
and £6.8 million for Texas Keystone. The court ordered that the 
defendants should receive the £17.5 million in its entirety, in 
addition to a further £5.6 million indemnity costs recoverable 
from Excalibur and its backers. To date, the £5.6 million has 
not been recovered and the Company is launching legal 
proceedings to recover the balance. Further details of the claim 
and its resolution are given in note 23 to the consolidated 
financial statements.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
42
Financial review 
continued

On 9 April 2014, Gulf Keystone raised $250 million in debt financing. The privately 
placed debt offering, issued in accordance with Reg S/144A to institutional investors 
in Europe, the US and Asia consists of three-year senior unsecured notes carrying a 
coupon of 13% per annum and freely tradeable and detachable warrants relating to 
40 million common shares in the Company.

Deutsche Bank and Pareto Securities acted as joint bookrunners on the transaction, which 
came two weeks after the Company’s admission to the Official list of the UKLA and trading 
on the Main Market of the LSE.

The proceeds from this transaction will enable Gulf Keystone to continue to develop 
the Shaikan field and achieve planned gross production of 40,000 bopd by the end of 
2014. Further, along with expected cash flows from oil sales, the proceeds will enable the 
Company to initiate the next stage of Shaikan field development, with the aim of increasing 
production capacity from 40,000 bopd to 66,000 bopd by 2016.

Convertible bonds and capital structure
In October 2012, in order to fund the Company’s ongoing 
work programme through 2013, the Company completed 
an oversubscribed offering of Convertible Bonds, raising 
$275.0 million gross proceeds. These Convertible Bonds were 
admitted to the Official List of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange 
in January 2013. In November 2013, the Company completed an 
additional offering of Convertible Bonds (the “tap” issue), raising 
a further $50.0 million gross proceeds. The bonds issued in 
2013 have been consolidated with those issued in 2012 to form 
a single series. All of the Convertible Bonds are due to mature 
on the fifth anniversary of the initial bond issue in October 
2017; see note 17 to the consolidated financial statements 
for further details.

Funds raised via the offering of the Convertible Bonds enhanced 
the Company’s liquidity position and have contributed to the 
Company’s strategy of developing the production capabilities 
of the Shaikan block to the level where future development will 
be funded by ongoing, stable production and export sales.

This is the second time Gulf Keystone has accessed the debt 
capital markets, with an equity-linked product, and the success 
of the offering demonstrates investors’ confidence in the 
Company’s continuing development of the Shaikan block 
and other opportunities.

No changes were made to the authorised share capital 
during 2013. At the date of this report, 888,933,057 common 
shares are in issue. 

During February 2013, 7.1 million common shares were issued 
including 6.5 million to the Employee Benefit Trust (“EBT”), 
to satisfy awards made under the 2010 and 2011 Executive 
Bonus Scheme that were deemed to have vested. Further details 
of the awards granted and vested are given in the Directors’ 
report and notes 20 and 24 to the consolidated financial 
statements. These issues were reported in the 2012 Annual 
report and accounts.

During 2013, 4.6 million common shares were issued in response 
to option exercises by the Company’s employees and directors.

The common shares issued during 2013 to satisfy awards under 
the Company’s bonus and option incentive schemes represent 
1.32% of the Company’s share capital as at the date of this 
report. There were no additional share bonuses or LTIP options 
granted in 2013. 

Corporate activities
During 2013, the Company continued to work towards 
obtaining admission to trading on the London Stock Exchange 
plc’s (“LSE”) Main Market for listed securities. The late 2013 
resolution of the Excalibur case in the Company’s favour 
removed a significant amount of uncertainty that had 
previously held the Company back from applying for admission 
to the Official List of the United Kingdom Listing Authority 
(“UKLA”). The Competent Person’s Report (“CPR”), prepared by 
ERC Equipoise and released on 14 March 2014 was an important 
step towards admission to the Official List. The admission to 
the Official List occurred at 8.00am on 25 March 2014, just prior 
to the date of this report. Trading in the Company’s common 
shares on AIM was simultaneously cancelled. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

43

Other and further events
The Company continues to explore options for the disposal 
of its 20% working interest in the Akri-Bijeel block together 
with its appointed corporate advisers, who are responsible 
for coordination of, and advice on, the process. The disposal 
process remains ongoing at the date of this report, with the 
Group continuing to actively market its interest. The block 
was declared commercial in October 2013 by the operator, 
MOL. Early production has recently commenced from the 
Extended Well Test (“EWT”) facility following the tie-in of  
Bijell-1B, with initial production at around 3,500 barrels 
per day. These developments, together with the Bakrman 
discovery in 2013, all enhance the prospect of a successful 
conclusion to the disposal process. The Akri-Bijeel intangible 
asset (2013: $103.1 million; 2012: $64.6 million), including the 
associated working capital balances, continues to be classified 
as an asset held for sale. Further details of this asset, and the 
facts and circumstances of the proposed sale, are given in note 
12 to the consolidated financial statements. 

The Company continues to effect an orderly exit from its 
Algerian operations and continues the discussions with 
Sonatrach regarding the exit from Block 126a (GKN and GKS 
oilfields under the Ferkane Permit).

Financial strategy and outlook for 2014
2013 has been a year of significant progress for Gulf Keystone, 
a year in which the Company achieved important operational 
and financial milestones. These milestones include the 
$50 million “tap” issue follow-up to the highly successful 2012 
Convertible Bonds issue, the approval of the Shaikan FDP and 
the commencement of commercial production from this block.

The Group’s current committed capital work programme and 
immediate focus remains on achieving its target of 40,000 bopd 
of production capacity from the Shaikan block’s PF-1 and PF-2 
by the end of 2014, which will allow further expansion of export 
crude oil sales. The first Shaikan production facility is already 
producing oil for commercial sale and the second is due to 
produce “first oil” in the second quarter of 2014. Gulf Keystone, 
together with its partners, continues to carry on its exploration 
and appraisal programmes on the prospects identified in the 
Sheikh Adi, Akri-Bijeel and Ber Bahr blocks aimed at unlocking 
significant value and increasing reserves and resources across 
all of the Company’s licence interests. 

The Group’s business is highly capital intensive and on 
20 March 2014, the Company included a statement in 
its announcement of the publication of its prospectus in 
connection with the admission to the Official List, that it was 
of the opinion that the Group does not have sufficient working 
capital for its present requirements, representing a material 
uncertainty over the going concern assumption (see the 
Directors’ Report for further details). 

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Existing cash resources at 1 March 2014 were $76.0 million. 
It is expected that these may be enhanced over the next 
12 months by:
•	 achieving further consistent oil production and domestic 
and export sales from Shaikan increasing up to 40,000 bopd;
•	 the exercise of the Shaikan Government Option, the Shaikan 
Third Party Option, the Akri-Bijeel Government Option and/
or the Akri-Bijeel Third Party Option under the terms of the 
Shaikan and Akri-Bijeel PSCs;

•	 any proceeds from the potential sale of the Group’s interest 
•	 reimbursement of the additional £5.6 million litigation costs 

in the Akri-Bijeel Block; and/or

by Excalibur.

With reference to the above, under the terms of the Shaikan and 
the Akri-Bijeel PSCs, the KRG has the option (the “Government 
Option”) to participate in an undivided interest in the petroleum 
operations of the relevant block. In addition to the Government 
Option, the KRG also has the option to nominate a third party 
to have an undivided interest in the petroleum operations 
of the Shaikan block and the Akri-Bijeel block (the “Third 
Party Option”).

However, in order to address a potential shortfall in 
working capital, the Company is currently seeking additional, 
cost- effective financing in the form of high yield bonds. 
Prior to this report, on 19 March 2014, the Company announced 
that it has mandated Deutsche Bank and Pareto Securities to 
arrange a series of fixed income investor meetings in the US, 
Europe and Asia commencing 20 March 2014. A debt offering 
of up to US$250 million in accordance with Reg S/144A is 
expected to follow, subject to market conditions; investor 
meetings are ongoing at the date of this report.

The Company expects to utilise cash generated from increasing 
oil sales, in addition to the funds from the contemplated raising 
of up to US$250 million in debt financing, to initiate the next 
stage of the Shaikan project execution and increase production 
capacity to 66,000 bopd by Q1 2016. The increase of Shaikan 
production capacity to 66,000 bopd is the Company’s next step 
towards reaching the medium-term target of 100,000 bopd set 
for Phase 1 of the approved Shaikan FDP.

KE Ainsworth
Finance Director

26 March 2014

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited  Annual report and accounts 2013

 
44
Chairman’s introduction 
into the corporate governance section

committed to our stakeholders

We will continue to implement 
sound principles of good 
governance in the way we run 
the Company and build upon 
the high standards that we have 
implemented to date. 

Dear Shareholder

In my first year as Chairman, we have made progress 
towards strengthening our governance arrangements. 
On 25 March 2014, the Company’s common shares were 
admitted to the standard segment of the Official List. 
As a consequence of a standard listing the Company 
is not subject to the UK Corporate Governance Code 
(the “Code”), as amended in September 2012. However 
the Board recognises the importance of good governance 
and has considered the principles and provisions set out 
in the Code. In anticipation of a standard listing and in 
order to strengthen the governance framework of the 
Group, the Board resolved in December 2013 to follow all 
the requirements of the Code voluntarily. Therefore, I am 
pleased to confirm to you that the reporting in this annual 
report follows the requirements of the Code, except as set 
out in the “Statement of compliance with the UK Corporate 
Governance Code” section of the Corporate Governance 
Report on page 54. 

Simon Murray

Non‑Executive Chairman

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

45

The Board is ultimately responsible to shareholders for all 
the Group’s activities, its strategy and financial performance, 
for the efficient use of the Group’s resources and for social, 
environmental and ethical matters. The Board, with the 
assistance of the Audit Committee, approves the Group’s 
governance framework and reviews its risk management 
and internal control processes.

The most significant reporting changes have been to our 
Directors’ remuneration report together with the introduction 
of the advisory vote on our remuneration policy and annual 
report on remuneration at the 2014 AGM. The 2013 report 
consists of the Remuneration Committee Chairman’s 
introduction regarding the work performed by the Committee 
during the year, a policy report stating the Company’s revised 
policy on remuneration as well as an annual remuneration 
report detailing the elements of Directors’ remuneration for 
the year. 

The additional reporting required by the Code also includes 
the statement made by the Directors in the Directors’ 
responsibilities statement that they consider the annual 
report and accounts, taken as a whole, to be fair, balanced and 
understandable. The processes which underpin and support 
the Directors’ confidence in making this statement are long 
established and embedded into our business and include 
the review of the narrative sections of the annual report and 
accounts by our external advisers who verify its accuracy and 
consider the tonality and balance of approach. In addition, 
our external Auditors read the narrative sections of the Annual 
report and accounts to identify any material inconsistences with 
the financial statements. Our Board members receive drafts of 
the Annual report and accounts in sufficient time to facilitate 
their review and input.

Additional disclosures in respect of how the Audit Committee 
addresses the key issues it has considered during the year can 
be found in the Audit Committee report on page 60. A separate 
Nominations Committee report also forms part of this year’s 
Corporate governance report. The Nominations Committee 
report describes the work of this Committee during the year 
and the principles applied in determining the most appropriate 
structure and suitable candidates for the Board (see page 65).

In 2013, our Board was further strengthened with five 
new Non‑Executive Directors who come from a variety of 
backgrounds and bring a range of skills and experience to 
the Board. The Board has taken the opportunity to review and 
enhance the composition of the Board Committee by co‑opting 
these new Directors. Furthermore, a new Health, Safety, 
Security, Environment and Corporate Social Responsibility 
Committee (“HSSE and CSR Committee”) was established 
in September 2013 to enhance Board oversight on the 
management of safety and security issues at GKP.

With this new stronger Board we will continue to implement 
sound principles of good governance in the way we run the 
Company and build upon the high standards that we have 
implemented to date.

Simon Murray
Chairman

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

46
Board of Directors

from vision to delivery

From left to right:

Simon Murray, Todd Kozel, John B. Gertenlauer, Ewen Ainsworth, Jeremy Asher,  
Andrew Simon, John Bell, Lord Charles Guthrie, Philip Dimmock, Thomas Shull, Mark Hanson

Simon Murray
Non‑Executive Chairman

Todd Kozel
Chief Executive Officer

Todd Kozel co‑founded Gulf Keystone where he serves as Chief 
Executive Officer.

In 1988 Todd founded Texas Keystone Inc., an independent oil and gas 
exploration, development and production company, headquartered in 
Pittsburgh, USA. Todd served as Texas Keystone’s President from 1995 to 
2004 and has served as a director since 1988.

Todd also co‑founded Falcon Drilling Company LLC, an American independent 
drilling and oilfield services company, in 2001 and serves on its Board 
of Directors.

Simon Murray C.B.E., joined Gulf Keystone as Independent Non‑Executive 
Chairman and Senior Independent Director in July 2013, he is Chairman 
of the Company’s Remuneration Committee and will appoint third party 
remuneration consultants to review every aspect of the remuneration and 
incentivisation of the Board and senior management team to ensure that the 
Company’s remuneration is appropriate. Simon will make certain that Gulf 
Keystone meets the highest standards of corporate governance and that the 
structure and experience of the Board are suitable for a company listed on 
the Main Market, he will also work with the Nominations Committee, led by 
Lord Guthrie and is committed to improving the ongoing dialogue between 
the Company and both its institutional and private shareholders and will 
endeavour to meet as many of the Company’s institutional shareholders as 
possible. Furthermore he and the Board, will seek to strengthen key close 
relationships in Kurdistan further to develop shareholder value.

Simon has over forty years of international business experience and a strong 
network of contacts, both globally and across the Far East, built up over the 
past four decades. His specific oil and gas experience includes his role as 
Vice Chairman and Non‑Executive Director of FTSE 250 Essar Energy Plc., 
an integrated energy company, where he is also Chairman of the Nomination 
and Governance Committee and his former roles as Chairman of FTSE 100 
Glencore International Plc., where he oversaw the IPO of the company on 
the Main Market, and as an Advisory Board Member of the China National 
Offshore Oil Corporation. Simon was the long‑term Managing Director of 
Hutchinson Whampoa, a Fortune Global 500 Company, where he expanded 
Hutchinson Whampoa’s energy interests with the acquisition of one of 
Canada’s largest integrated energy companies, Husky Oil. Simon’s current 
roles include positions as Non‑Executive Director of Cheung Kong Holdings 
Ltd., one of the largest listed companies on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange 
and Chairman of GEMS Limited. He is a former Non‑Executive Director of 
FTSE 100 company Vodafone and previous Executive Chairman of Deutsche 
Bank Group for Asia Pacific. He is a Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

47

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John B. Gerstenlauer
Chief Operating Officer

Ewen Ainsworth
Finance Director

Ewen Ainsworth joined Gulf Keystone as Finance Director in January 2008.

Ewen has over 20 years of experience in finance roles within the oil and gas 
industry. Prior to joining the Company, Ewen was Finance Director of the 
London AIM‑listed Europa Oil & Gas (Holdings) Plc.

Ewen has held increasingly senior finance positions within a number of oil 
and gas companies, including Conoco (UK) Ltd. (London), Murco Petroleum 
Ltd. (London), Texaco Ltd. (London and Aberdeen) and CIECO Exploration 
& Production (UK) Ltd. where he was responsible for all aspects of North 
Sea projects accounting and providing financial support for the Algeria and 
Azerbaijan operations.

Ewen joined Europa Oil & Gas (Holdings) Plc. in September 2004 where he 
provided support to the business across a wide brief, including preparation 
and submission of a successful licence application in Egypt, business 
development, compliance, legal and HR issues.

A qualified accountant, Ewen gained ACMA accreditation in 1993. He has 
strong technical skills in managing public company finances and regulatory 
obligations as well as international transaction and funding experience.

John Gerstenlauer joined Gulf Keystone in 2008 from BASF’s Wintershall 
Nederland Group, The Hague, where he was Managing Director.

A US citizen, John holds Bachelor of Science degrees in Marine Biology, 
Civil Engineering and a Master of Science degree in Ocean Engineering. 
He has written numerous technical papers on Petrophysical topics and 
drilling techniques. John’s oil & gas industry career began when he joined 
Shell Coastal Division, New Orleans, as a Petrophysical Engineer in 1978.

Over subsequent years, he assumed increasingly senior production 
engineering and drilling engineering roles within various New Orleans‑
based Shell operating divisions including Coastal, Onshore and Offshore 
until joining Shell Oil subsidiary Pecten Cameroon Inc as Engineering 
Manager in 1985, where he was responsible for 50,000 bopd of operated 
offshore production, and a further 120,000 bopd of non‑operated 
offshore  production.

John returned to Shell Offshore East and Coastal Divisions, New Orleans 
in 1989 as Production Superintendent before transferring to Shell Oil 
subsidiary Pecton do Brasil Ltd. as Engineering Manager in 1990, and 
then in 1993 he was seconded to Canadian Occidental Yemen (“CanOxy 
Yemen”) as Operations Manager. At CanOxy Yemen John managed the 
project from start‑up to full production of 210,000 bopd. In 1996, John 
joined UMC Petroleum firstly as International Engineering Manager and 
then International Operations Manager focussed mainly on West African 
offshore projects. 

Following UMC’s planned takeover by Ocean Energy in 1998, John joined 
Wintershall AG, Kassel, Germany as Project Manager then Consultant before 
becoming Managing Director of Wintershall Nederland Group, The Hague 
in 2003.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

48
Board of Directors
continued

Jeremy Asher
Non‑Executive Director and Deputy Chairman

John Bell
Non‑Executive Director

Jeremy Asher was re‑appointed as a Non‑Executive Director of Gulf Keystone 
Petroleum Ltd. in September 2013 and as Deputy Chairman in March 2014 
having previously been appointed by the Company as Deputy Chairman and 
Chairman of the Audit Committee between 2007 and 2010.

Jeremy is Chairman of Agile Energy Limited, a privately held energy 
investment company; Chairman of Tower Resources Plc., an AIM‑listed 
oil explorer; and a director of Pacific Drilling SA, an NYSE‑listed operator 
of ultra‑deepwater drill‑ships, where he chairs the Nomination and 
Remuneration Committees.

He is a member of the London Business School’s UK regional advisory board 
and the Engineering Advisory Board of Imperial Innovations, the commercial 
arm of Imperial College. Following several years as a management 
consultant, he was co‑head of the global oil products trading business at 
Glencore AG and then acquired, developed and sold the Beta oil refinery at 
Wilhelmshaven in Germany.

Between 1998 and 2001 he was CEO of PA Consulting Group, and since 
that time has been an investor and director in various public and private 
companies. He holds a BSc (Econ) from the LSE and an MBA from Harvard 
Business School.

Andrew Simon
Senior Independent Non‑Executive Director

Andrew Simon O.B.E. was appointed as a Non‑Executive director of 
Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd. in September 2013 and appointed Senior 
Independent Director of the Company in March 2014.

He has been a Non‑Executive Director at Travis Perkins Plc. since 2006 and 
is also a Non‑Executive Director at Finning International Inc. (Canada), 
Management Consulting Group Plc., SGL Carbon SE (Germany), Exova 
Group Plc., Icon Infrastructure Management Limited (Guernsey) and British 
Car Auctions.

Andrew was previously Deputy Chairman of Dalkia Plc., Chairman and 
/ or Chief Executive of Evode Group Plc. and has held Non‑Executive 
Directorships with Severn Trent Plc., Ibstock Plc., Laporte Plc., Associated 
British Ports Holdings Plc., Brake Bros Holdings Ltd. and Travis Perkins where 
he is Chairman of the Remuneration and Health & Safety Committees.

John Bell was appointed as a Non‑Executive Director of Gulf Keystone 
Petroleum Ltd. in September 2013.

He has a First Class Honours Degree from Strathclyde University in Scotland 
and attended a one year Executive Leadership Program at Haas Business 
School at UC Berkeley, California. He is a registered Chartered Engineer, 
C.Eng. and a member of The Institute of Engineering & Technology as well as 
a member of the Institute of Directors.

John has been a senior oil executive for over 20 years, working on and 
delivering conventional and non‑conventional multi‑billion dollar 
Operational Assets & Projects for major oil companies including BP, Statoil 
AS and Suncor Energy Plc. at Vice President/Managing Director Level. He is 
currently Chief Executive of Babylon Petroleum, a private‑equity‑backed 
exploration company with a focus on Iraq and the Middle East. Most recently 
prior to the civil war and sanctions in Syria. John was Managing Director of 
Suncor Energy’s US $1.2 billion exploration and production business in Syria, 
significantly increasing reserves, production and substantially improving IRR, 
while also successfully negotiating additional licenses. John was the winner 
of the Suncor Presidents Award 2010, for the best performing Business Unit.

John has significant board level and corporate governance experience 
having served as a director on several boards and joint ventures. He is 
passionate about developing and sustaining safe reliable operations, and 
has spent a large part of his career in the Middle East, as well as time in the 
Americas, the UK North Sea, Scandinavia, North Africa & the Caribbean.

Lord Charles Guthrie
Non‑Executive Director 

Field Marshal the Lord Guthrie of Craigiebank, GCB LVO OBE DL, was 
appointed as a Non‑Executive Director of Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd. 
in October 2011 and is Chairman of the Nominations Committee, he was 
appointed as Deputy Chairman between September 2013 and March 2014.

Lord Charles Guthrie served in the British Army from 1957 to 2001. 
From 1997 to 2001 he was Chief of the Defence Staff and the Principal 
Military Adviser to two Prime Ministers and three Secretaries of State for 
Defence. He was, for ten years, Colonel Commandant of the Intelligence 
Corps and is currently Colonel of The Life Guards, Gold Stick to The Queen 
and was Colonel Commandant of the SAS from 2001 to 2010.

He was Director of NM Rothschild & Sons Limited from 2001 to 2011 and is 
currently a Director of Sciens Capital (US), Colt Defense (US), Petropavlosk 
Plc. He is a Council Member of The International Institute of Strategic Studies; 
a Visiting Professor and Honorary Fellow of King’s College London University 
and Chairman of the Trustees of the Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives.

He is President of The Army Benevolent Fund; Action Research; Federation of 
London Youth Clubs and a Governor of The Charterhouse, Clerkenwell. He is 
a Board Member of the Moscow School of Political Studies. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

49

Philip Dimmock
Non‑Executive Director

Mark Hanson
Non‑Executive Director

Philip Dimmock was appointed as a Non‑Executive Director of Gulf Keystone 
Petroleum Ltd. in September 2013 and is Chairman of the Health, Safety, 
Security and Environment (“HSSE”) Committee. He has over 40 years’ 
experience in upstream oil and gas, both in the UK and internationally, and 
is currently a consultant to various oil and gas companies, including Equator 
Exploration Ltd. where he was chief operating officer. 

Philip spent a significant part of his career at BP in a wide variety of senior 
positions including manager of the Forties oil field, and at Ranger Oil where 
he also held the post of vice president of the international division, and 
served as chairman. He has also been an executive officer of the UK Offshore 
Operators Association. Philip was a Non‑Executive Director of Nautical 
Petroleum Plc. until its acquisition by Cairn Energy in 2012. Between 2005 
and 2012 he served as chairman of the Remuneration, Nomination and 
Strategy Committees and was a member of the Audit Committee. He holds 
an MA in Physics from the University of Oxford where he was an Open 
Scholar at Pembroke College. 

Mark Anthony Crump Hanson was appointed as a Non‑Executive Director of 
Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd. in November 2011.

He is a qualified barrister and solicitor and was Chief Executive Officer of 
Global Banking Corporation in Bahrain from 2006 to 2008.

Mark has extensive regulatory and corporate governance experience having 
served as a director on several boards and having advised a number of 
clients in the Middle and Far East during his 34 year career.

His previous experience includes the listing in Hong Kong and New York of 
Shanghai Petrochemical Company, the first mainland upstream Chinese oil 
company to list outside of the People’s Republic of China, and oil and gas 
projects in Saudi Arabia. Mark served as Chief Executive of Bain Securities 
Limited, Managing Director of Peregrine Capital Limited, Deputy CEO at 
the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and COO of Crosby Financial Holdings. 
In addition, he was responsible for the establishment of ABN AMRO’s 
investment banking and equity capital market operations in Saudi Arabia.

Thomas Shull
Non‑Executive Director

Thomas Shull was appointed as a Non‑Executive Director of Gulf Keystone 
Petroleum Ltd. in September 2013 and is currently Chief Executive of the 
Army and Air Force Exchange Service (Exchange). The Exchange is the 47th 
largest retail organisation in the US with current revenue of $10 billion and 
employing 43,000 civilians. It manages retail outlets on military installations 
in all 50 US states, 5 US Territories and more than 30 other countries, 
including 44 facilities operating in the Middle East.

Thomas had a distinguished career in the US Army, culminating in an active 
duty assignment as Military Assistant to Robert C. Macfarlane, Assistant 
to the President for National Security Affairs. Subsequently Tom built a 
highly successful business career as a turnaround specialist including as 
President of Barneys, New York and CEO and Chairman of other leading US 
consumer concerns. During this period he also co‑founded and served as 
CEO of Meridian Ventures Inc where he advised numerous clients both in 
the retail sector and elsewhere. These included Mobil, whom he had advised 
on developing Caspian Sea pipeline strategies to monetise oil and gas in 
landlocked regions. From 2004 –2010 he was also a director of NYSE‑listed 
Zale Corporation, where he served on the Compensation Committee and 
was Chairman of the Audit Committee for three years.

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

50
Senior management

Tony Peart
Legal and Commercial Director

Umur Eminkahyagil
Country Manager – Kurdistan Region of Iraq

Tony Peart joined the Company in 2008 and has over 33 years of legal, 
commercial and management experience in the oil and gas industry.

Umur received his BSc in Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering from 
Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey, with High Honours in 1991.

From 2006 to 2008 he was Legal and Commercial Director of African Arabian 
Petroleum Limited, an Emirati‑owned oil company holding exploration and 
production interests in North and West Africa.

From 2000 to 2005 he was Senior Vice President, General Counsel and 
Corporate Secretary of Petrokazakhstan Inc. which was acquired by the 
Chinese National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC).

He was previously Managing Director of Bula Resources Plc. and MMS 
Petroleum Plc. and has held senior management positions at Lasmo Plc., 
Ultramar Exploration Limited and Veba Oil and Gas Limited.

He is an Attorney, holds a Masters degree in General Management from 
the Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School and has completed the 
Programme for Management Development at the Harvard Business School.

Chris Garrett
Vice President Operations

Chris joined the Company in 2004 as Managing Director of the UK entity 
and Operations Manager for Algeria.

Chris’s background is in geology and geophysics. He spent 12 years 
overseas working in the USA and the Middle East.

He brings to the Company over 35 years of oilfield experience gained with 
Core Laboratories and Western Geophysical and latterly with Baker Hughes 
and Randall & Dewey where he assumed a number of roles ranging from 
international exploration and operations management through to property 
and prospect evaluation.

He spent the first 11 years of his career holding various Reservoir 
Engineering positions with Shell, mainly in Turkey and Thailand. He joined 
the Expro Group in 2002 and held progressively more challenging roles 
within the Group, spanning Malaysia, South East Asia, and finally Angola in 
West Africa, where he worked as General Manager.

In 2007, he became Vice President for MB Petroleum Services, responsible 
for international business, a position he held for a number of years before 
joining Gulf Keystone in March 2012.

He initially joined the Company as Development and Production Manager 
and has subsequently been appointed, as of 1 September 2012, the 
Company’s Country Manager for Kurdistan, Iraq.

John Stafford
Manager, Geology and Geophysics

John joined the Company in early 2009 as Manager, Geology & Geophysics. 

John’s background is in geoscience having particular exposure to 
field development, reserve certification and reporting and equity 
redetermination.

Joining the industry in 1982 Mr Stafford gained experience with several 
service companies including ECL, Schlumberger and PGS running projects 
in integrated field management and all aspect of reserves certification and 
reporting including defence documents and Competent Persons Reports. 
As manager of a six field integrated project development he gained 
experience of fractured reservoir development in the Zagros trend prior 
to acting as a Risk Board advisor to PGS.

Mohamed Messaoudi
Country Manager ‑ Algeria

Mohamed is a petroleum geologist with 31 years of experience in the oil and 
gas industry in Algeria.

Mohamed joined Sonatrach, the Algerian National Oil Enterprise in 1979, 
becoming Chief Geologist for the Hassi Messaoud Basin in 1996 and then 
the Regional Exploration Manager of the North Algeria Area / Onshore and 
Offshore Basins.

Prior to Mohamed’s retirement from Sonatrach, he held the position of 
Regional Exploration Manager for the South East Algeria Region, Algeria’s 
most important hydrocarbon area containing the Hassi Messaoud, Berkine, 
Illizi and Oued Mya basins.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

51
Directors’ report

The Directors are pleased to present their report on the 
affairs of the Group, together with the consolidated financial 
statements of the Company and auditor’s report, for the year 
ended 31 December 2013. A review of the business is set out 
in the preceding sections of this Annual report, including 
the statement of Non‑Executive Chairman and Statement 
of Chief Executive Officer, Operational review and Financial 
review, which are incorporated into this report by reference. 
The Corporate governance statement also forms part of 
this report. 

Results and dividends
The Group’s financial results for the year ended 31 December 
2013 are set out in the consolidated financial statements. 
The Group made a net loss after taxation for the year of 
$32.0 million (2012: $81.8 million loss) and the Directors do 
not recommend a dividend for the year (2012: $nil). Future 
payments of dividends are expected to depend on the earnings 
and financial condition of the Company and such factors as the 
Board of Directors consider are appropriate.

Capital structure
Details of the authorised and issued share capital, together 
with movements in the Company’s issued share capital during 
the year, are shown in note 20 to the consolidated financial 
statements. The business is financed by means of debt (see 
note 17 to the consolidated financial statements), internally 
generated funds and external share capital. 

There are no specific restrictions on the size of a holding nor 
on the transfer of common shares, both of which are governed 
by the general provisions of the Company’s Bye‑laws and 
prevailing legislation. The Directors are not aware of any 
agreements between holders of the Company’s common shares 
that may result in restrictions on the transfer of securities or on 
voting rights. No person has any special rights of control over 
the Company’s share capital and all issued common shares are 
fully paid.

Details of the employee share schemes are set out in note 
24 to the consolidated financial statements and details 
of the Directors’ awards are included in the Report of the 
Remuneration Committee.

Voting rights and Bye‑Law amendments
The Company’s Bye‑Laws may only be revoked or amended 
by the shareholders of the Company by resolution passed by 
a majority of not less than three‑fourths of such shareholders 
as vote in person or, where proxies are allowed, by proxy at a 
general meeting. Resolutions put to the vote of any general 
meeting are decided on a show of hands unless a poll is 
demanded in accordance with the Company’s Bye‑laws.

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Directors
With regard to the appointment and replacement of Directors, 
the Company is governed by its Bye‑Laws, the Companies 
Act (Bermuda) and related legislation. In accordance with the 
Bye‑Laws, one‑third of all the Directors are required to retire by 
rotation every year at the Annual General Meeting. 

The following Directors have held office during the year:

Todd Kozel  
Simon Murray  

Chief Executive Officer(3) 
Non‑Executive Chairman  
(joined the Board in July 2013)(2)(3) 

John Gerstenlauer   Chief Operating Officer(4) 
Ewen Ainsworth  
Lord Guthrie  
Mark Hanson  
Jeremy Asher  

Finance Director 
Non‑Executive Director(3)
Non‑Executive Director(1)(2)(3)
Non‑Executive Deputy Chairman  
(joined the Board in July 2013)(1)(3)
Independent Non‑Executive Director  
(joined the Board in July 2013)(1)(2)(3)
Independent Non‑Executive Director  
(joined the Board in July 2013)(1)(3)(4)
Independent Non‑Executive Director  
(joined the Board in July 2013)(3)(4)
Non‑Executive Director and  
Senior Independent Director  
(joined the Board in September 2013)(1)(2)(3)
Business Development Director  
(retired by rotation in June 2013)
Non‑Executive Director  
(retired by rotation in June 2013)

John Bell  

Philip Dimmock  

Thomas Shull  

Andrew Simon  

Ali Al Qabandi  

Mehdi Varzi  

(1)  Member of the Audit Committee
(2)  Member of the Remuneration Committee
(3)  Member of the Nominations Committee
(4)  Member of Health, Safety, Security and Environment Committee

Directors’ indemnities
The Company has made qualifying third party indemnity 
provisions for the benefit of its Directors which were made 
during the year and remain in force at the date of this report. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
52
Directors’ report
continued

Directors’ interests in shares 
The Directors who held office at 31 December 2013 had the following interests in the common shares of the Company, 
including family interests:

Number of common shares(1)

At 
1 January 
2013 

Shares 
issued/ 
purchased 
in 2013 

Shares sold/ 
transferred 
in 2013 

At 
31 December 
2013 

Shares 
issued post 
year end 

Shares sold/ 
transferred 
post year end 

Name of Director 

Todd Kozel 

John Gerstenlauer 

Ewen Ainsworth 

Simon Murray 

Lord Guthrie 

Mark Hanson 

Jeremy Asher 

Thomas Shull 

John Bell 

Philip Dimmock 

Andrew Simon 

5,307,503 

5,947,501  (11,000,000) 

255,004 

1,154,611 

589,500 

— 

1,744,111 

2,160,131 

589,500 

(11,000)  2,738,631 

— 

— 

— 

  15,200,000 

— 

— 

— 

— 

160,000 

— 

— 

— 

— 

72,200 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

160,000 

— 

— 

—  15,200,000 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

72,200 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

At date 
of report

255,004

1,744,111

2,738,631

160,000

—

—

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

—  15,200,000

—

72,200

—

— 

— 

— 

— 

(1) 

Includes common shares held directly, by family members and through the Gulf Keystone EBT which are held subject to the discretion of 
the EBT Trustee.

At the date of this report, the EBT held 9,402,442 common 
shares of the Company. A further 10,000,000 common shares 
are held by the Exit Event Trustee in relation to the Exit Event 
Award (see note 24 to the consolidated financial statements). 

Directors’ interests in share options of the Company and the 
Company’s bonus scheme grants, including family interests, 
as at 31 December 2013 are disclosed in the report of the 
Remuneration Committee.

Significant Shareholdings
The Company has been notified of the following significant 
shareholdings as at 18 March 2014:

TD Waterhouse 

Barclays Wealth 

Number of 
  common shares 

  61,631,833 

  57,038,914 

Capital Research Global Investors 

  49,596,975 

M&G Investment Mgt 

  47,973,877 

Hargreaves Lansdown  
Asset Management 

Halifax Share Dealing 

  45,738,815 

  43,440,591 

Percentage 
of issued  
share capital 

6.93%

6.42%

5.58%

5.40%

5.15%

4.89%

Going concern
The Group’s business activities, together with the factors likely 
to affect its future development, performance and position are 
set out in the Chairman’s statement, Strategic review by the 
Chief Executive Officer and Operational review. The financial 
position of the Group at the year end, its cash flows and liquidity 
position are included in the Financial review. In addition, note 
26 to the consolidated financial statements includes the Group’s 
objectives, policies and processes for managing its capital, its 
financial risk management objectives and details of its financial 
instruments and hedging activities. Note 26 also describes 
exposures to credit risk and liquidity risk.

Following commencement of first commercial production in 
July 2013 and sales thereafter along with the commencement 
of the export of crude oil in December 2013 from the Shaikan 
Block, the Group has entered a critical phase in its development 
as it transitions from pure explorer to oil producer. The Group’s 
business requires substantial capital expenditures for the 
foreseeable future, being at least the next twelve months, to 
finance the exploration, development and production of its 
existing oil reserves and resources. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
53

The Group is dependent on existing cash resources, which 
totalled $76.0 million at 1 March 2014, together with production 
revenues from its interest in the Shaikan Block in order to meet 
its future working capital requirements. Existing cash resources 
may be enhanced over the next twelve months from the date 
of this report by achieving further consistent oil production 
and domestic and export sales from Shaikan, increasing up to 
40,000 bopd; the exercise of the Shaikan Government Option, 
the Shaikan Third Party Option, the Akri‑Bijeel Government 
Option and/or the Akri‑Bijeel Third Party Option under the 
terms of the Shaikan and Akri‑Bijeel PSCs; any proceeds from 
the potential sale of the Group’s interest in the Akri‑Bijeel Block 
and/or the reimbursement of an additional £5.6 million of 
litigation costs by Excalibur Ventures LLC (see note 23 to the 
financial statements). 

Whilst the Group believes that one or more of the above events 
are likely to occur, if none of these events occur, and the Group 
is unable to otherwise enhance its existing cash resources, then 
the Directors would expect the Group to require additional 
working capital by the end of May 2014. If only one of these 
events occurs in the next 12 months from the date of this 
document, this would reduce any potential working capital 
shortfall and, depending on the final proceeds from the event, 
potentially remove it completely. 

In order to address this potential shortfall in working capital, 
the Group is currently seeking to raise additional debt 
financing by the end of April 2014. The Group has mandated 
Deutsche Bank and Pareto Securities to arrange a series of 
fixed income investor meetings in the US, Europe and Asia, 
which commenced on 20 March 2014. A debt offering of up 
to $250 million in accordance with Reg S/144A is expected to 
follow, subject to market conditions. 

Whilst there can be no certainty that a debt transaction will 
follow the Group’s investor meetings, any debt raised will 
enhance the Group’s liquidity position and support the Group’s 
ongoing capital work programmes, including increasing sales 
to up to 40,000 bopd by the completion and commissioning of 
Shaikan PF‑1 and PF‑2. If such debt financing is not available 
or not available on appropriate terms, the Group would 
also look to achieve funding via a further equity‑linked or 
equity financing. 

The Directors have concluded that the early stage of fundraising 
and the insufficiency of the current working capital to fulfil 
the Group’s current working programme create a material 
uncertainty that casts significant doubt upon the Group’s ability 
to continue as a going concern. Nevertheless, based on the 
forecasts and projections prepared at the time of preparation of 
this annual report and after making enquiries, and considering 
the uncertainties described above, the Directors have a 
reasonable expectation that the Group has adequate resources 
to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. 
For these reasons, they continue to adopt the going concern 
basis in preparing this annual report and financial statements.

Significant agreements – change of control
There are a number of agreements that take effect, alter or 
terminate upon a change of control of the Group including 
employee share plans and the Convertible Bonds. None of these 
are considered to be significant in terms of their likely impact 
on the business of the Group as a whole. Furthermore, the 
Directors are not aware of any agreements between the Group 
and its Directors or employees that provide for compensation 
for loss of office or employment that occurs because of a 
takeover bid.

Auditor
Each of the persons who is a Director at the date of approval 
of this annual report confirms that:

 l  so far as the Director is aware, there is no relevant audit 

information of which the Group’s auditor is unaware; and
 l  the Director has taken all the steps that he ought to have 
taken as a Director in order to make himself aware of 
any relevant audit information and to establish that the 
Group’s auditor is aware of that information.

By order of the Board

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Todd F Kozel
Chief Executive Officer

26 March 2014

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

54
Corporate governance report

Introduction
One of the Board’s primary responsibilities is to ensure that 
the Company is run in the best long‑term interests of our 
shareholders and wider stakeholders. This is achieved through 
the Board’s commitment to maintain high standards of 
governance and to aim to create a culture which demands 
the same commitment and performance from all of our 
employees and contractors and in all our business activities. 
The governance processes applied across the Group are 
illustrated below and in the individual Committee reports.

Statement of compliance with the  
UK Corporate Governance Code
Although Gulf Keystone, as a Bermuda incorporated Company, 
is not required to comply with the UK Corporate Governance 
Code, the Board resolved that, in the view of the Company’s 
recent move from AIM to the Standard Segment of the Official 
List of the United Kingdom Listing Authority of The London 
Stock Exchange (the “Main Market”), the principles and 
provisions of the UK Corporate Governance Code will be 
applied and followed across the Group. 

The version of the Corporate Governance Code applicable 
to the current reporting period is the September 2012 UK 
Corporate Governance Code (the “Code”). As at the date of 
this report, the Board considers that it and the Company 
have complied with the provisions of the Code, except for the 
following matters: 

 l In 2014, the Company undertook a rigorous review of the 
Non‑Executive Directors’ independence in line with the 
Listing Rules’ guidance. It was concluded that, excluding the 
Chairman, four Non‑Executive Directors out of ten Board 
members are independent, i.e. less than half of the Board 
(B.1.2). In addition, requirements D.2.1 and B.2.1 of the Code 
regarding the number of independent members were not 
met for the Remuneration and Nominations Committees. 
The non‑compliance is the result of the limited time 
the Company had, between the adoption of the 
Code and the date of this report, to address this issue. 
The Company is seeking to appoint at least one additional 
Independent Non‑Executive Director which will improve 
the Board balance. 

 l The Company does not have Non‑Executive Directors’ 

contracts available for inspection at the registered office in 
Bermuda as it was deemed impracticable to do so, but will 
make these contracts available at the AGM.

 l Given the recent changes to the Board composition and 

the voluntary adoption of the Code, the Board are looking 
into the most appropriate ways of conducting a formal 
Board evaluation (B.6). For further details please refer to the 
“Performance evaluation of the Board and its Committees” 
section of the Corporate governance report. 

The Code is issued by the Financial Reporting Council 
and is available for review on the Financial Reporting 
Council’s (FRC’s) website http://www.frc.org.uk/
Our‑Work/Publications/Corporate‑Governance/
UK‑Corporate‑Governance‑Code‑September‑2012.aspx.

Matters reserved for the Board
The Board has a formal schedule of matters specifically reserved 
to it for decision. They cover the key strategic, financial and 
operational issues facing the Group and include:

 l the Group’s strategic aims and objectives;
 l changes to the Company’s capital, management or 

control structures;

 l dividend policy and dividend recommendation;
 l half‑yearly reports, interim management statements, 

final results, annual report and accounts;

 l the overall system of internal control and risk management;
 l major capital projects, corporate actions and investment;
 l communication policy; and
 l changes to the structure, size and composition of the Board.

The Board is responsible to shareholders for the proper 
management of the Group. In 2013, the Board has continued to 
focus its efforts on strategic objectives that will create shareholder 
value and ensuring that these are properly pursued. 

The Gulf Keystone Board and its Committees 
As at the time of this report, the Board comprised three Executive 
Directors and eight Non‑Executive Directors (including the 
Chairman). The Company regards four of the Non‑Executive 
Directors (excluding the Chairman) as independent. 
The Company’s Executive and Non‑Executive Directors come 
from a variety of backgrounds and bring different ideas and 
perspectives to the table ensuring that the Company’s Directors 
have the right experience to meet the needs of the business. The 
Company places high importance on having an appropriate Board 
composition with the eight Non‑Executive Directors, ensuring 
that the strategies proposed by the Executive Directors are fully 
considered and appropriately challenged.

Currently, the Board has four Committees: Audit and Risk 
Committee (the “Audit Committee”), Remuneration Committee, 
Nominations Committee and Health, Safety, Security and 
Environment and Corporate Social Responsibility (“HSSE and 
CSR”) Committee. Each standing Board Committee has specific 
written terms of reference issued by the Board and adopted by the 
relevant Committee, updated most recently in December 2013 in 
anticipation of the move up to the Main Market. All Committee 
Chairmen report orally on the proceedings of their Committees 
at the meetings of the Board. Where appropriate the Committee 
Chairmen also make recommendations to the Board in accordance 
with their relevant terms of reference. In addition the minutes of 
the Committee meetings are included in the papers distributed to 
all Board members in advance of Board meetings.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
55

To ensure Directors are kept up‑to‑date on developing issues 
and to support the overall effectiveness of the Board and its 
Committees, the Non‑Executive Chairman and Committee 
Chairmen communicate regularly with the Chief Executive and 
other Executive Directors. The key governance mandates of the 
Board’s four main Committees are shown below. 

Board Committees
Audit Committee
The Audit Committee comprises four Non‑Executive Directors. 
As at 31 December 2013, the Audit Committee members were 
Mark Hanson (Chairman), Andrew Simon, Jeremy Asher and 
John Bell. Mark Hanson has served as the Chairman of the 
Committee throughout the year. In March 2014, Philip Dimmock 
was appointed to the Committee and Mark Hanson stepped 
down as Chairman of the Audit Committee to be replaced 
by Philip Dimmock. The Committee members have been 
selected to provide the wide range of financial and commercial 
expertise necessary to fulfil the Committee’s duties. The Board 
considers each Committee member’s experience to be recent 
and relevant for the purposes of the Code. This Committee 
meets at least three times per year and, during the year ended 
31 December 2013 the Committee met three times.

The terms of reference of the Audit Committee are documented 
and agreed by the Board and are available in the corporate 
governance section of Gulf Keystone’s corporate website 
www.gulfkeystone.com. The Audit Committee report is set 
out in a separate section of the Corporate Governance report 
(see page 60).

Nominations Committee
As at 31 December 2013, the Nominations Committee 
members were Field Marshal the Lord Guthrie of Craigiebank 
(Chairman) and Mark Hanson, who served on the Committee 
for the full year joined by Simon Murray, Todd Kozel, Philip 
Dimmock and Thomas Schull in September 2013. In March 
2014, Jeremy Asher, John Bell and Andrew Simon, were 
appointed to the Committee and Lord Guthrie stepped down 
as Chairman of the Nominations Committee to be replaced 
by Simon Murray. The Nominations Committee formally met 
once during the year. In addition to the formal meetings, Lord 
Guthrie and Mark Hanson were actively involved in the search 
for the Non‑Executive Chairman and Non‑Executive Directors 
with the assistance of Odgers Berndtson, one of the UK’s 
pre‑eminent executive search firms. The terms of reference of 
the Nominations Committee are documented and agreed by 
the Board and are available in the corporate governance section 
of Gulf Keystone’s corporate website www.gulfkeystone.com. 
The Nominations Committee report is set out in a separate 
section of the Corporate Governance report (see page 65).

Remuneration Committee 
As at 31 December 2013, the Remuneration Committee 
comprised four Non‑Executive Directors: Andrew Simon 
(Chairman), Simon Murray, John Bell and Mark Hanson. 
This Committee, which meets at least twice per year, is 
responsible for making recommendations to the Board 
concerning the compensation of the Executive Directors and 
the Chairman, as well as the level and structure of remuneration 
for senior management. PricewaterhouseCoopers (“PwC”) 
was appointed as Gulf Keystone’s remuneration consultant in 
March 2014. The Remuneration Committee has met four times 
during the year. The Committee is also responsible for the 
determination of the Group’s remuneration policy. The details of 
the policy as well as the activities undertaken by the Committee 
during the year can be found in the Remuneration Committee 
report on page 67. The terms of reference for the Remuneration 
Committee are available in the corporate governance section of 
Gulf Keystone’s corporate website www.gulfkeystone.com. 

HSSE & CSR Committee 
The HSSE & CSR Committee was set up in September 2013 to 
ensure that appropriate systems are in place to manage health, 
safety, security and environmental risk and the corporate 
social responsibility of the Group. The Committee comprises 
two Non‑Executive Directors, Philip Dimmock (Chairman) 
and Thomas Shull and the Group’s COO, John Gerstenlauer. 
The Committee meets at least four times a year. In 2013, the 
Committee met two times as it was in existence for less than 
half of the year. The primary function of the Committee is to 
oversee the development of the Group’s policies and guidelines 
for the management of HSSE and social risks, evaluate the 
effectiveness of these policies and their ability to ensure 
compliance with applicable legal and regulatory requirements, 
evaluate and oversee the quality and integrity of reporting to 
external stakeholders concerning HSSE and CSR, and review the 
results of any independent audits of the Group’s performance 
in regard to HSSE and CSR making recommendations, where 
appropriate, to the Board concerning the same. The Committee 
also examines specific safety issues as requested by the Board. 

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

In 2013, the Board evaluated the Chairman’s external 
commitments. The Board is satisfied that the Chairman committed 
sufficient time to his duties in relation to the Company.

The role of the Chief Executive
Supported by the Executive Directors and senior management 
team, the Chief Executive, within the authority delegated 
by the Board, has day to day management responsibility for 
implementing the Group’s strategy and running the Group.

The role of the Senior Independent Director
Andrew Simon holds the role of the Senior Independent 
Director, having been appointed to this position in March 
2014. He is responsible for assisting the Chairman with 
effective communications to Gulf Keystone’s shareholders and 
is available to shareholders should they have any concerns 
which have not been resolved through the normal channels 
of the Chairman, Executive Directors or our investor relations 
department or if these channels are not appropriate.

He is also available to our Non‑Executive Directors should they 
have any concerns which are not appropriate to raise with the 
Chairman or which have not been satisfactorily resolved by 
the Chairman.

Changes to the Board
In 2013, the Company welcomed five new Non‑Executive 
Directors and a Non‑Executive Chairman to the Board. Simon 
Murray was appointed to the Board as Non‑Executive Chairman 
in July 2013. Jeremy Asher, John Bell, Philip Dimmock and 
Thomas Shull were each elected as a Non‑Executive Director 
at the 2013 Annual General Meeting, having been proposed 
by a major shareholder in accordance with Bye‑Law 94.2 of 
the Company’s Bye‑Laws. Andrew Simon was appointed as a 
Non‑Executive Director in September 2013. 

The search, selection and appointment process for 
Non‑Executive Directors is described in the section on the 
Nominations Committee.

Mehdi Varzi and Ali Al‑Qabandi retired from the Board by 
rotation in July 2013. 

56
Corporate governance report
continued

Board Committees continued
HSSE & CSR Committee continued
Since its constitution, the Committee has reviewed a range 
of safety‑related matters. This included consideration of the 
recommendations that arose from the internal audit of the 
Group’s HSSE arrangements carried out by PwC as part of their 
internal audit function and the development of an action plan 
to address these recommendations. Shortly after its creation, 
the Committee carried out a site visit to the Shaikan block 
in order to observe and assess the safety measures in place. 
The Committee did not note any violations of the Group’s 
HSSE policy during the visit. During 2013, the HSSE policy was 
reviewed to ensure it remained adequate and up‑to‑date. 
It was requested that a management report on the Group’s 
safety matters was produced and provided to the Committee 
on a monthly basis. The Committee will also consider the 
engagement of a specialist HSSE firm to perform any future 
reviews if required. The terms of reference of the HSSE and CSR 
Committee are documented and agreed by the Board and are 
available in the corporate governance section of Gulf Keystone’s 
corporate website www.gulfkeystone.com. 

Division of responsibilities of Chairman 
and Chief Executive
In May 2013, the Board resolved that, as part of the move from 
AIM to the Main Market, and in keeping with the best practice 
of the Official List, the roles of Chairman and Chief Executive 
Officer, previously fulfilled by Todd Kozel, would be split. 
On 4 July 2013, Simon Murray was appointed to the Board of 
Gulf Keystone as Non‑Executive Chairman. This appointment 
represented a significant step forward for the Company as it 
expanded and strengthened its Board in advance of its recent 
admission to the Official List of the London Stock Exchange. 

Whilst retaining a close working relationship, the Chairman 
and Chief Executive have clearly defined and separate 
responsibilities divided between running the Board and 
the business. They meet regularly between Board meetings 
to ensure a full understanding of evolving issues and to 
facilitate effective decision making. They are responsible to 
the Company’s shareholders for the successful delivery of 
the strategy.

The role of the Chairman
In running the Board, the Chairman is responsible for creating 
an environment which facilitates robust and constructive 
challenge and debate. In creating this environment the 
Chairman encourages open communications and aims to 
ensure that the Non‑Executive Directors’ constructive challenge 
and suggestions are considered by the Executive Directors 
dispassionately and on their merits. The Chairman is responsible 
for setting the Board’s agenda and ensuring that adequate 
time is available for discussion of all agenda items, in particular 
strategic issues.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

57

Board meetings and attendance
Board meetings are held on a regular basis, outside the UK, and no decision of any consequence is made other than by the 
Directors. The Directors’ attendance record at the scheduled Board meetings and Board Committee meetings for the year ended 
31 December 2013 is shown in the table below. For Board and Board Committee meetings, attendance is expressed as the number of 
meetings that each Director attended out of the number that they were eligible to attend. In addition to those scheduled meetings, 
ad hoc meetings and Board administration calls were arranged to deal with matters between scheduled meetings as appropriate.

Full Board  
meetings  

Audit  Remuneration 
Committee 

Committee 

  HSSE and CSR 
Committee  
Nomination 
(established  
Committee  September 2013)

Simon Murray(1) 

Todd Kozel 

John Gerstenlauer 

Ewen Ainsworth 

Mark Hanson 

Lord Guthrie 

Jeremy Asher(2) 

John Bell(2) 

Philip Dimmock(2) 

Thomas Shull(2) 

Andrew Simon(3) 

(1)  Appointed as a Director with effect from 4 July 2013
(2)  Appointed as a Director with effect from 25 July 2013
(3)  Appointed as a Director with effect from 1 September 2013

Directors’ independence
The independence of each of the Non‑Executive Directors 
is considered upon appointment, annually and at any other 
time a Director’s circumstances change in a way that warrants 
reconsideration. The Board considers whether the Director 
is independent of management and any business or other 
relationship that could materially interfere with the exercise of 
objective and independent judgement by the Director or the 
Director’s ability to act in the best interests of the shareholders. 
In particular, the Board has considered each Non‑Executive 
Director’s interest in share compensation schemes, including 
the Company Share Options Plan and Executive Bonus 
Schemes, and any positions which the Director holds, or 
held, in companies with which Gulf Keystone has commercial 
relationships. The Board has concluded that, four out of 
seven Non‑Executive Directors (excluding the Chairman) are 
independent. Where compensation arrangements in the form 
of shares exist, the Non‑Executive Director was deemed not to 
be independent

 5(5) 

9(9) 

9(9) 

 9(9) 

9(9) 

9(9) 

 3(3) 

 3(3) 

 3(3) 

 3(3) 

 3(3) 

2(2) 

3(3) 

1(1) 

2(2) 

3(3) 

2(2) 

1(1) 

1(1) 

1(1) 

2(2) 

1(1) 

1(1) 

1(1) 

1(1) 

1(1) 

1(1) 

2(2)

2(2)

1(2)

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Information and support
The Group is committed to supply the Board and its 
Committees with full and timely information, including detailed 
financial, operational and corporate information, to enable 
Directors to discharge their responsibilities. The Committees 
are provided with sufficient resources to undertake their duties. 
All Directors have access to the advice of senior management 
and, where appropriate, the services of other employees 
for all governance and regulatory matters. Independent 
professional advice is also available to Directors in appropriate 
circumstances, at the Company’s expense.

The Board also keep up to date with developments in relevant 
law, regulation and best practice to maintain their skills and 
knowledge. Monthly reports are produced by management of 
the Group to ensure that the Board are well informed on the 
Group’s latest operational, financial, corporate and investor 
relations updates. 

A wealth of papers and reports are prepared by management 
prior to all Board and Committee meetings allowing the Board 
to effectively address all of the items on the relevant meeting’s 
agenda. These papers are provided to the Board in a timely 
manner allowing for sufficient time to review the information 
prior to the meeting and raise questions where necessary. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
58
Corporate governance report
continued

Re‑election of Directors
The Company’s Bye‑laws provide for each Director to be 
re‑elected by shareholders at least once every three years. 
The Board believes that continuity is essential for a business 
like Gulf Keystone and that allowing each Director to serve a 
three‑year term prior to standing for re‑election facilitates the 
retention of experienced and appropriately skilled individuals. 

Performance evaluation of the Board and its Committees
The Board and its Committees are satisfied that they are operating 
effectively and that each Director has performed well in respect 
of his individual role on the Board. The Board believes that the 
performance of all the Directors continues to be effective and 
that they each demonstrate commitment to the role. The Board 
is satisfied that the individuals currently fulfilling key senior 
management positions in the organisation have the requisite 
depth and breadth of skills, knowledge and experience.

Given the recent changes to the Board’s composition and the 
Company’s recently stated intent to comply with all aspects of 
the Code, the Board has been considering the most appropriate 
methodology for formal evaluation of the Board and its 
Committees’ effectiveness with a view to implementation in 
2014‑2015. As a start of the process, the Audit Committee 
performed internal evaluation of its effectiveness at its 
December meeting. 

Risk management and internal Control
The Board acknowledges its responsibility for establishing and 
monitoring the Group’s systems of internal control. Although 
no system of internal control can provide absolute assurance 
against material misstatement or loss, the Group’s systems are 
designed to provide the Directors with reasonable assurance 
that problems are identified on a timely basis and dealt with 
appropriately. The Board regularly reviews the effectiveness of 
the systems of internal control and considers the major business 
risks and the control environment. The Board is accordingly 
satisfied that effective controls are in place and that risks have 
been mitigated to an acceptable level. 

The Company is subject to a variety of risks which derive from 
the nature of the oil and gas exploration and production 
business and relate to the countries in which it conducts its 
activities. The key procedures that have been established and 
which are designed to provide effective control are as follows:

 l regular meetings between the executive management and 

the Board to discuss all issues affecting the Group; 

 l a clearly defined framework for investment appraisal, with 

Board approval required as appropriate; and

 l an internal audit function.

The Board also believes that the ability to recognise the value 
of working as a partnership with host governments is a critical 
ingredient in managing risk successfully. 

The Directors have derived assurance over the control 
environment from the following internal and external controls 
during 2013:

 l implementation of policies and procedures for key business 

activities;

 l an appropriate organisational structure;
 l control over non‑operated activities through delegated 

representatives;

 l specific delegations of authority for all financial and other 

transactions;

 l segregation of duties where appropriate and cost effective;
 l business and financial reporting, including KPIs;
 l reports from the Group Audit Committee; 
 l reports and findings from the Group’s internal auditors on 
the areas identified and recommended for review by the 
Audit Committee; and

 l reports from the Group’s external auditor on matters 

identified during its audit.

The above procedures and controls have been in place in 
respect of the Group for the 2013 accounting period and up 
to the date of approval of the Annual Report and Accounts. 
There were no significant weaknesses or material failings in the 
risk management and internal control system identified in any 
of the above reviews and reports. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

59

Relations with investors
Regular communications with the Company’s diverse 
shareholder base, including institutional and retail equity 
investors, as well as debt investors, are given high priority by the 
Board. The Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating 
Officer, Finance Director, Legal and Commercial Director 
and Head of Investor Relations are the Company’s principal 
spokespersons, engaging with investors, fund managers, 
analysts, the press and other interested parties. 

The Company is committed to maintaining a constructive 
dialogue with all its investors, including through providing 
regular updates on its operations and corporate developments. 
The Company has an established practice of issuing regulatory 
announcements on the Company’s operations and/or any new 
price sensitive information. The Company’s website at http://
www.gulfkeystone.com/, which is regularly updated, contains 
a wide range of information on the Company, including a 
dedicated investor section where investors can find share price 
and financial information, regulatory announcements, investor 
presentations, technical reports, corporate webcasts, videos and 
photos, interviews with the Company’s management, etc. 

Gulf Keystone seeks to respond to all correspondence from 
shareholders as far as is applicable and proactively seeks to 
provide quarterly updates to the Company’s major investors, 
as well as regular update meetings and calls with fund managers. 
Each of the Non‑Executive Directors are available to attend 
meetings with major shareholders (without the Executive 
Directors present), if requested by such major shareholders. 
A list of the Company’s major shareholders can be found in the 
Directors’ report. Further to the Company’s issue of convertible 
bonds in October 2012 and a subsequent tap issue of such bonds 
in November 2013, the Company’s Investor Relations today 
encompass communications with both equity and debt investors. 

The Executive Directors of the Board regularly present at 
public conferences and investor meetings. Throughout 2013, 
the Company has given a number of investor presentations, 
which are available to view on the Company’s website. Since 
the Annual General Meeting in 2013 was held in Bermuda, 
the Board and management hosted a dedicated shareholder 
event in London on 4 July 2013 particularly tailored for private 
investors. At the Investor Day, the Board and management 
presented to shareholders on all aspects of the Company’s 
business and corporate strategy and took questions from the 
audience. The Investor Day was recorded and a webcast was 
made available on the Company’s website at http://www.
gulfkeystone.com/investor‑centre/webcasts. 

In accordance with its Bye‑Laws, last year the Company 
implemented the provisions of the Bermuda Companies Act 
1981, in accordance with the AIM rules, regarding electronic 
communications with its shareholders in order to give 
shareholders more choice and flexibility in how they receive 
information from the Company. The number of communications 
sent by post has been reduced, resulting not only in cost 
savings for the Company but also speeding up the provision of 
information to shareholders.

A list of the Company’s significant shareholders can be found 
in the Directors’ report.

Annual General Meeting
The Board uses the AGM to communicate with private and 
institutional investors and welcomes their participation. 
It is policy for all Directors to attend the AGM if possible. 

By order of the Board

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Simon Murray
Non‑Executive Chairman

26 March 2014

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

60
Audit Committee report

During the year, the main 
focus of the Audit Committee 
has been to support and 
oversee the Group’s ongoing 
review and evaluation of its 
risk management systems and 
internal controls.

Mark Hanson

Non‑Executive Director

Role 
The Board has delegated to the Committee responsibility for 
overseeing the financial reporting, internal risk management 
and control functions, internal audit and for making 
recommendations to the Board in relation to the appointment 
of the Group’s internal and external auditors.

In accordance with its terms of reference, the Audit Committee, 
which reports its findings to the Board, is authorised to:

 l review the integrity of the Group’s financial reporting and 
significant financial accounting estimates and judgements;
 l monitor the effectiveness of the Group’s risk management 

framework and internal controls;

 l monitor and review the effectiveness of the Group’s internal 

audit function;

 l advise the Board on the appointment of the external auditor 
and on the remuneration for both audit and non‑audit work;
 l discuss the nature and scope of the audit with the external 

auditor; and

 l assess the performance, independence and objectivity of 
the external auditor and any supply of non‑audit services. 

Composition
The Audit Committee currently comprises four Non‑Executive 
Directors, two of whom are considered to be independent. 
The members of the Audit Committee during the year were 
as follows:

 l Mark Hanson  
(Chairman)(1)

 l John Bell  

(joined the Audit Committee 17 September 2013)

 l Andrew Simon  

(joined the Audit Committee 17 September 2013)

 l Jeremy Asher  

(joined the Audit Committee 17 September 2013)

 l Philip Dimmock  

(joined the Audit Committee 18 March 2014)

 l Lord Guthrie  

(retired from the Audit Committee 17 September 2013)

 l Mehdi Varzi  

(retired from the Board by rotation 20 June 2013)

(1)  Mark Hanson stepped down as Chairman of Audit Committee 

to be replaced by Philip Dimmock in March 2014. Mark Hanson 
remains a member of the Committee. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

61

Meetings 
Four Audit Committee meetings were held in the financial year 
and to‑date, at key times within the Group’s reporting and 
audit calendar. The Committee discussed, among others, the 
following matters:

Month

Key issues considered

April  
2013

 l 2012 full year results; 
 l principal judgemental accounting matters 
affecting the Group based on reports from 
both the Group’s management and the 
external auditors; and

 l review of internal audit progress; and 

considerations of areas and timings for 
future reviews.

September 
2013

 l 2013 half year results;
 l review of principal accounting judgements 

and estimates;

 l update on the ongoing internal audit 

reviews, including:
 l IT strategic review;
 l health and safety review;
 l UK Bribery Act 2010 review; and
 l consideration of potential conflict of 

interest or issues associated with auditor 
independence and objectivity arising 
from engaging Deloitte to provide one off 
remuneration advisory services. No such 
conflict or issues were deemed to arise.

December 
2013

 l external audit planning and reports for 

2013 annual report;

 l internal audit plans and reports, including:
 l key internal audit reports;
 l follow up of internal audit 

recommendations;

 l internal financial control assessments;
 l future areas of review;
 l consideration and roll out of Anti‑Bribery 

Action Plan;

 l risk profile and mitigation;
 l external audit effectiveness, independence 

and reappointment; and

 l Audit Committee annual evaluation.

 l 2013 full year results; 
 l assessment of the implications of the 

voluntary compliance with the revised 
Corporate Governance Code; and
 l update on internal audit progress.

March 
2014

The meetings were also regularly attended by Ewen Ainsworth 
(Finance Director), Tony Peart (Legal and Commercial Director), 
senior finance management, Deloitte LLP (external auditor) and 
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (“PwC”) (internal auditor). 

Principal activities during the year
During the year, the main focus of the Audit Committee has 
been to support and oversee the Group’s ongoing review and 
evaluation of its risk management systems and internal controls, 
ensure the robustness and integrity of the Group’s financial 
reporting, and assess the effectiveness of both the internal and 
external audit processes.

The Committee has devoted significant time to reviewing these 
areas, which are integral to the Group’s core management 
and financial processes, as well as engaging regularly with 
management, internal audit function and the external 
auditor. On the instruction of the Audit Committee, the 
internal audit function, undertook a number of reviews. 
The Committee worked closely with the management team 
to ensure the recommendations of the internal audit function 
are actioned in an efficient and timely manner. The creation 
of the internal audit function in 2012 has led to a number 
of improvements in the Group’s controls and processes. 
For example, the establishment of HSSE and CSR Committee 
and an IT management group were a result of internal audit 
recommendations, among others. The Group also undertook 
an anti‑bribery policies and procedures review as bribery was 
determined as one of the principal risks given the nature of the 
business and the region in which the Group operates. The audit 
did not raise any significant areas of concern and indicated that 
the Group have appropriate processes in place. 

The Committee has, where necessary, taken initiative in 
requesting information in order to provide the appropriate 
constructive challenge for its role. During the course of the 
year, the information that the Committee has received has been 
timely and clear and has enabled the Committee to discharge 
its duties effectively. 

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

62
Audit Committee report
continued

Significant issues considered by the Audit Committee 
in 2013 and early 2014
The Committee assesses whether suitable accounting policies 
have been adopted and whether management have made 
appropriate estimates and judgements. The Committee 
reviews accounting papers prepared by management which 
provide details on the main financial reporting judgements. 

The Committee also reviews reports by the external auditor 
on the full year and half year results which highlight any issues 
with respect to the work undertaken on the audit and provide 
further insights into the judgements used by management. 
The significant issues considered in the year are detailed below:

Significant issue

How the issue was addressed by the Committee

Going concern: The appropriateness of preparing the Group 
financial statements for the half year and full year on a going 
concern basis.

Accounting policy and measurement of depreciation, 
depletion and amortisation (“DD&A”): the charge 
is recognised for the first time in 2013 following the 
commencement of commercial production from Shaikan

Revenue: review of the policy for recognition of revenue from 
commercial production for both domestic and export sales 

The Committee considered papers prepared by management, 
taking into account the external auditors’ review of these 
papers and their observations. The Committee also reviewed 
the working capital models and statement as part of the 
move up to the Main Market. The Committee concluded that 
management’s recommendation to prepare the accounts on 
a going concern basis was appropriate, notwithstanding the 
existence of material uncertainties in this regard as further 
outlined in the Directors’ report

The Committee reviewed the Group’s accounting policy for 
DD&A and carefully considered the appropriateness of the key 
assumptions used by management in determining the DD&A 
charge for 2013. The Committee was satisfied that the charge 
recognised in 2013 was appropriate

The Committee considered whether recognition of revenue in 
relation to both domestic and export sales was appropriate. 
The Committee reviewed and discussed the key judgements 
with management and thoroughly assessed the facts 
presented. The Committee also considered detailed reports 
from, and had discussions with, the external Auditor in 
respect of revenue recognition. Based on these reviews and 
discussions, the Committee concluded that, in the absence of 
any cash receipts to date, it was not appropriate to recognise 
revenue in relation to oil sent for export during the year. 
They were satisfied that the revenue balance recognised 
for domestic oil sales for the year ended 31 December 2013 
was appropriate

Carrying value of exploration and evaluation (“E&E”) 
assets: an annual assessment of E&E assets for impairment is 
required under International Financial Reporting Standards. 
Such assessment involves management making a number of 
judgements and assumptions

The Committee considered reports from management 
ensuring the assumptions used are within an acceptable range. 
The views of the external auditor were also taken into account. 
The Committee concurred with the management’s conclusion 
that there was no impairment of E&E assets for 2013

Classification of Akri‑Bijeel as an asset held for sale: 
Akri‑Bijeel was classified as asset held for sale in both the 
31 December 2011 and 2012 accounts. The appropriateness of 
retaining such a classification in the current year was assessed 
by the Committee  

The Committee reviewed the management paper that 
considers the appropriateness of continuing to classify 
Akri‑Bijeel as an asset held for sale. In particular, the Committee 
assessed the likelihood of the sale taking place in the next 
twelve months and concluded that it remained appropriate to 
treat Akri‑Bijeel as an asset held for sale

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

63

Internal audit
The Audit Committee has oversight responsibilities for the 
internal audit function. The internal audit annual plan is 
reviewed and approved and all reports arising there from are 
reviewed and assessed, along with management’s actions on 
findings and recommendations. PwC are invited to and attend 
Audit Committee meetings where appropriate and is also given 
the opportunity to meet privately with the Audit Committee 
without any members of management present. Where PwC’s 
attendance of the Audit Committee’s meeting is not practicable, 
a report on the progress of the reviews and findings is prepared 
for the Committee’s consideration. 

From its establishment in 2012 to the date of this report, the 
internal audit function has carried out the following reviews: 

Budgeting for capital expenditure
A review of the design and operating effectiveness of key 
controls in place relating to the capital expenditure budgeting 
process, monitoring of spend against budget and authorisation 
of capital expenditure.

Procurement and tendering
A review of the design and operating effectiveness of key 
controls in place relating to the procurement tendering process 
during the last 12 months. 

Financial controls
A review of the design and operating effectiveness of the 
Group’s financial controls around month‑end reporting, 
payroll and reconciliations of major accounts. 

Selected administrative expenses
A review of the design and operating effectiveness of 
key controls in place relating to a number of selected 
administrative expenses. 

Health and safety
A review of the Group’s controls around ensuring the 
compliance with various operational health and safety 
regulations, information maintenance and reporting of health 
and safety matters to executive management.

IT strategy
A review of the design and operating effectiveness of key 
controls in place relating to the IT infrastructure. 

Bribery Act compliance
A review of Group’s response to the UK Bribery Act, the overall 
bribery risk assessment, training, communication and ongoing 
compliance reporting protocols in place in the areas of 
Group’s operations. 

The findings of the internal audit reviews were communicated 
to management who, based on the recommendations, prepared 
an action plan for addressing the issues raised. A report on the 
progress made on each action point is presented to the Audit 
Committee at each committee meeting. 

External Auditor
The Audit Committee is responsible for the development, 
implementation and monitoring of the Group’s policy on 
external audit including ensuring that the auditor remains 
objective and independent. To fulfil its responsibility regarding 
independence, the Audit Committee considered:

 l the external auditor’s plan for the current year, noting the 
role of the audit partner, who signs the audit report and 
who, in accordance with professional rules, has not held 
office for more than five years, and any changes in the key 
audit staff;

 l the overall extent of non‑audit services provided by the 

external auditor, in addition to its case‑by‑case approval of 
the provision of non‑audit services by the external auditor; 
 l the external auditor’s written confirmation of independence 

to the Audit Committee; and

 l the past service of the auditor who was first appointed 

in 2006.

Audit tendering
The Audit Committee has noted the changes to the Code, 
the recent findings of the Competition Commission and 
the Guidance for Audit Committees issued by the Financial 
Reporting Council, each in the context of tendering for the 
external audit contract at least every ten years. The Group’s 
external audit was last tendered in 2011, resulting in a 
decision to retain Deloitte LLP as the Group’s auditor. Since the 
appointment of Deloitte LLP in 2006, there have been two 
different senior statutory auditors in line with the required 
rotation timetable. Having previously conducted a full tender 
exercise and considered retendering in subsequent years, 
the Committee will continue to give consideration to the timing 
of the next formal tender in light of the regulatory requirements 
and any further changes in the regulatory framework. 
There are no contractual obligations that restrict the choice 
of external auditors.

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

64
Audit Committee report
continued

Effectiveness of external auditor
To assess the effectiveness of the external audit process, 
the auditors are asked on an annual basis to articulate the steps 
that they have taken to ensure objectivity and independence, 
including where the auditor provides non‑audit services. 
Gulf Keystone monitors the auditors’ performance, behaviour 
and effectiveness during the exercise of their duties, which 
informs the Audit Committee’s decision to recommend 
reappointment on an annual basis. The external auditor’s 
fulfilment of the agreed audit plan and any variations from the 
plan and the robustness and perceptiveness of the auditor in its 
handling of the key accounting and audit judgements are also 
considered when making a judgement on auditor effectiveness. 
The Committee also held discussions with the management 
team regarding the efficiency of the audit process. 

Following the above, the Audit Committee has recommended 
to the Board that Deloitte LLP be reappointed.

Non‑audit services
As a safeguard to help to avoid the objectivity and 
independence of the external auditor becoming compromised, 
the Committee has a formal policy governing the supply of 
non‑audit services by the external auditor. The Group engages 
external advisers to provide non‑audit services based on the 
skills and experience required for the work, and cost. The Group 
may engage the external auditor to provide a limited range of 
non‑audit services where this is the most effective and efficient 
way of procuring such services as long as the Group is satisfied 
that the auditor’s objectivity and independence will not be 
compromised as a result. 

In 2013, Deloitte LLP provided the following services to 
the Group:

 l advisory services to the Remuneration Committee  

(see page 82 for details);

 l corporate finance services in relation to the move up to the 
Standard Segment of the London Stock Exchange; and

 l advisory services in relation to the assessment of 

operational efficiencies in Kurdistan.

A breakdown of the fees paid to the external auditor in respect 
of audit and non‑audit work is included in note 4 to the 
consolidated financial statements. 

The Committee considered the potential threats that 
engagement of Deloitte LLP to perform non‑audit services 
may pose to auditor independence. Deloitte LLP ensured 
that necessary safeguards were put in place to reduce the 
independence threats to an acceptable level. The Committee 
was satisfied that, given the nature of the work and the 
safeguards in place, the provision of non‑audit services did not 
undermine auditor objectivity and independence. 

Committee Evaluation
During the year, a review of the Audit Committee’s effectiveness 
was completed. This was conducted by reference to the 
Committee’s responsibilities as stated in the Audit Committee’s 
Terms of Reference. The assessment concluded that the Audit 
Committee was effective in carrying out its duties.

By order of the Board

Mark Hanson
Chairman of the Audit Committee

26 March 2014

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

65
Nominations Committee report

Following the Board’s decision 
to split the roles of Chairman 
and Chief Executive Officer, the 
Nominations Committee initiated, 
led and successfully completed 
the search for a Non‑Executive 
Chairman and an Independent 
Non‑Executive Director. 

Field Marshal the Lord Guthrie of Cragiebank
Chairman of the Nominations Committee

Role
The Board has delegated to the Nominations Committee the 
responsibility for ensuring the Board has the right balance of 
experience and skills to support our strategy.

In accordance with its terms of reference, the Committee, which 
reports its findings to the Board, is authorised to:

 l review the structure, size and composition required of the 
Board and the balance of skills, experience, independence 
and knowledge;

Composition
The Nominations Committee currently comprises four 
Non‑Executive Directors, the Non‑Executive Chairman and the 
CEO. The members of the Nominations Committee during the 
year were as follows:

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 l Lord Guthrie (Chairman)(1)
 l Mark Hanson
 l Simon Murray  

(joined the Nominations Committee 17 September 2013)

 l oversee executive succession planning taking into account 

 l Philip Dimmock  

challenges and opportunities facing the Group;
 l identify and nominate for the approval of the Board 

candidates to fill Board vacancies as and when they arise;

(joined the Nominations Committee 17 September 2013)

 l Thomas Shull  

(joined the Nominations Committee 17 September 2013)

 l make recommendations to the Board concerning the 

 l Todd Kozel  

continuation in office of any Director, including suspension 
and termination of service;

 l appoint external search consultants to assist with 

appointments as required; and

 l determine skills and capabilities required for new 

appointments.

(joined the Nominations Committee 17 September 2013)

 l Jeremy Asher  

(joined the Nominations Committee 18 March 2014)

 l John Bell  

(joined the Nominations Committee 18 March 2014)

 l Andrew Simon 

(joined the Nominations Committee 18 March 2014)

 l Mehdi Varzi  

(retired from the Board by rotation 20 June 2013)

(1) 

In March 2014, Lord Guthrie stepped down as Chairman of 
Nominations Committee to be replaced by Simon Murray. 
Lord Guthrie remains a member of the Committee. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

Other matters considered by the Nominations Committee 
During the year, other matters considered by the Nominations 
Committee included the consideration of succession 
planning for the Board and the key skills and experience 
required for future recruits. The Company is continuing the 
search process, with the assistance of Odgers Berndtson, 
one of the UK’s pre‑eminent executive search firms, for at 
least one other independent non‑executive director, and a 
further announcement on that process will be made in due 
course. The assessment of succession planning will be further 
developed during the course of next year. 

The Committee recognises the benefits of having diversity 
across all areas of the Group and believes that this adds to Gulf 
Keystone’s continued success and advantage. When considering 
the optimum make‑up of the Board, the benefits of diversity 
of the Board are appropriately reviewed and balanced where 
possible, including in terms of differences in skills, industry 
experience, business model experiences, gender, race, disability, 
age, nationality, background and other contributions that 
individuals may bring. The Committee continues to focus 
on encouraging diversity of business skills and experience 
across the Board. In identifying suitable candidates to fill the 
Non‑Executive Director position, the Committee will seek 
candidates from a range of backgrounds, with the final decision 
being based on merit against objective criteria. The Committee 
notes that the Company has no female Directors on its Board 
at present and therefore is looking to address this in the future 
Board appointments. 

By order of the Board

Field Marshal the Lord Guthrie of Cragiebank
Chairman of the Nominations Committee

26 March 2014

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Nominations Committee report
continued

Process used for board appointments 
In appointing Non‑Executive Directors, the Board’s practice is 
to use external recruitment consultants where appropriate. 
During the year, terms were negotiated with Odgers Berndtson, 
one of the UK’s pre‑eminent executive search firms, to act as 
recruitment consultants for the Board. Other than providing 
recruitment consultancy services, Odgers Berndtson has no 
other connection with the Group.

The Committee adopts a formal, rigorous and transparent 
procedure for the appointment of new directors to the 
Board. In May 2013, the Board decided to split the roles of 
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Following this decision, 
a search for a Non‑Executive Chairman and at least one other 
Independent Non‑Executive Director was initiated and led by 
the Nominations Committee. Odgers Berndston were provided 
with a detailed brief of the desired candidate profile based on 
merit and against objective criteria (including an assessment of 
the time commitment expected) and their services were used 
to conduct a thorough search to identify suitable candidates 
for both Chairman and Senior Independent Non‑Executive 
Director positions. The Nominations Committee considered a 
list of potential candidates and the balance of skills, knowledge, 
independence, diversity and experience on the Board to ensure 
that a suitable balance was maintained. Those shortlisted 
were interviewed by members of the Board including the 
Nominations Committee and the Legal and Commercial 
Director. Following this process, Simon Murray and Andrew 
Simon were invited to join the Board and to become Gulf 
Keystone’s Chairman and Senior Independent Non‑Executive 
Director. Mr Murray’s and Mr Simon’s other significant 
commitments were disclosed to the Board before their 
respective appointments and can be found in their biographies 
(see page 46). The Board was and continues to be satisfied 
that Mr Murray and Mr Simon would allocate sufficient time 
to the Company to discharge their responsibilities effectively. 
Mr Murray’s and Mr Simon’s wealth of public company board 
experience, valuable commercial expertise, knowledge of 
capital markets and strong network of contacts, both globally 
and across the Far East, were the main factors taken into 
account in the Board’s decision. 

In addition to the appointments of Chairman and Senior 
Independent Non‑Executive Director, Jeremy Asher, Thomas 
Shull, John Bell and Philip Dimmock were each elected as a 
Non‑Executive Director of the Company at the 2013 Annual 
General Meeting, having been proposed by a major shareholder 
in accordance with Bye‑Law 94.2 of the Company’s Bye‑Laws.

There are no arrangements or understandings between any 
Director or executive officer and any other person pursuant to 
which any Director or executive officer was selected to serve. 
There are no family relationships between the Directors.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

67
Remuneration Committee report

We believe that the new 
remuneration policy will 
make it easier for shareholders 
to understand what directors 
are paid and will be paid, 
whilst ensuring that pay is 
linked to performance and the 
executive team is rewarded at an 
appropriate level for delivering the 
Company’s strategic objectives.
Andrew Simon
Chairman of the Remuneration Committee

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change the Company’s Bye‑Laws to enable future votes on the 
policy to be binding with effect from the 2015 AGM.

Whilst basic salary levels have been kept low in the past, the 
benchmarking exercise carried out by Deloitte helped us to 
conclude that the level of long‑term incentives and short‑term 
bonuses were notably above the market range. It should be 
noted that there are ongoing obligations in respect of awards 
already granted. In this context, deferred cash and share bonus 
awards will vest in 2014 and the remaining outstanding Long 
Term Incentive Plan (“LTIP”) options will vest on satisfaction 
of the applicable performance conditions. In addition, the 
Executive Directors decided on their own initiative that no short 
term bonuses were to be paid for 2013 given the performance 
of the business.

Gulf Keystone is an entrepreneurial company operating 
in one of the last and most challenging frontiers of the oil 
exploration industry. The Company is moving from exploration 
to production, with significant future capital expenditure to 
move production from 10,000 bopd towards 40,000 bopd by 
the end of 2014, with a target of 100,000 bopd set for Phase 1 
of the Shaikan FDP in the medium term. Our ability to achieve 
these targets and move to even greater production levels 
will be dependent not only on the significant investment in 
infrastructure required both by Gulf Keystone and the KRG, 
but also on the complex regional geopolitical situation. 
Consequently we will always need to retain a considerable 
element of flexibility in ensuring the right level of fairness for 
all of our stakeholders.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

Remuneration Committee 
Chairman’s statement

Dear Shareholder,

I hope that 2013 will be seen as a turning point in the way 
Gulf Keystone approaches remuneration. There has in the 
past been some investor concern about certain aspects of 
executive remuneration. On my appointment as Chair of the 
Remuneration Committee, we agreed to undertake a detailed 
review of past and future remuneration policies, with the 
objective of developing a forward looking remuneration policy 
which satisfies best practice standards of corporate governance, 
whilst keeping the ability to attract and retain top quality 
executives to deliver the Company’s business strategy. 

During the last quarter of 2013, the Committee engaged 
Deloitte’s remuneration practice on a one off basis to provide 
a thorough analysis of the Company’s historical remuneration 
practice and payments to Executive Directors together 
with an external market context. Deloitte were asked to 
comment on the current remuneration framework and 
remuneration policy in the light of this review. The results of 
their work were taken into account by the Committee when 
developing the new remuneration policy. On an ongoing basis 
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (‘PwC’) will be the independent 
remuneration advisor to the Committee.

As a Bermudan domiciled company we are not under an 
obligation to follow the Regulations. However, we have elected 
to seek an advisory vote at the 2014 AGM on the Company’s 
remuneration policy report and the annual report on 
remuneration. It is not currently possible under the Company’s 
bye‑laws to have a binding vote on the policy report as required 
under the Regulations. We will also include a resolution to 

68
Remuneration Committee Report
continued

Remuneration Committee Chairman’s statement continued 
In designing the new policy, we have benchmarked ourselves 
against a group of oil and exploration companies of similar size 
on the London market, recognising the entrepreneurial nature 
of the business, whilst seeking to establish a remuneration 
policy which is compatible with the Code and which 
demonstrates clearly how the Directors have been and will be 
paid and how this relates to the Company’s performance.

The work done by the Remuneration Committee has 
resulted in the following proposals.

1.  Basic salaries will not increase significantly in 2014 and will 

be reviewed annually.

2.  Pension provision.  

Historically there has been no provision for pension benefits 
and it is proposed to make a 15 percent cash allowance for 
this effective from 1st January 2014.

3.  Annual Bonus (short‑term) 

The maximum bonus potential for the CEO would be 200 
percent of salary and for the other executive directors 150 
percent of salary, with a set of demanding quantified metric 
targets. 

4. 

 LTIP

Since the existing scheme is due to mature in August 2014, 
we will be introducing a new LTIP, which will be subject to 
shareholder approval at the next AGM and will be effective 
from July 2014. As with the Short‑term Bonus, the maximum 
entitlement for the CEO will be an LTIP award of 200 
percent of salary, with 150 percent of salary for the other 
executive directors.

In designing the new annual bonus and LTIP arrangements, 
the metrics were selected to reflect the Company’s strategic 
objectives. For the annual bonus, it was decided that, the metric 
most likely to generate shareholder value and cash flow at 
this stage of the company’s development is production based 
on bopd. In addition to production, a number of qualitative 
objectives will be set for each of the Executive Directors. For 
the LTIP, the performance metrics will be based on comparative 
total shareholder return (“TSR”), production and increase in 
contingent resources, which are considered the best basis for 
generating shareholder value over the medium term.

Furthermore, I will be undertaking a consultation with our 
major shareholders prior to the 2014 AGM to seek their 
feedback on the revised remuneration policy.

We believe that the new policy will make it easier for 
shareholders to understand what directors are paid and will 
be paid, whilst ensuring that pay is linked to performance and 
the executive team is rewarded at an appropriate level for 
delivering the Company’s strategic objectives.

Andrew Simon
Remuneration Committee Chairman

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

REMUNERATION COMMITTEE 
REPORT OVERVIEW
This report is on the activities of the Remuneration Committee 
for the period to 31 December 2013 and early 2014. It sets 
out the remuneration policy and remuneration details for 
the Executive and Non‑Executive Directors of the Company. 
The Company is incorporated in Bermuda and therefore is 
exempt from the required disclosures under Schedule 8 of The 
Large and Medium‑sized Companies and Groups (Accounts 
and Reports) Regulations 2008 as amended in August 2013 
(the “Regulations) but the Directors have decided to provide 
such disclosures insofar as they are still compliant with the 
Company’s Bye‑Laws. The report is split into three main areas:

 l the statement by the Chairman of the Remuneration 

Committee,

 l the policy report, and
 l the annual report on remuneration.

Policy

Introduction
In light of the change to the Corporate Governance approach, 
the Directors’ Remuneration Policy (the ‘“Policy’”) as set out 
below will operate from 1 January 2014 and be put to an 
advisory shareholders vote. It will become formally effective at 
the 2014 Annual General Meeting and will apply for the period 
of 3 years from the date of approval.

Summary
The Company’s policy is to attract, motivate and retain 
individuals of the calibre necessary to achieve the strategic 
priorities of the Group. Furthermore, our new policy is 
constructed to offer packages that are significantly weighted 
towards performance based elements with measures that 
reflect corporate and operational performance. The aim is to set 
targets that are stretching yet achievable.

Differences in policy from the wider employee population
Our remuneration policy is not unique to our directors. 
The same principles underpin how we reward and compensate 
all our colleagues. We aim to provide base pay to all colleagues 
that is market competitive and to offer them the opportunity 
to share in our success through a variety of bonuses and 
incentive schemes. 

Discretion
The Committee has discretion in several areas of policy as set 
out in this report. The Committee may also exercise operational 
and administrative discretions under relevant plan rules 
approved by shareholders as set out in those rules. In addition, 
the Committee has the discretion to amend policy with regard 
to minor or administrative matters where it would be, in the 
opinion of the Committee, disproportionate to seek or await 
shareholder approval.

69

It is the Committee’s intention that commitments made in line with its policies prior to the date of the 2014 AGM will be honoured, 
even if satisfaction of such commitments is made post the AGM and may be inconsistent with the remuneration policies. 
This includes the exit event awards set out below.

Exit Event Awards
In March 2012, the Company made Exit Event Awards to certain Executive Directors and employees equivalent to the value of up 
to 2.0 million common shares. Exit Event Awards are cash settled awards which are conditional on the occurrence of an Exit Event 
which envisages a sale of either the Company or a substantial proportion (i.e. more than 50%) of its assets. A further award of 
0.9 million common shares was made in December 2013 to the employees with no additional Exit Event Awards made to directors. 
The Exit Event Awards made in 2012 expire in March 2017 and the additional awards expire in December 2018. The purpose of the 
Award was to encourage employee retention in the event of any corporate transaction up to the point of Exit Event completion as 
well as to align the interests of the Company’s employees and key management personnel with shareholders. 

The Company appointed a trustee (the “Exit Event Trustee”) to hold and, subject to the occurrence of an Exit Event, to sell sufficient 
common shares to satisfy the Exit Event Awards. In total 10.0 million common shares were issued to the Exit Event Trustee to 
satisfy the initial, additional and any future Exit Event Awards to full‑time employees of the Company and subsidiary companies, 
subject to the occurrence of an Exit Event, with such beneficiaries to be determined in due course. The preparation of the Exit Event 
Awards involved detailed discussions with a number of the Company’s leading institutional and other shareholders who held, in 
aggregate, in excess of 35 per cent of the issued share capital of the Company, as well as consultation with the Company’s advisers. 
The Company will not grant any further Exit Events Awards to the directors of the Company and its subsidiaries.

A summary of the remuneration components is detailed below.

Policy table (for determination of Executive Directors’ pay)

Remuneration 
element

Base salary

Link to strategy Operation

Maximum potential 
value

Performance 
metrics

Core element of total 
package, essential to 
support recruitment 
and retention of high 
calibre executives.
Key element of core 
fixed remuneration

Reviewed annually as 
at 1 January. Factors 
influencing decision 
include:
 l Role, experience and 

individual performance
 l Pay awards elsewhere in 

the Group

 l External market 

(benchmarked against 
exploration and 
production comparator 
group)

 l General economic 
environment 

None

The policy of the 
Remuneration Committee 
(‘The Committee’) is 
normally to consider the 
relevant market median as 
the maximum salary level 
required.
In the normal course of 
events the maximum 
salary increase for 
Executive Directors will 
be in line with the general 
employee increase.
The Company will 
set out in the section 
headed “Statement 
of implementation of 
remuneration policy in the 
following financial year” 
the salaries for that year 
for each of the Executive 
Directors (see page 80)

Benefits

Directors are currently 
entitled to private medical 
insurance

Limited basic 
package of 
benefits. In line 
with the Company’s 
strategy to keep 
remuneration simple 
and consistent

None

Benefit levels reflect those 
typically available to 
senior managers within 
the Group. The maximum 
potential value of the 
benefits to the Directors is 
the cost to the Company to 
provide those benefits 

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Remuneration 
Committee 
discretion

The Committee retains 
discretion to:
 l award salaries of 

above median levels 
where necessary to 
retain or attract high 
calibre candidates. 
This discretion will only 
be used in exceptional 
circumstances and 
where possible 
shareholders will be 
consulted in advance;
 l determine and review 

the appropriate 
comparator group used 
for benchmarking;
 l increase salaries above 

the general peer 
group increase where 
this is reflective of 
significant additional 
responsibilities

In the event that a Director 
is recruited from overseas, 
flexibility is retained by the 
Committee to provide the 
normal benefits provided 
to an executive for the 
market (e.g. it may be 
appropriate to provide 
benefits that are tailored to 
the circumstances of such 
an appointment)

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

70
Remuneration Committee report
continued

Remuneration 
element

Pension

Link to strategy Operation

Helps executives 
provide for 
retirement and aids 
retention

Annual bonus 
(short‑term)

Rewards 
achievement of 
annual key business 
strategy and financial 
objectives

Up to 15% of salary 
is provided as a cash 
allowance.
Pension allowances will 
not be included in the 
salary figure to be used 
to calculate bonus or any 
other executive reward 
based on the salary figure

Targets are set annually in 
line with the performance 
metrics (see aside).
Total bonus level is 
determined after the 
year end, based on 
achievement of targets

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

Maximum potential 
value

Performance 
metrics

15% allowance

None

Remuneration 
Committee 
discretion

Not applicable

Maximum bonus 
opportunity under the 
plan is 200% of annual 
salary for the CEO 
and 150% for all other 
executive directors.
The threshold opportunity 
at which bonus starts to be 
earned is 25% of salary.
The on target opportunity 
for achievement of the KPIs 
is 120% of base salary with 
a sliding scale applying for 
achievement above and 
below the KPI targets 

The Committee retains the 
discretion to review the 
weighting of measures and 
to set the performance 
targets and ranges for each 
metric.
In determining the 
achievement of the 
targets, the Committee will 
take into account market 
conditions, improvement 
on prior year performance 
required and other 
relevant factors.
The Committee retains 
discretion in exceptional 
circumstances to change 
the performance measures 
and targets and their 
respective weightings 
part way through a 
performance year if there 
is a significant and material 
event which causes the 
Committee to believe 
the original measures, 
weightings and targets 
are no longer appropriate. 
Discretion may also 
be exercised in cases 
where the Committee 
believes that the bonus 
outcome is not a fair and 
accurate reflection of 
business performance

At this stage of 
development of the 
business, the metric 
most likely to generate 
shareholder value and 
cash flow is production 
based on bopd. In 
addition to production, 
a number of qualitative 
objectives will be set for 
each of the Executive 
Directors. The Company 
will set out in the section 
headed “Statement 
of implementation of 
remuneration policy in the 
following financial year” 
the nature of the targets 
and their weighting for 
each year (see page 80)
Details of the performance 
conditions, targets and 
their level of satisfaction 
for the year being reported 
on will be set out in the 
Annual Remuneration 
Committee report. 
The Committee is of the 
opinion that given the 
commercial sensitivity 
arising in relation to 
the detailed financial, 
operational and strategic 
targets used for the 
bonus plan, disclosing 
precise targets for the 
plan in advance would 
not be in shareholder 
interests. Actual targets, 
performance achieved 
and awards made will be 
published at the end of 
the performance periods 
so shareholders can 
fully assess the basis for 
any pay‑outs under the 
bonus plan

71

Remuneration 
element

Long‑Term Incentive 
Plan (LTIP)

Link to strategy Operation

Incentivises 
executives to 
deliver key financial 
targets over a 
longer term, with 
particular focus on 
shareholder return 
and the generation 
of cash to fund 
investment in growth 
and long‑term 
sustainability of the 
business.
Helps retain 
high performing 
executives 

Awards are usually granted 
annually to participants, 
but grants may be 
made at other times on 
recruitment or promotion 
of an executive or in other 
exceptional circumstances.
Awards are in the form 
of nil cost share options, 
nominal cost share options 
or conditional shares. 
In special circumstances 
they may be cash‑settled.
Awards normally vest after 
3 years to the extent that 
performance targets have 
been met

Maximum potential 
value

Performance 
metrics

The maximum value of 
the shares subject to 
awards to an individual in 
any financial year is 200% 
of annual salary for the 
CEO and 150% for other 
participants.
At threshold performance 
25% of the award vests.
For on target performance 
50% of the award vests.
Between performance 
levels there is straight line 
vesting

Remuneration 
Committee 
discretion

The Committee may 
exercise its discretion as 
permitted in the rules of 
the LTIP which is subject 
to shareholders’ approval. 
The principal areas in 
which the Committee may 
exercise discretion are:
 l the selection of 
participants;

 l the timing of awards;
 l the level of awards;
 l the selection, review 
and amendment of 
performance measures 
and targets;

 l adjustments in the 
event of a capital 
variation

In the event of a material 
misstatement of the 
Company’s results or 
gross misconduct of a 
participant, the Committee 
may decide to claw back all 
or part of the value which 
has already been delivered 
to a participant on exercise 
of an award or to reduce 
the value of unvested 
awards including to zero

The Committee has 
discretion to change the 
shareholding requirements

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Performance measures, 
representing a 
combination of market 
and non‑market related 
elements, are set by the 
Remuneration Committee 
before each award is 
made. Non‑market related 
performance is measured 
by reference to one or 
more of the Company’s 
strategic KPIs. Initially, 
the Company will use 
production and increase 
in contingent resources 
metrics.
Market related 
performance is measured 
by reference to 
comparative TSR. 25% of 
an award vests at median 
and 100% vests at upper 
quartile with a straight line 
increase between those 
two points. 
The weighting used for 
performance measures is: 
 l comparative TSR – 40% 
 l production – 35%
 l increase in contingent 

resources – 25% 

Executive directors are 
required to hold shares 
valued at the target level 
no later than January 2019 
or, if later, within 5 years 
of their appointment as 
directors

Shareholding 
requirements

Aligns the interests 
of executives and 
shareholders

Formal requirement apply 
to executive directors. 
Participation in long‑term 
incentives may be scaled 
back or withheld if the 
requirements are not met 
or maintained

At least, 200% salary 
holding required for the 
CEO and 150% salary 
holding required for all 
other executive directors. 
The required shareholding 
must be reached within 
five years of the date of 
the remuneration policy 
approval

The performance metrics that are used for our annual 
bonus and LTIP have been selected to reflect the Group’s 
key performance indicators at this stage of its development. 
In considering appropriate performance metrics the Committee 
seeks to incentivise and reinforce delivery of the Company’s 
strategic objectives achieving a balance between delivering 
annual return to shareholders and ensuring sustainable 
long‑term profitability and growth. 

Production based on bopd is used to assess short‑term 
operational performance as it is key to revenue and cash 
generation. We aim to achieve production in line with the 
Group’s annual budget and market guidance with allowance 
given to unplanned events that may cause reduction in 
production levels and are outside of the Company’s control. 

Increase in contingent resources is a key indicator of exploration 
success and field performance and measures the percentage of 
production that has been replaced during the year. 

Gulf Keystone’s strategy is focused on building long‑term 
sustainable value growth. Our primary strategic objective is 
to deliver substantial returns to shareholders.

Since safety is of central importance to the business, the award 
of any bonus is subject to an underpin that enables the 
Remuneration Committee to reduce the bonus earned if there is 
a safety event that, in the Committee’s opinion, warrants the use 
of such discretion.

The Committee calibrates performance targets by due reference 
to selected Exploration and Production (“E&P”) comparator group 
and other indicators of the economic environment to ensure 
targets represent relative as well as absolute achievement.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

72
Remuneration Committee report
continued

Non‑Executive Directors fees
The Company provides a level of fees to support recruitment and retention of non‑executive directors with the necessary 
experience to advise and assist with establishing and monitoring the Company’s strategic objectives.

The Non‑Executive Chairman and Non‑Executive Directors receive an annual fee paid in monthly instalments. The fee for the 
Chairman is set by the Remuneration Committee and the fees for the Non‑Executive Directors are approved by the Board, on the 
recommendation of the Chairman and CEO.

Non‑Executive fees are positioned in line with similarly sized international companies. The following fees were reviewed in 2013 
and will normally be reviewed on an annual basis in line with inflation and general movement of pay within the Company.

Fee type 

Chairman’s fee 

Fees for other Non‑Executive Directors 

Basic fee 

Chair of a Board Committee  

Member of a Board Committee 

GBP(1)

350,000(2)

90,000

10,000

5,000

(1)  The Chairman and Non‑Executive Directors are remunerated in GBP (£), however, the values disclosed in the Annual Report on Remuneration 

are reported in USD as it is the functional currency of the Group. 

(2)  Chairman’s fee was set at £500,000 on appointment and was reduced to £350,000 per annum as of 1 January 2014. 

Non‑Executive Directors do not receive any other benefits. Apart from the pre December 2012 awards, Non‑Executive Directors do not 
participate in any of the Company’s share plans.

Illustration of the application of the Remuneration Policy
For each person who is an Executive Director of the Company as at the date of this report, an illustration was prepared (see the tables 
below) setting out an indication of the level of remuneration that would be received by the Director in accordance with the Directors’ 
Remuneration Policy in 2014.

Chief Executive Officer 
$’000

Finance Director 
$’000

Chief Operating Officer 
$’000

4,000

3,500

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0

3,476

39%

39%

2,261

30%

36%

776

100%

34%

22%

1,400

1,200

1,000

800

600

400

200

0

1,195

36%

36%

893

24%

39%

331

100%

37%

28%

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0

2,592

36%

36%

1,968

24%

39%

810

100%

37%

28%

Fixed

In line with 
expectations

Maximum

Fixed

In line with 
expectations

Maximum

Fixed

In line with 
expectations

Maximum

Long-term incentive
Annual variable
Fixed

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
73

In developing the scenarios, the following assumptions have been made: 

Fixed
 l Consists of base salary, benefits and pension
 l Base salary is latest salary
 l Benefits comprise medical insurance, travel and accommodation. The value of travel and accommodation benefit may vary 

substantially year by year depending on the levels of travel required from the Executive Director. 

 l Pension measured by applying cash in lieu rate against latest salary for all executives.

CEO 

Finance Director(1) 

COO 

Base  
salary  
($’000) 

675 

288 

594 

Benefits 
 ($’000) 

Pension  
 ($’000) 

— 

— 

127 

101 

43 

89 

Total 
fixed 
 ($’000)

776

331

810

(1)  Finance Director’s salary is paid in GBP and is translated into USD at GBP/USD rate of 1.6 for illustration purposes only. 

In line with expectations 
Based on what a director would receive if performance was in line with plan: 

 l Annual variable element (includes annual bonus potential) pays out at 120% for on‑plan performance.

 l  Long‑term incentive performance at mid‑range relative to the targets set for plan, therefore 50% vesting of awards. 

The value of LTIP does not allow for share price appreciation and uses 31 December 2013 share price. 

Maximum
 l Full payout of annual variable element, i.e. two times salary for CEO and 1.5 times for the other executive directors.

 l Long‑term incentive performance at upper quartile relative to the targets set for plan, therefore 100% vesting of long‑term 

incentive awards i.e. two times salary for CEO and 1.5 times for the other executive directors.

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Recruitment remuneration
It is our policy to recruit the best candidate possible for any executive board position. We seek to avoid paying more than 
necessary to secure the candidate and will have regard to guidelines and shareholder sentiment when formulating the 
remuneration package.

We structure salary, incentives and benefits for candidates in line with the above remuneration policy and accordingly participation 
in short and long term incentives will be on the same basis as existing directors. The table below outlines our recruitment policy:

Base salary and benefits 
The pay of any new recruit would be assessed following the principles set out in the remuneration policy table.

Pension 
The appointee will be able to receive a cash allowance in lieu of pension benefits in line with the Company’s policy as set out in the 
remuneration policy table.

Annual bonus 
The appointee will be eligible to participate in the annual bonus as set out in the remuneration policy table. Awards may be 
granted up to the maximum opportunity allowable in the remuneration policy.

Long‑term incentives 
The appointee will be eligible to participate in the Company’s 2014 LTIP as set out in the remuneration policy table. Awards may be 
granted up to the maximum opportunity allowable under the scheme.

Maximum level of variable remuneration 
The maximum level of variable remuneration under the Company’s policy is 400% of salary per annum. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
74
Remuneration Committee report
continued

Recruitment Remuneration continued
Share buy‑outs/ replacement awards 
The Committee’s policy is not to provide buy‑outs as a matter of course.

However, should the Committee determine that the individual circumstances of recruitment justified the provision of a buyout, 
the value of any incentives that will be forfeited on cessation of a director’s previous employment will be calculated taking into 
account the following:

 l the proportion of the performance period completed on the date of the director’s cessation of employment;

 l the performance conditions attached to the vesting of these incentives and the likelihood of them being satisfied; and

 l any other terms and condition having a material effect on their value (‘lapsed value’).

The Committee may then grant up to the equivalent value as the lapsed value, where possible, under the Company’s incentive 
plans. To the extent that it was not possible or practical to provide the buyout within the terms of the Company’s existing incentive 
plans, a bespoke arrangement would be used

Relocation 
In instances where the new Executive Director is relocated from one location to another, the Company will provide one‑off or 
ongoing benefits as part of the Executive Director’s relocation benefits compensation to reflect the cost of relocation for the 
Executive in cases where they are expected to relocate from their country of domicile.

The level of relocation package will be assessed on a case by case basis but will take into consideration any cost of living 
differences, housing allowance, schooling, etc.

Where an existing employee is promoted to the Board, the policy set out above would apply from the date of promotion but there 
would be no retrospective application of the policy in relation to subsisting incentive awards or remuneration arrangements. 
Accordingly, prevailing elements of the remuneration package for an existing employee would be honoured and form part of the 
ongoing remuneration of the person concerned. These would be disclosed to shareholders in the Annual Remuneration report for 
the relevant financial year.

Non‑Executive Directors recruited will be remunerated in accordance with the Company’s policy.

Details of Directors’ service contracts and letters of appointment
Each of the Executive Directors has a service contract, the date of which is shown below. These contracts provide for twelve months’ 
notice from the CEO and six months’ notice from the other executive directors, with the same notice periods required from the 
Company. They do not specify any compensation in the event of termination or change of control.

Non‑Executive Directors do not have a service contract, but each has received a letter of appointment. No compensation is payable 
for the loss of office to Non‑Executive Directors, which, depending on circumstances of termination, may be with or without notice. 
There are no other service agreements or material contracts, existing or proposed, between the Company and its Directors. 

Executive Directors service contracts and Non‑Executive Directors’ appointment letters will be available for inspection at the 2014 
AGM (for 15 minutes prior to the meeting and during the meeting). As the Company’s registered office is in Bermuda, it is not 
practicable to make the service contracts and appointment letters available at the Company’s registered office.

One third of Directors are required to stand for re‑election every year in accordance with the Company’s Bye‑Laws. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

75

Details of the service contracts and letters of appointment in place as at 31 December 2013 for Directors are as follows:

Director 

Todd Kozel 

John Gerstenlauer 

Ewen Ainsworth 

Simon Murray 

Lord Guthrie 

Mark Hanson 

Jeremy Asher 

Thomas Shull 

John Bell 

Philip Dimmock 

Andrew Simon 

  Effective date of current service  
  contract or letter of appointment 

June 2004 

October 2008 

January 2008 

July 2013 

July 2013 

July 2013 

July 2013 

July 2013 

July 2013 

July 2013 

Unexpired term at 
31 December 2013

rolling contract

rolling contract

rolling contract

6 months(1)(2)

2 years 7 months(1)(3)

2 years 7 months(1)(3)

2 years 7 months(1)(4)

2 years 7 months(1)(4)

2 years 7 months(1)(4)

2 years 7 months(1)(4)

September 2013 

1 year 8 months(1)(3)

(1)  Appointment can be terminated by the Company with immediate effect under certain circumstances in accordance with the Company’s 

Bye‑Laws. 

(2)  Appointment can be terminated by either party at any time on 6 months’ written notice at any time during the term of employment. 

(3)  Appointment can be terminated by either party giving the other one month’s written notice at any time during the term of employment.

(4)  Appointment can be terminated by the Non‑Executive Director giving the Company one month’s written notice at any time during the term 

of employment.

The Committee’s policy for setting notice periods is that a maximum twelve month period will apply for Executive Directors. 
The Committee may in exceptional circumstances arising on recruitment, allow a longer period, which would in any event reduce 
to twelve months following the first year of employment.

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Policy on payment for Directors leaving employment
Contractual notice periods for Executive Directors are normally set at six months’ notice with the exception of the CEO whose 
notice period is set at twelve months. The notice period required to be given by the Company is identical to that required from the 
Executive Directors. 

The Committee will honour Executive Directors’ contractual entitlements. Service contracts do not contain liquidated damages 
clauses. If a contract is to be terminated, the Committee will determine such mitigation as it considers fair and reasonable in each 
case. There are no contractual arrangements that would guarantee a pension with limited or no abatement on severance or early 
retirement. There is no agreement between the Company and its directors or employees, providing for compensation for loss 
of office or employment that occurs because of a takeover bid (other than the Exit Event Awards set out above). The Committee 
reserves the right to make additional payments where such payments are made in good faith in discharge of an existing legal 
obligation (or by way of damages for breach of such an obligation), or by way of settlement or compromise of any claim arising 
in connection with the termination of an Executive director’s office or employment.

We classify terminations of employment arising from death, ill health, disability, injury, retirement with Company’s agreement 
or redundancy automatically as “good leaver” reasons. In addition the Committee retains discretion under the incentive plan 
rules to determine “good leaver” status. In the event such discretion is exercised, for example, recognising significant long term 
contribution to achievement of strategic objectives, a full explanation will be provided to shareholders as part of the Annual report 
on remuneration. The Remuneration Committee will only use its general discretion to determine that an Executive Director is a 
good leaver in exceptional circumstances.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
76
Remuneration Committee report
continued

Policy on payment for Directors leaving employment continued
The reason for leaving may impact treatment of the various remuneration elements as follows:

Remuneration 
element

Salary

Annual bonus

Good leaver reason

Other leaver reason

Ceases on cessation of employment (salary may be 
paid in lieu of notice) 

Ceases on cessation of employment (salary may be 
paid in lieu of notice) 

Unpaid bonus from the period prior to cessation will 
be paid in full. A pro‑rata bonus may be paid, subject 
to normal performance conditions, for the period in 
which cessation occurs.

Bonus earned and deferred prior to 2013 will vest in 
full at cessation, subject to performance criteria

All unvested bonus payments lapse. Deferred 
bonus payments also lapse.

No bonus is paid for the period in which cessation 
of office occurs

Benefits

LTIP

Provision for accrual of benefits will cease on 
cessation of employment

Provision for accrual of benefits will cease on 
cessation of employment

Normal vesting on a pro‑rata basis (full vesting in the 
event of the ill health, injury, disability or death of the 
executive)

Participation lapses at cessation of employment

There are no other contractual provisions agreed prior to 27 June 2012.

The current LTIP scheme, under which 2009 and 2010 LTIP awards were made and which expires in August 2014, stipulates that any 
Option not exercised by the time of cessation shall remain exercisable until the expiry of the exercise period unless within the three 
months after such cessation the Board in its absolute discretion shall determine that the Option in whole or in part shall cease to be 
exercisable on a specified date within the exercise period.

Change of control
The following is the position on a change of control of the Company:

Plan

Terms and conditions

Remuneration Committee discretion

Annual bonus

Not applicable

Not applicable

LTIP

Legacy plan

Executive bonus 
scheme

Unapproved 
Share Option 
Plan, including 
grants with LTIP 
performance 
conditions

The Remuneration Committee may determine that 
part of an award will vest taking account of the 
Company’s performance since the grant date and 
the proportion of the normal vesting period which 
has elapsed 

Remuneration Committee discretion

Outstanding rights to Bonus Award Shares vest on 
a change of control provided the change of control 
event is not after the 10th anniversary of the grant 
notification letter and subject to the holder being an 
eligible participant

Outstanding options may be exercised within 
six months of a change of control event 
notwithstanding any performance conditions 
and provided the option holder is still an eligible 
employee and the exercise period has not expired

No discretion

No discretion

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

77

Relationship to employee pay
Pay levels for employees at all levels across the Group are determined in relation to a number of factors including economic 
conditions, cost of living, market practice and colleague feedback. In addition the Committee considers the general basic salary 
increase, remuneration arrangements and employment conditions for the broader employee population when determining 
remuneration policy for the Executive Directors.

The Company does not use any remuneration comparison metrics and has not conducted a formal consultation process with 
employees in designing the remuneration policy,

Consideration of shareholder views
We consult with shareholders on our remuneration policy and its execution. We welcome their constructive feedback and use this 
effectively to shape our approach. In 2014, we intend to hold shareholder consultation with our largest shareholders regarding our 
new remuneration policy. 

Feedback on the remuneration policy received by way of the advisory vote at the 2014 AGM will be considered at the first 
Remuneration Committee meeting after the AGM. Feedback received annually in 2014 and subsequent AGMs, as well as any 
additional feedback received during any other meetings with shareholders, will be considered as part of the Company’s annual 
review of remuneration policy.

Annual report on remuneration

Single total figure of remuneration $’000s

Salary 
2013 

Salary 
2012 

Benefits 
2013(5) 

Benefits 
2012(5)  

Cash 
bonus 
2013 

Cash 
bonus 

2012(8) 

LTIP 
2013(9) 

LTIP 
2012(10) 

Other 
2013(6) 

Other 
2012 

Total 
2013 

Total 
2012

Todd Kozel 

John Gerstenlauer 

Ewen Ainsworth 

Ali Al Qabandi(1) 

Simon Murray(2)(3)(7) 

Mark Hanson 

Lord Guthrie 

Jeremy Asher(3) 

John Bell(3) 

Philip Dimmock(3) 

Thomas Shull(3) 

Andrew Simon(4) 

Mehdi Varzi(1) 

675 

594 

281 

158 

391 

172 

168 

65 

67 

70 

67 

53 

98 

675 

594 

285 

270 

— 

159 

159 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

136 

— 

127 

— 

224 

5 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

4 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

—  13,582 

2,261 

6,595 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

 2,476  

1,340  

452 

452 

1,319 

1,319 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

124 

124 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

Total 

2,858 

2,278 

132 

228 

—  17,398 

3,165 

9,233 

248 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

2,936  20,852

1,173 

4,613

738 

158 

391 

296 

292 

65 

67 

70 

67 

53 

98 

2,948

270

—

159

159

—

—

—

—

—

136

6,404  28,867

(1)  Ali Al Qabandi and Mehdi Varzi retired by rotation from the Board on 20 July 2013
(2)  Simon Murray was appointed as Non‑Executive Chairman on 4 July 2013
(3)  Jeremy Asher, John Bell, Philip Dimmock and Thomas Shull were appointed as Non‑Executive Directors on 25 July 2013
(4)  Andrew Simon was appointed as a Non‑Executive Director on 1 September 2013
(5)  Benefits include personal travel and accommodation associated with work in a number of locations and medical insurance
(6)  Other payments include the one‑time payments made to Non‑Executive Directors for additional duties performed during the calendar year
(7)  Chairman’s fee was set at £500,000 on appointment and was reduced to £350,000 per annum as of 1 January 2014
(8)  The cash bonus quantum represents the full value of cash bonus awarded in relation to 2012 performance. This includes the value of the 

deferred portion of the bonus

(9)  This relates to 50% of the third tranche of the 2009 LTIP options which vested in 2013. For the purpose of this table, the award has been valued 
using the share price on the two dates when the respective operational targets were achieved and announced. These targets were satisfied in 
2011 and 2012 respectively. However, the vesting was deferred, as only one‑third of the total award can vest in any one financial year
(10) This relates to the second tranche of the 2009 LTIP options which vested in 2012 on the achievement of the share price target of 200 pence 

per share

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
78
Remuneration Committee report
continued

Director’s pension entitlements
No payments have been made in 2013 or prior years. From 2014 onwards, subject to the approval of the Remuneration Policy as 
disclosed in the Policy Statement section of this report, a cash allowance in lieu of a pension provision will be payable at a rate of 
15% of Executive Directors’ gross salary.

Benefits
The benefits provided included the following:

 l Medical insurance – $10,765
 l Travel and accommodation – $121,123

Scheme interests awarded during the financial year
No share interests were awarded to the Directors under any of the current share awards schemes which include the Company Share 
Option Plan (“CSOP”), LTIP and Share Bonus Scheme. 

Payments to past Directors 
No payments to past Directors were made during 2013.

Payments for loss of Office
There were no payments for loss of office made during 2013.

Director’s shareholding and share interests
The Company’s Remuneration Policy will also introduce formal shareholding requirements (rather than voluntary guidelines) 
applicable to executive directors and senior executives. Participation in long‑term incentive schemes may be scaled back or 
withheld if the requirements are not met or maintained. Executive Directors are required to hold shares valued at two times salary 
within five years of the new remuneration policy approval. For the purpose of meeting the shareholding requirement, the net value 
of vested but unexercised awards is included. 

Directors’ shareholdings and share interests as at 31 December 2013 were as follows:

Shares 
  granted under 
company’s 
executive 
  bonus scheme  
Beneficially  unvested with  
owned  no performance  
shares(1) 
measures  

Shareholding 
requirement  
  percentage of  
salary (net) 

Options  
granted  

Options 
granted 
under CSOP 
under LTIP   unvested subject  
to performance  
conditions 
and holding 
period 

unvested 
subject to 
performance 

conditions(2) 

Total 
conditional 
and 
Vested but   unconditional  
interest  
in shares

options(3) 

unexercised 

Executive Directors 

Todd Kozel 

John Gerstenlauer 

Ewen Ainsworth 

Non‑Executive Directors 

Simon Murray 

Mark Hanson 

Lord Guthrie 

Jeremy Asher 

John Bell 

Philip Dimmock 

Thomas Shull 

Andrew Simon 

 200% (No) 

255,004 

1,459,167 

5,822,745 

150% (Yes)  1,744,111 

291,833 

1,164,549 

150% (Yes)  2,738,631 

291,833 

1,164,549 

160,000 

— 

— 

  15,200,000 

72,200 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

250,000 

250,000 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

8,138,728  15,675,644

3,627,746 

6,828,239

2,627,746 

6,822,759

— 

— 

— 

160,000

250,000

250,000

—  15,200,000

— 

— 

— 

— 

72,200

—

—

—

(1) 
(2) 
(3) 

Includes any shares owned by connected persons
Includes all of 2010 LTIP options and the remaining 50% of the third tranche of 2009 LTIP options
Includes the vested tranches of 2009 LTIP options and CSOP options

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
79

The details of the option exercised during the year are set out below:

Executive Director 

Todd Kozel 

Performance graph and table

1,200

1,100

1,000

900

800

700

600

500

400

300

200

100

0
2008

Number 
of shares  
exercised 

Exercise 
price 

Market price 
on date of 
exercise 

Gain

3,000,000 

£0.3 

£1.8875  £4,762,500

Gulf Keystone Petroleum
AIM All Share Oil & Gas
FTSE 250
FTSE All Share Oil & Gas Producers

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

Source: Bloomberg

The performance graph below shows the Company’s TSR performance against the performance of the AIM Oil and Gas Index, 
FTSE 250 and FTSE All Share Oil & Gas Producers over the five year period to 31 December 2013. The AIM Oil and Gas Index has 
been chosen as a broad equity market index of which the Company has been a constituent member throughout the period. 
FTSE indices were chosen in the view of the Company’s move up to the Standard Segment of the Official List. 

Historic CEO Pay $’000s

Single figure remuneration 

LTIP percentage of Maximum Number of Shares  
capable of vesting that vested 

2009 

2010 

2011 

2012 

$6,287 

$12,955 

$20,931 

$14,257 

2013

$675

n/a 

100% 

0% 

35% 

22%

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Change in remuneration of the Director undertaking the role of CEO

CEO 

All Group employees and Directors (excluding CEO)  

(1) 

 Includes benefits 

Percentage change in gross salary earned  
(2013 full year compared to 2012 full year) (1) 

Percentage change in bonus earned 
 (2013 full year compared to 2012 full year)

0% 

8% 

‑100%

‑72%

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
80
Remuneration Committee report
continued

Relative importance of spend on pay 
$’000

250,000

200,000

150,000

100,000

50,000

0

-50,000

-100,000

3%

2013
2012

8%

-61%

Total employee pay

Loss after tax

Capital expenditure

For the purposes of the table, total employee pay number includes total pay for all employees and Executive Directors of 
the Company.

As continued investment in the Group’s assets is critical for the delivery of the Group’s strategy, capital expenditure is included as a 
comparator in the relative importance of spend on pay chart. 

Statement of implementation of remuneration policy in 2014
The Company’s remuneration practices are managed in accordance with the remuneration policy set out above, a policy for which 
the Remuneration Committee is seeking shareholder approval of at this year’s AGM. Consequently, the Remuneration Committee is 
not anticipating any changes in remuneration for the current year.

Comparator group
The Committee is making no changes to the comparator groups used for remuneration in respect of 2014.

Salaries benefits and pension
No change from policy set out.

The following table sets out the entitlements for 2014:

Executive 

Todd Kozel 

John Gerstenlauer 

Ewen Ainsworth 

Salary for 2014  

$675,000 (no change) 

$594,000 (no change) 

$281,000 (no change) 

Benefits 

No change 

No change 

No change 

Pension allowance  
(introduced in 2014)

15%

15%

15%

Annual bonus
The following table sets out the maximum bonus opportunity for the Executive Directors:

Executive 

Todd Kozel 

John Gerstenlauer 

Ewen Ainsworth  

  Maximum bonus potential (percentage of salary)

200%

150%

150%

Performance conditions and weighting
The performance metric used for the determination of the annual bonus is production based on bopd. In addition to production, 
a number of qualitative objectives will be set for each of the Executive Directors. 

The targets for the bonus plan participants in 2014 have been set by the Remuneration Committee. Owing, however, to their 
commercial sensitivity the targets will not be disclosed until the 2014 Directors’ Remuneration report is published in 2015, 
when statements regarding the extent to which the targets have been attained will be published. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
81

LTIP grants
It is the intention of the Remuneration Committee to make the following grants to the Executive Directors in 2014:

Executive 

Todd Kozel 

John Gerstenlauer 

Ewen Ainsworth  

Award (percentage of salary)

200%

150%

150%

The performance conditions and targets for this award are as follows:

Performance condition

Weighting (percentage 
of award subject to 
condition)

Threshold performance 
(percentage of element 
of award vesting) 

Maximum performance 
(percentage of element 
of award vesting)

Comparative TSR

Production

Increase in contingent 
resources

40%

35% 

25%

To be determined on the 
day of grant

To be determined on the 
day of grant

In relation to the comparative TSR condition vesting will start for median performance of this element of the award (25% of this 
element vesting) with full vesting for upper quartile performance.

The awards vest on a straight line basis between performance levels.

Consideration by the directors of matters relating to Directors’ remuneration
The Remuneration Committee is responsible for making recommendations to the Board on the Company’s framework of executive 
remuneration and its cost, reviewing the ongoing appropriateness and relevance of remuneration policy, recommending to 
the Board for approval the quantum of the Group’s annual variable compensation and the annual compensation packages for 
individual Executive Directors and senior management, and engaging and liaising with external advisers, as necessary, on the 
appropriateness of the recommended variable and fixed compensation packages. The Remuneration Committee determines the 
contract terms, remuneration and other benefits for each of the Executive Directors and for other senior members of management 
and is advised, as necessary, by a specialist firm of remuneration consultants.

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The Executive Directors do not participate in discussions and decisions regarding their own remuneration. The fee for the 
Chairman is set by the Remuneration Committee and the fees for the Non‑Executive Directors are approved by the Board, on the 
recommendation of the Chairman and CEO.

In 2013, the Remuneration Committee met three times. The committee discussed, amongst others, the following matters:

Month

February

November

December

Key issues considered

 l Bonuses in respect of 2012 financial year
 l Review of 2012 performance
 l Introduce deferred cash bonus
 l LTIP Awards
 l Recommend that no awards are made in 2013

 l Review of past incentive arrangements
 l Initial Company pay review 2014

 l  Approach to 2013 remuneration report
 l Review of 2013 performance and bonus recommendations
 l Discussion on targets for 2014 plans
 l Discussions on 2014 remuneration policy
 l Review of executive salaries for 2014

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
82
Remuneration Committee report
continued

Consideration by the Directors of matters relating to directors’ remuneration continued
During the first half of the year the committee comprised Mehdi Varzi (Chairman), Mark Hanson and Lord Guthrie. On 20 July 2013, 
Mehdi Varzi retired by rotation from the Board and consequently the Remuneration Committee and Simon Murray, Non‑Executive 
Chairman of the Board, was appointed as an intermediate Chairman of the Remuneration Committee. In September 2013, 
the Committee’s membership was revised to comprise Simon Murray (Chairman), Andrew Simon, Mark Hanson and John Bell. 
On 1 October 2013, Simon Murray stepped down as Chairman of the Remuneration Committee and Andrew Simon was appointed 
to Chairman’s role. As at 31 December 2013, the Committee comprised Andrew Simon (Chairman), Simon Murray, Mark Hanson and 
John Bell.

In addition, Todd Kozel (CEO) and Tony Peart (Legal and Commercial Director) have assisted the Committee in its work, but never in 
respect of their own remuneration.

Remuneration advice
In the last quarter of 2013, the Remuneration Committee engaged Deloitte to provide a thorough analysis of the Company’s 
historical remuneration practice and payments to Executive Directors together with an external market context. Deloitte were 
asked to comment on the current remuneration framework and remuneration policy in the light of this review. The results of 
this work have been taken into account by the Remuneration Committee when devising a remuneration policy for the Group for 
2014. This engagement with Deloitte was a one off arrangement with no intention to retain Deloitte as ongoing Remuneration 
Committee advisers, to avoid any potential conflict of interest as the wider Deloitte practice are also engaged as the Group’s 
auditor. Deloitte did not give advice on the overall amounts to be paid to directors or those in key management position or 
on specific quantitative measurement criteria in the remuneration packages. The Board was satisfied that this work was not 
inconsistent with Deloitte’s role as auditor to the Company. Deloitte is a member of the Remuneration Consultants Group and as 
such, voluntarily operates under the code of conduct in relation to executive remuneration consulting in the UK. The fees for this 
project were based on a fixed project fee of £65,000.

In early 2014, PricewaterhouseCoopers (“PwC”) was appointed by the Committee as their independent advisor. PwC were 
selected on the basis of their track record of providing robust, salient and independent advice in matters pertaining to executive 
remuneration. PwC is a member of the Remuneration Consultants Group and abides by its code. Fees will be determined on a time 
and materials basis at prevailing market rates. PwC also provide internal audit services to the Company. No fees were incurred in 
the provision of remuneration advice by PwC to the Committee during 2013.

In February 2014, the Company engaged MM&K to advise the Remuneration Committee on the design and implementation of 
a new equity‑based long‑term incentive plan to replace the existing plan that expires in August 2014. MM&K were previously 
engaged by the Company to advise on the design and implementation of the current CSOP that is due to expire in August 2014. 
No fees were incurred in the provision of advice by MM&K to the Committee during 2013.

By order of the Board

Andrew Simon
Chairman of the Remuneration Committee

26 March 2014

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

83
Directors’ responsibilities statement

The Directors are responsible for preparing the Annual report and the Financial statements in accordance with applicable law 
and regulations.

The Directors have elected to prepare the Group Financial statements under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) 
as adopted by the European Union and Article 4 of the IAS Regulation. 

International Accounting Standard 1 requires that Financial statements present fairly for each financial year the Group’s financial 
position, financial performance and cash flows. This requires faithful representation of the effects of transactions, other events 
and conditions in accordance with the definitions and recognition criteria for assets, liabilities, income and expenses set out in the 
International Accounting Standards Board’s ‘Framework for the Preparation and Presentation of Financial statements’. In virtually all 
circumstances, a fair presentation will be achieved by compliance with all applicable IFRS. 

In preparing these Financial statements, International Accounting Standard 1 requires that Directors:

 l properly select and apply accounting policies;
 l present information, including accounting policies, in a manner that provides relevant, reliable, comparable and 

understandable information; 

 l provide additional disclosures when compliance with the specific requirements in IFRS are insufficient to enable users to 

understand the impact of particular transactions, other events and conditions on the entity’s financial position and financial 
performance; and

 l make an assessment of the Group’s ability to continue as a going concern.

The Directors are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the Group’s 
transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Group. They are also responsible 
for safeguarding the assets of the Group and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and 
other irregularities.

The Directors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the Group’s 
website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of Financial statements may differ from 
legislation in other jurisdictions.

Responsibility statement 
We confirm that to the best of our knowledge:

 l the Financial statements, prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards, give a true and fair view of 

the assets, liabilities, financial position and profit or loss of the Group;

 l the strategic report includes a fair review of the development and performance of the business and the position of the Group, 

together with a description of the principal risks and uncertainties that they face; and

 l the Annual report and Financial statements, taken as a whole, are fair, balanced and understandable and provide the 

information necessary for shareholders to assess the Group’s performance, business model and strategy.

By order of the Board 

Todd F Kozel
Chief Executive Officer

26 March 2014

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

84
Independent auditor’s report
to the members of Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited

Opinion on Financial statements of Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited 
In our opinion the Financial statements:

 l give a true and fair view of the state of the Group’s affairs as at 31 December 2013 and of its loss for the year then ended; and
 l have been properly prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as adopted by the 

European Union.

The Financial statements comprise the Consolidated income statement, Consolidated statement of comprehensive income, 
Consolidated balance sheet, Consolidated statement of changes in equity, Consolidated cash flow statement, Summary of 
significant accounting policies and the related notes 1 to 27. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their 
preparation is applicable law and IFRS as adopted by the European Union.

Emphasis of matter – Going concern 
The “Basis of accounting” section of the Summary of significant accounting policies explains the position of the Group as requiring 
additional, currently uncommitted, funding. 

As part of their move up to the Standard segment of the Official List, the Group issued a prospectus dated 20 March 2014 which 
contained a qualified working capital statement (the “Statement”) as a result of the substantial capital expenditures required for 
the foreseeable future to develop its existing oil reserves and resources. The Statement outlined a number of factors which could 
enhance the levels of working capital available but also indicated that, if these did not occur, the directors would expect the group 
to require additional working capital by the end of May 2014.

In order to help address this potential shortfall the Group is in the advanced stages of obtaining additional, but currently 
uncommitted, third party debt financing.

These conditions indicate the existence of a material uncertainty which may give rise to significant doubt over the Group’s ability to 
continue as a going concern. We describe below how the scope of our audit has responded to this risk. Our opinion is not modified 
in respect of this matter. 

Our assessment of risks of material misstatement 
The assessed risks of material misstatement described below are those that had the greatest effect on our audit strategy, 
the allocation of resources in the audit and directing the efforts of the engagement team:

Risk

Going concern 
Given the Group’s ongoing funding requirements which are 
explained further above in the Emphasis of matter – Going 
concern, we considered going concern to be a significant risk.

How the scope of our audit responded to the risk

To assess the appropriateness of the going concern 
assumption we: 

 l considered management’s going concern paper which 

was presented to the Board, and the accompanying cash 
flow forecasts for the going concern period; 

 l obtained supporting evidence for the key assumptions 
in management’s base case and downside scenarios 
including the forecast oil price, production profile, 
operating costs and committed capital expenditure; and 

 l considered the Group’s available funding and planned 

activities to address the identified shortfall, which includes 
the raising of further funds.

As a result of these procedures, we concluded that there was 
a material uncertainty which may cast significant doubt about 
the Group’s ability to continue as a going concern.

We have highlighted above the level of uncertainty identified 
by the Directors in respect of going concern.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

85

Risk

Depreciation, depletion and amortisation (DD&A)
The calculation of DD&A is a judgemental area which requires 
consideration of several inputs such as total depreciable oil 
and gas assets, commercial (2P) reserves and an estimate of 
future development costs necessary to access those reserves. 
This was considered a key risk as this is the first period in 
which DD&A is being charged, and due to the significant 
judgements around the determination of the appropriate cost 
base and reserves. 

How the scope of our audit responded to the risk

We have obtained supporting evidence for the key 
assumptions underlying the DD&A charge through:

 l agreeing commercial 2P reserves to the third party 

Competent Persons Report (CPR) prepared for the purpose 
of the Company’s move up to the Standard segment 
of the Official list and performing procedures to assess 
the competence, objectivity and independence of the 
third party;

 l agreeing the depreciable base as being the sum of 

historic costs incurred to date together with future capital 
expenditure as set out in the approved field development 
plans, latest internal budgets and the CPR; and

 l testing the mechanical accuracy of management’s DD&A 

calculation.

Revenue recognition for export deliveries 
No revenue has been recognised by the Group in respect 
of export deliveries during 2013. There are significant 
judgements around whether the criteria required to recognise 
revenue under IAS 18 Revenue are satisfied as: 

We have assessed whether the Group’s decision to not book 
revenue for export deliveries is consistent with IAS 18 through:

 l reading the terms of the PSC to assess the extent to which 

it represents a binding sales arrangement;

 l confirming that no payment has been received to date for 

 l the only contract specifying the mechanism by which 

export deliveries; and

crude oil is delivered and title is passed is the Production 
Sharing Contract (PSC); 

 l the payment mechanism for crude export sales is currently 

developing within the Kurdistan Region of Iraq; and
 l to date, the Group has not received payment for these 

export sales.

Recoverability of intangible Exploration  
and Evaluation (E&E) assets 
In accordance with the relevant accounting standards, 
all costs relating to the exploration and appraisal of oil and 
gas interests, are initially capitalised as intangible fixed assets. 
They remain capitalised whilst activities in an area have not 
yet reached a stage which permits reasonable assessment 
of the existence of economically recoverable reserves, and 
subject to there being no impairment. 

This was considered a key risk due to the significant 
judgements and estimates that are required to be assessed 
and the highly material nature of the related balances in the 
Financial statements. 

 l obtaining market based evidence to confirm the existence 
of uncertainties in relation to the payment mechanism 
for crude sales and hence whether it is probable that 
economic benefits will ultimately flow to the Group.

Management has performed a review of the E&E assets 
to assess if there were any indicators of impairments for 
any of the Group’s material field interests. We assessed the 
outcome of this review by participating in meetings with key 
operational and finance staff to understand the current status 
and future intention for each asset, confirming that all assets 
which remain capitalised are included in future budgets and 
are considered to contain potentially commercial volumes of 
hydrocarbons and identifying any fields where the Group’s 
right to explore is either at, or close to, expiry. 

Further details of amounts capitalised at year end are 
provided in note 10 to the Financial statements.

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86
Independent auditor’s report
to the members of Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited continued

Risk

How the scope of our audit responded to the risk

Assets held for sale
The classification of assets as held for sale is highly 
judgemental as, in order for an asset to be classified as held 
for sale, it must be available for immediate sale in its present 
condition subject only to terms that are usual and customary 
for sales of such assets (or disposal groups) and its sale must 
be highly probable.

We evaluated whether classifying the Group’s interest in the 
Akri‑Bijeel field as held for sale at 31 December 2013 was 
appropriate by:

 l obtaining supporting evidence for the status of the 

disposal process, including evidence of offers received 
to date;

 l confirming with the Board of Directors that they were 

committed to a plan to sell the asset and that the offers 
received to date were under active consideration; and
 l corroborating that an active programme to locate a buyer 
and complete the disposal was on‑going and the Group 
had engaged professional advisors to assist in this regard.

We also obtained supporting evidence to determine whether 
an impairment of this disposal group had arisen at year end.

Further details of the status of the disposal programme are 
provided in note 12 to the Financial statements.

The Audit Committee’s consideration of these risks is set out in the Audit Committee report on page 60.

Our audit procedures relating to these matters were designed in the context of our audit of the Financial statements as a whole, 
and not to express an opinion on individual accounts or disclosures. Our opinion on the Financial statements is not modified with 
respect to any of the risks described above, and we do not express an opinion on these individual matters.

Our application of materiality
We define materiality as the magnitude of misstatement in the Financial statements that makes it probable that the economic 
decisions of a reasonably knowledgeable person would be changed or influenced. We use materiality both in planning the scope 
of our audit work and in evaluating the results of our work.

We determined materiality for the Company to be $12 million, which is approximately 2% of net assets.

We agreed with the Audit Committee that we would report to the Committee all audit differences in excess of $0.24 million, as well 
as differences below that threshold that, in our view, warranted reporting on qualitative grounds. We also report to the Audit 
Committee on disclosure matters that we identified when assessing the overall presentation of the Financial statements.

An overview of the scope of our audit 
Our audit was scoped by obtaining an understanding of the entity and its environment, including internal control, and assessing 
the risks of material misstatement. Our audit planning identified the Group’s business to be a single component, and therefore all of 
the operations of the Group were subject to a full scope audit by the UK audit team. 

Our audit work was performed primarily at the Group’s head office in London. Senior members of the UK audit team visited the key 
assets in Kurdistan, which is the main operational focus of the Group, and also directly supervised specified audit procedures in 
respect of the Group’s inventory balance which were performed by a Deloitte member firm based in Kurdistan. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

87

Matters on which we are required to report by exception
Our duty to read other information in the Annual report 
Under International Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland), we are required to report to you if, in our opinion, information in the 
Annual report is:

 l materially inconsistent with the information in the audited Financial statements; or
 l apparently materially incorrect based on, or materially inconsistent with, our knowledge of the Group acquired in the course  

of performing our audit; or

 l otherwise misleading.

In particular, we are required to consider whether we have identified any inconsistencies between our knowledge acquired during 
the audit and the Directors’ statement that they consider the Annual report is fair, balanced and understandable and whether the 
Annual report appropriately discloses those matters that we communicated to the Audit Committee which we consider should 
have been disclosed. We confirm that we have not identified any such inconsistencies or misleading statements.

Respective responsibilities of directors and auditor 
As explained more fully in the Directors’ responsibilities statement, the Directors are responsible for the preparation of the Financial 
statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view. Our responsibility is to audit and express an opinion on the 
Financial statements in accordance with applicable law and International Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland). Those standards 
require us to comply with the Auditing Practices Board’s Ethical Standards for Auditors. We also comply with International Standard 
on Quality Control 1 (UK and Ireland). Our audit methodology and tools aim to ensure that our quality control procedures are 
effective, understood and applied. Our quality controls and systems include our dedicated professional standards review team, 
strategically focused second partner reviews and independent partner reviews.

This report is made solely to the Company’s members, as a body, in accordance with the provisions of the Bermuda Companies 
Act 1981. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the Company’s members those matters we are required 
to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume 
responsibility to anyone other than the Company and the Company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for 
the opinions we have formed.

Scope of the audit of the Financial statements 
An audit involves obtaining evidence about the amounts and disclosures in the Financial statements sufficient to give reasonable 
assurance that the Financial statements are free from material misstatement, whether caused by fraud or error. This includes an 
assessment of: whether the accounting policies are appropriate to the Company’s circumstances and have been consistently 
applied and adequately disclosed; the reasonableness of significant accounting estimates made by the Directors; and the overall 
presentation of the Financial statements. In addition, we read all the financial and non‑financial information in the Annual report to 
identify material inconsistencies with the audited Financial statements and to identify any information that is apparently materially 
incorrect based on, or materially inconsistent with, the knowledge acquired by us in the course of performing the audit. If we 
become aware of any apparent material misstatements or inconsistencies we consider the implications for our report.

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Deloitte LLP
Chartered Accountants and Statutory Auditor 
London, United Kingdom

26 March 2014

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

88
Consolidated income statement
For the year ended 31 December 2013

Continuing operations 

Revenue 

Cost of sales 

Gross loss 

Other operating expenses 

General and administrative expenses   

Loss from operations 

Other (losses) and gains   

Interest revenue 

Finance costs 

Loss before tax 

Tax charge  

Loss after tax for the year 

Loss per share (cents) 

Basic  

Diluted 

Consolidated statement of comprehensive income
For the year ended 31 December 2013

Loss for the year 

Items that may subsequently be reclassified to profit or loss: 

Exchange differences on translation of foreign operations 

Total comprehensive loss for the period 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

Notes 

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

2 

3 

4 

6 

2 

7 

8 

9 

9 

6,696 

32,190

(11,950) 

(32,190)

(5,254) 

—

(15,843) 

(82,137)

(21,097) 

(82,137)

(1,186) 

828 

5,210

1,199

(10,392) 

(4,456)

(31,847) 

(80,184)

(118) 

(1,638)

(31,965) 

(81,822)

(3.69) 

(3.69) 

(9.61)

(9.61)

Notes 

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

(31,965) 

(81,822)

279 

1,010

(31,686) 

(80,812)

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
89
Consolidated balance sheet
As at 31 December 2013

Non‑current assets 

Intangible assets 

Property, plant and equipment 

Deferred tax asset 

Current assets 

Assets classified as held for sale 

Inventories 

Trade and other receivables 

Liquid investments 

Cash and cash equivalents 

Derivative financial instruments 

Total assets 

Current liabilities 

Trade and other payables 

Current tax liabilities 

Provisions 

Liabilities directly associated with assets classified as held for sale 

Derivative financial instruments 

Non‑current liabilities 

Convertible bonds 

Provisions 

Total liabilities 

Net assets 

Equity 

Share capital 

Share premium account   

Share option reserve 

Convertible bonds reserve 

Exchange translation reserve 

Accumulated losses 

Total equity 

Notes 

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

10 

11 

19 

12 

14 

15 

220,963 

546,229

516,437 

3,680 

2,285

6,796

741,080 

555,310

103,086 

20,654 

34,023 

— 

64,612

19,783

23,674

8,600

81,972 

253,713

26 

— 

207

239,735 

370,589

980,815 

925,899

16 

(100,795) 

(90,872)

18 

12, 18 

26 

— 

(4,185) 

(1,378) 

— 

(444)

(4,185)

—

(168)

(106,358) 

(95,669)

17 

18 

(296,725) 

(243,495)

(15,365) 

(9,044)

(312,090) 

(252,539)

(418,448) 

(348,208)

562,367 

577,691

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20 

20 

7,975 

7,847

796,099 

791,479

33,486 

21,488 

728 

29,280

25,485

449

(297,409) 

(276,849)

562,367 

577,691

The Financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors and authorised for issue on 26 March 2014 and signed on its behalf by:

Todd F Kozel 
Chief Executive Officer 

KE Ainsworth
Finance Director

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
90
Consolidated statement of changes in equity
For the year ended 31 December 2013

Attributable to equity holders of the Company

Share 
capital 
$’000 

Share 
premium 
account 
$’000 

Share 
option 
reserve 
$’000 

Exchange 
translation 
reserve 
$’000 

Accumulated 
losses 
$’000 

Convertible 
bonds 
reserve  
$’000 

Notes 

Balance at 1 January 2012 

7,627 

790,435 

34,065 

(561) 

(225,492) 

Net loss for the year 

Other comprehensive  
income for the year 

Total comprehensive  
income/(loss) for the year 

Transfer relating to  
share‑based payments 

Share‑based  
payment expense 

Deferred tax on  
share‑based  
payment transactions 

Share conversion and issue 

Own shares held by EBT   

Issue of convertible bonds 

Convertible bonds  
equity amortisation 

24 

19 

20 

20 

17 

17 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

220 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

(29,591) 

25,899 

— 

 (1,093) 

1,044 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

Balance at 1 January 2013 

7,847 

791,479 

29,280 

Net loss for the year 

Other comprehensive  
income for the year 

Total comprehensive  
income/(loss) for the year 

Transfer relating to  
share‑based payments 

Share‑based payment expense 

24 

Deferred tax on share‑based  
payment transactions 

Share conversion and issue 

Own shares held by EBT   

Issue of convertible bond 

Convertible bond  
equity amortisation 

19 

20 

17 

17 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

128 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

4,620 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

(6,089) 

12,568 

(2,273) 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

(81,822) 

1,010 

— 

1,010 

(81,822) 

29,591 

— 

— 

— 

(202) 

(31,965) 

— 

6,089 

— 

— 

— 

(64) 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

449 

— 

279 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

279 

(31,965) 

Total 
equity 
$’000

606,074

(81,822)

1,010

(80,812)

—

25,899

(1,093)

1,264

(202)

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

1,383 

(31,965)

279

(31,686)

—

12,568

(2,273)

4,748

(64)

1,383

— 

26,561 

26,561

1,076 

(1,076) 

—

(276,849) 

25,485 

577,691

5,380 

(5,380) 

—

Balance at 31 December 2013 

7,975 

796,099 

33,486 

728 

(297,409) 

21,488 

562,367

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
91
Consolidated cash flow statement
For the year ended 31 December 2013

Operating activities 

Cash used in operations   

Tax paid  

Interest received 

Convertible bond coupon payments    

Net cash used in operating activities 

Investing activities 

Purchase of intangible assets 

Purchase of property, plant and equipment 

Decrease/(increase) in liquid investments (1) 

Net cash used in investing activities 

Financing activities 

Proceeds on issue of share capital 

Proceeds on issue of convertible bonds 

Net cash generated by financing activities 

Net (decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents 

Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year 

Effect of foreign exchange rate changes 

Cash and cash equivalents at end of the year being bank balances and cash on hand 

Notes 

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

21 

(25,072) 

(58,974)

(675) 

828 

(17,188) 

(1,667)

1,199

—

(42,107) 

(59,442)

(131,844) 

(191,887)

(59,008) 

8,600 

(1,345)

20,928

(182,252) 

(172,304)

4,748 

49,189 

53,937 

1,264

268,972

270,236

(170,422) 

38,490

253,713 

208,103

(1,319) 

7,120

81,972 

253,713

(1)  Liquid investments comprise short‑term liquid investments of between three to twelve months maturity while cash and cash equivalents 
comprise cash at bank and other short‑term highly liquid investments of fewer than three months maturity. The combined cash, cash 
equivalents and liquid investments balance at 31 December 2013 was $82.0 million (2012: $262.3 million).

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92
Summary of significant accounting policies

General information
The Company is incorporated in Bermuda and, during 2013, was quoted on AIM, a market operated by the London Stock 
Exchange (registered address: Cumberland House, 9th Floor, 1 Victoria Street, Hamilton, Bermuda). Subsequent to the year end, 
on 25 March 2014, the Company’s common shares were admitted, with a standard listing, to the Official List of the United Kingdom 
Listing Authority (“UKLA”) and to trading on the London Stock Exchange’s Main Market for listed securities. Pursuant to Rule 41 of 
the AIM Rules, the Company gave notice that trading in the Company’s common shares on AIM was cancelled on the same day. 
In 2008, the Company established a Level 1 American Depositary Receipt programme in conjunction with the Bank of New York 
Mellon which has been appointed as the depositary bank. The Company serves as the holding company for the Group, which is 
engaged in oil and gas exploration and production, operating in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and the Republic of Algeria. 

Adoption of new and revised accounting standards
Standards not affecting the reported results or the financial position
In the current year, the following new and revised Standards and Interpretations have been adopted. Their adoption has not had 
any material impact on the amounts reported in these Financial statements but may impact the accounting for future transactions.

IFRS 1 (amended) 
IFRS 7 (amended) 
IFRS 13  
IFRIC 20 
IAS 1 (amended) 
IAS 19 (revised) 
Annual Improvements 2009‑2011 
Cycle  

Government Loans 
Disclosures – Offsetting Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities  
Fair Value Measurements  
Stripping Costs in the Production Phase of Surface Mine 
Presentation of Items of Other Comprehensive Income 
Employee Benefits  

At the date of authorisation of these Financial statements, the following Standards and Interpretations which have not been 
applied in these Financial statements were in issue but not yet effective:

IFRS 9 
IFRS 10  
IFRS 11 
IFRS 12  
IFRS 10, IFRS 12 and IAS 27 
IAS 27 (revised) 
IAS 28 (revised) 
IAS 32 (amended) 
IFRIC 21 

Financial Instruments 
Consolidated Financial statements 
Joint Arrangements 
Disclosure of Interests in Other Entities 
Investment Entities (amended) 
Separate Financial statements 
Investments in Associates and Joint Ventures 
Offsetting Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities  
Levies

The Directors do not anticipate that the adoption of the Standards and Interpretations listed above will have a material impact on 
the Financial statements of the Group in future periods.

Statement of compliance
The Financial statements have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) as adopted 
by the European Union.

Basis of accounting 
The Financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost basis, except for the valuation of hydrocarbon inventory 
and the valuation of certain financial instruments, which have been measured at fair value, and on the going concern basis. 
Equity‑settled share‑based payments were initially recognised at fair value, but have not been subsequently revalued; cash‑settled 
share‑based payments are recognised at fair value. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.

Going concern
The Group’s business activities, together with the factors likely to affect its future development, performance and position are set 
out in the Chairman’s statement, Strategic review by the Chief Executive Officer and Operational review. The financial position of 
the Group at the year end, its cash flows and liquidity position are included in the Financial review. In addition, note 26 includes 
the Group’s objectives, policies and processes for managing its capital, its financial risk management objectives and details of its 
financial instruments and hedging activities. Note 26 also describes exposures to credit risk and liquidity risk.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

93

Following commencement of first commercial production in July 2013 and sales thereafter from the Shaikan Block, the Group 
has entered a critical phase in its development as it transitions from pure explorer to oil producer. The Group’s business requires 
substantial capital expenditures for the foreseeable future, being at least the next twelve months, to finance the exploration, 
development and production of its existing oil reserves and resources. 

The Group is dependent on existing cash resources, which totalled $76.0 million at 1 March 2014, together with production 
revenues from its interest in the Shaikan Block in order to meet its future working capital requirements. Existing cash resources may 
be enhanced over the next twelve months from the date of this report by achieving further consistent oil production and domestic 
and export sales from Shaikan, increasing up to 40,000 bopd; the exercise of the Shaikan Government Option, the Shaikan Third 
Party Option, the Akri‑Bijeel Government Option and/or the Akri‑Bijeel Third Party Option under the terms of the Shaikan and 
Akri‑Bijeel PSCs; any proceeds from the potential sale of the Group’s interest in the Akri‑Bijeel Block and/or the reimbursement 
of an additional £5.6 million of litigation costs by Excalibur Ventures LLC (see note 23 to the Financial statements). 

Whilst the Group believes that one or more of the above events are likely to occur, if none of these events occur, and the Group is 
unable to otherwise enhance its existing cash resources, then the Directors would expect the Group to require additional working 
capital by the end of May 2014. If only one of these events occurs in the next twelve months from the date of this document, this 
would reduce any potential working capital shortfall and, depending on the final proceeds from the event, potentially remove 
it completely. 

In order to address this potential shortfall in working capital, the Group is currently seeking to raise additional debt financing by 
the end of April 2014. The Group has mandated Deutsche Bank and Pareto Securities to arrange a series of fixed income investor 
meetings in the US, Europe and Asia, which commenced on 20 March 2014. A debt offering of up to $250 million in accordance 
with Reg S/144A is expected to follow, subject to market conditions. 

Whilst there can be no certainty that a debt transaction will follow the Group’s investor meetings, any debt raised will enhance 
the Group’s liquidity position and support the Group’s ongoing capital work programmes, including increasing sales to up to 
40,000 bopd by the completion and commissioning of Shaikan PF‑1 and PF‑2. If such debt financing is not available or not available 
on appropriate terms, the Group would also look to achieve funding via a further equity‑linked or equity financing. 

The Directors have concluded that the early stage of fundraising and the insufficiency of the current working capital to fulfil 
the Group’s current working programme create a material uncertainty that casts significant doubt upon the Group’s ability to 
continue as a going concern. Nevertheless, based on the forecasts and projections prepared at the time of preparation of this 
Annual report and after making enquiries, and considering the uncertainties described above, the Directors have a reasonable 
expectation that the Group has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future, being at least 
the next twelve months. For these reasons, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing this Annual report and 
financial statements.

Basis of consolidation
The consolidated Financial statements incorporate the Financial statements of the Company and enterprises controlled by the 
Company (its subsidiaries) made up to 31 December each year. Control is achieved where the Company has the power to govern 
the financial and operating policies of an investee entity so as to obtain benefits from its activities.

Sales and interest revenue 
Revenue is measured at the fair value of the consideration received or receivable. Sales revenue represents the Group’s share of 
sales from petroleum production, net of sales related taxes and VAT.

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Revenue is recognised when all of the following conditions are satisfied: 

 l the amount of revenue can be measured reliably; 
 l it is probable that the economic benefits associated with the transaction will flow to the entity; and 
 l the costs incurred or to be incurred in respect of the transaction can be measured reliably. 

Sales revenue is recognised when the goods are delivered and the title has passed. To the extent that revenue arises from test 
production during an evaluation programme, an amount is charged from evaluation costs to cost of sales so as to reflect a zero 
net margin.

Interest revenue is accrued on a time basis, by reference to the principal outstanding and at the effective rate of interest applicable, 
which is the rate that exactly discounts estimated future cash receipts through the expected life of the financial asset to that asset’s 
net carrying amount on initial recognition.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

94
Summary of significant accounting policies
continued

Property, plant and equipment other than oil and gas interests
Property, plant and equipment is stated at cost less accumulated depreciation and any accumulated impairment losses. 
Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write each asset down to its estimated residual value evenly over its expected useful 
life as follows:

Fixtures and equipment 

20% straight‑line

Intangible assets other than oil and gas interests
Intangible assets, other than oil and gas assets, have finite useful lives and are measured at cost and amortised over their expected 
useful economic lives as follows:

Computer software 

33% straight‑line

Oil and gas assets
The Group adopts the modified full cost method of accounting for its oil and gas interests having regard to the requirements of 
IFRS 6 – “Exploration for and Evaluation of Mineral Resources”. 

Pre‑licence costs
Costs incurred prior to having obtained the legal rights to explore an area are expensed directly to the income statement as they 
are incurred.

Exploration and evaluation costs
Under the full cost method of accounting all costs relating to the exploration for and appraisal of oil and gas exploration and 
evaluation (“E&E”) interests, whether commercial or not, are accumulated and capitalised as non‑current assets within geographic 
cost pools. 

Expenditure directly associated with evaluation or appraisal activities is initially capitalised as intangible non‑current assets. 
Such costs include licence acquisition, technical services and studies, seismic acquisition, exploration and appraisal well drilling, 
payments to contractors, interest payable and directly attributable administration and overhead costs. 

E&E costs incurred during the exploration and evaluation phase are carried forward, subject to there being no indication of 
impairment, where activities in an area have not reached a stage which permits reasonable assessment of the existence of 
economically recoverable reserves. E&E costs are transferred to development and production assets within property, plant and 
equipment upon the approval of a development programme by the relevant authorities and the determination of commercial 
reserves existence. Unsuccessful E&E costs are retained within intangible non‑current assets and amortised as described below. 
E&E costs are not amortised prior to the conclusion of appraisal activities. 

Development and production assets 
Development and production assets are accumulated within geographic cost pools and represent the cost of developing the 
commercial reserves discovered and bringing them into production, together with the E&E expenditures incurred in finding 
commercial reserves transferred from intangible E&E assets as outlined above. 

The cost of development and production assets also includes the cost of acquisition and purchases of such assets, directly 
attributable overheads, and costs for future restoration and decommissioning. 

Depreciation of oil and gas assets
The net book values of producing assets are depreciated generally on a field‑by‑field basis using the unit of production (“UOP”) 
basis which uses the ratio of oil and gas production in the period to the remaining commercial reserves plus the production in 
the period. Costs used in the calculation comprise the net book value of the field, and any further anticipated costs to develop 
such reserves. 

Any unsuccessful E&E costs retained within intangible non‑current assets are depreciated on a UOP basis by reference to the 
commercial reserves of the wider geographic cost pool. 

Commercial reserves are proven and probable (“2P”) reserves estimated using standard recognised evaluation techniques. 
The estimate is regularly reviewed by independent consultants. 

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Impairment of tangible and intangible non‑current assets 
At each balance sheet date, the Group reviews the carrying amounts of its tangible and intangible assets to determine whether 
there is any indication that those assets have suffered an impairment loss. If any such indication exists, the recoverable amount 
of the asset, or Group of assets, is estimated in order to determine the extent of the impairment loss (if any). For exploration 
and evaluation assets, the Group of assets is the relevant full cost pool. Where the assets fall into an area that does not have an 
established pool or if there are no producing assets to cover the unsuccessful exploration and evaluation costs, those assets would 
fail the impairment test and be written off to the income statement in full. 

For other assets where the asset does not generate cash flows that are independent from other assets, the Group estimates the 
recoverable amount of the cash‑generating unit to which the asset belongs. 

Recoverable amount is the higher of fair value less costs to sell and value in use. In assessing value in use, the estimated future cash 
flows are discounted to their present value using a pre‑tax discount rate that reflects current market assessments of the time value 
of money and the risks specific to the asset for which the estimates of future cash flows have not been adjusted.

Any impairment identified is immediately recognised as an expense. 

Disposals of oil and gas interests
The difference between the fair value of the consideration receivable and the carrying value of the relevant proportion of the oil 
and gas asset disposed of is first used to reduce any unsuccessful exploration and evaluation cost carried in the pool, with any 
excess gain recognised in the income statement.

Carry of expenditures and farm‑in arrangements
Where the Group enters into a commercial agreement which includes carry of expenditures or a farm‑in, the arrangement is 
accounted for according to its commercial substance. Generally, in the case of a farm‑in, the substance is that the counterparty 
has acquired a share, or a greater share, of the underlying oil and gas reserves and the arrangement is treated as a partial disposal. 
Where the substance is that the counterparty has acquired a right, or a conditional right to be reimbursed by the Group out of 
future production, a liability is recognised at the time the obligation arises. In the case of a carry, a liability is recognised when the 
obligation is probable and is no longer conditional upon factors under the Group’s control.

Borrowing costs 
Borrowing costs directly relating to the acquisition, construction or production of qualifying assets, which are assets that 
necessarily take a substantial period of time to get ready for their intended use or sale, are capitalised and added to the cost of 
those assets, until such time as the assets are substantially ready for their intended use or sale. 

Investment income earned on the temporary investment of specific borrowings pending their expenditure on qualifying assets is 
deducted from the borrowing costs eligible for capitalisation. 

All other borrowing costs are recognised in the income statement in the period in which they are incurred. 

Non‑current assets held for sale
Non‑current assets (and disposal groups) classified as held for sale are measured at the lower of carrying value and fair value less 
costs to sell. 

Non‑current assets and disposal groups are classified as held for sale if their carrying amount will be recovered through a sale 
transaction rather than through continuing use. The condition is regarded as met only when the sale is highly probable and the 
asset (or disposal group) is available for immediate sale in its present condition. Management must be committed to the sale which 
should be expected to qualify for recognition as a completed sale within one year from date of classification.

Taxation
The tax expense represents the sum of the tax currently payable and deferred tax.

The tax currently payable is based on taxable profit for the year. Current tax assets and liabilities are measured at the amount 
expected to be recovered from or paid to the taxation authorities, based on tax rates and laws that are enacted or substantively 
enacted by the balance sheet date. 

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Summary of significant accounting policies
continued

Taxation continued
Deferred tax is the tax expected to be payable or recoverable on differences between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities in the 
Financial statements and the corresponding tax bases used in the computation of taxable profit, and is accounted for using the balance 
sheet liability method. Deferred tax liabilities are generally recognised for all taxable temporary differences and deferred tax assets are 
recognised to the extent that it is probable that taxable profits will be available against which deductible temporary differences can be 
utilised. Such assets and liabilities are not recognised if the temporary difference arises from the initial recognition of goodwill or from 
the initial recognition of other assets and liabilities in a transaction that affects neither the taxable profit nor the accounting profit.

The carrying amount of deferred tax assets is reviewed at each balance sheet date and reduced to the extent that it is no longer 
probable that sufficient taxable profits will be available to allow all or part assets to be recovered.

Deferred tax is calculated at the tax rates that are expected to apply in the period when the liability is settled or the asset is realised 
based on tax laws and rates that have been enacted or substantively enacted by the balance sheet date. Deferred tax is charged or 
credited in the income statement, except when it relates to items charged or credited directly to equity, in which case the deferred 
tax is also recognised in equity.

Foreign currencies
The individual Financial statements of each Group company are presented in the currency of the primary economic environment 
in which it operates (its functional currency). For the purpose of the consolidated Financial statements, the results and the financial 
position of the Group are expressed in US Dollars, which is the functional currency of the Company, and the presentation currency 
for the consolidated Financial statements. 

In preparing the Financial statements of the individual companies, transactions in currencies other than the entity’s functional currency 
are recorded at the rates of exchange prevailing on the dates of the transactions. At each balance sheet date, monetary assets and 
liabilities that are denominated in foreign currencies are retranslated at the rates prevailing on the balance sheet date. Non‑monetary 
assets and liabilities carried at fair value that are denominated in foreign currencies are translated at the rates prevailing at the date when 
the fair value was determined. Gains and losses arising on retranslation are included in the income statement for the year.

On consolidation, the assets and liabilities of the Group’s foreign operations which use functional currencies other than US Dollars 
are translated at exchange rates prevailing on the balance sheet date. Income and expense items are translated at the average 
exchange rates for the period. Exchange differences arising, if any, are recognised in other comprehensive income and accumulated 
in equity in the Group’s translation reserve. On the disposal of a foreign operation, such translation differences are reclassified to 
profit or loss.

Inventories
Inventories, except for hydrocarbon inventories, are valued at the lower of cost and net realisable value. Hydrocarbon inventories 
are recorded at net realisable value with changes in hydrocarbon inventories being adjusted through cost of sales.

Financial instruments
Financial assets and financial liabilities are recognised on the Group’s balance sheet when the Group has become a party to the 
contractual provisions of the instrument. 

Trade receivables
Trade receivables are measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method less any impairment. 

Cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents comprise cash on hand and demand deposits and other short‑term highly liquid investments that are 
readily convertible to a known amount of cash and are subject to an insignificant risk of changes in value.

Liquid investments
Liquid investments comprise short‑term liquid investments of between three to twelve months maturity.

Financial assets at fair value through profit and loss
Financial assets are held at fair value through profit and loss (“FVTPL”) when the financial asset is either held for trading or it 
is designated at FVTPL. Financial assets at FVTPL are stated at fair value, with any gains or losses arising on remeasurement 
recognised in profit or loss. The net gain or loss recognised in profit or loss incorporates any dividend or interest earned on the 
financial asset and is included in the other gains and losses line in the income statement.

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Derivative financial instruments
The Group may enter into derivative financial instruments including foreign exchange forward contracts to manage its exposure 
to foreign exchange rate risk.

Derivatives are initially recognised at fair value at the date a derivative contract is entered into and are subsequently remeasured 
to their fair value at each balance sheet date. The resulting gain or loss is recognised in the profit or loss immediately unless 
the derivative is designated and effective as a hedging instrument, in which event the timing of the recognition in profit or loss 
depends on the nature of the hedge relationship. 

A derivative with a positive fair value is recognised as a financial asset whereas a derivative with a negative fair value is recognised 
as a liability. A derivative is presented as a non‑current asset or a non‑current liability if the remaining maturity of the instrument is 
more than twelve months and it is not expected to be realised or settled within twelve months. Other derivatives are presented as 
current assets or current liabilities.

Impairment of financial assets
Financial assets, other than those valued at FVTPL, are assessed for indicators of impairment at each balance sheet date. Financial 
assets are impaired where there is objective evidence that, as a result of one or more events that occurred after the initial 
recognition of the financial asset, the estimated future cash flows of the investment have been impacted.

For certain categories of financial asset, such as trade receivables, assets that are assessed not to be impaired individually are 
subsequently assessed for impairment on a collective basis. Objective evidence of impairment for a portfolio of receivables could 
include the Group’s past experience of collecting payments, an increase in the number of delayed payments in the portfolio past the 
average credit period, as well as observable changes in local or national economic conditions that correlate with default on receivables.

Financial liabilities and equity
Financial liabilities and equity instruments are classified according to the substance of the contractual arrangements entered into. 
An equity instrument is any contract that evidences a residual interest in the assets of the Group after deducting all of its liabilities.

Equity instruments
Equity instruments issued by the Company are recorded at the proceeds received, net of direct issue costs, which are charged to 
share premium.

Convertible bonds
The net proceeds received from the issue of convertible bonds are split between a liability element and an equity component 
at the date of issue. The fair value of the liability component is estimated using the prevailing market interest rate for similar 
non‑convertible debt. The difference between the proceeds of issue of the convertible bonds and the fair value assigned to the 
liability component, representing the embedded option to convert the liability into equity of the Group, is included in equity and 
is not remeasured. The liability component is carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method until extinguished upon 
conversion or at the instrument’s maturity date.

Issue costs are apportioned between the liability and equity components of the convertible bonds based on their relative carrying 
amounts at the date of issue. The portion relating to the equity component is charged directly against equity.

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The interest expense on the liability component is calculated by applying the prevailing market interest rate for similar 
non‑convertible debt to the liability component of the instrument. The difference between this amount and the interest paid is 
added to the carrying amount of the convertible bonds.

Borrowings
Interest‑bearing loans and overdrafts are recorded at the fair value of proceeds received, net of transaction costs. Finance charges, 
including premiums payable on settlement or redemption, are accounted for on an accrual basis and are added to the carrying 
amount of the instrument to the extent that they are not settled in the year in which they arise. The liability is carried at amortised 
cost using the effective interest rate method until the maturity of the borrowing.

Trade payables
Trade payables are stated at amortised cost. The average maturity for trade and other payables is one to three months.

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98
Summary of significant accounting policies
continued

Provisions
Provisions are recognised when the Group has a present obligation as a result of a past event which it is probable will result in 
an outflow of economic benefits that can be reliably estimated.

Decommissioning provision
Provision for decommissioning is recognised in full when damage is done to the site and an obligation to restore the site to 
its original condition exists. The amount recognised is the present value of the estimated future expenditure for restoring the 
sites of drilled wells and related facilities to their original status. A corresponding amount equivalent to the provision is also 
recognised as part of the cost of the related oil and gas property. The amount recognised is reassessed each year in accordance 
with local conditions and requirements. Any change in the present value of the estimated expenditure is dealt with prospectively. 
The unwinding of the discount is included as a finance cost.

Share‑based payments
Equity‑settled share‑based payments to employees and others providing similar services are measured at the fair value of the entity 
instruments at the grant date. Details regarding the determination of the fair value of equity‑settled share‑based transactions are 
set out in note 24.

The fair value determined at the grant date of the equity‑settled share‑based payments is expensed on a straight‑ line basis over 
the vesting period, based on the Group’s estimate of equity instruments that will eventually vest. At each balance sheet date, 
the Group revises its estimate of the number of equity instruments expected to vest as a result of the effect of non‑market based 
vesting conditions. The impact of the revision of the original estimates, if any, is recognised in profit or loss such that the cumulative 
expense reflects the revised estimate, with a corresponding adjustment to equity reserve. 

For cash‑settled share‑based payments, a liability is recognised for the goods or services acquired, measured initially at the fair 
value of the liability. At each balance sheet date until the liability is settled, and at the date of settlement, the fair value of the 
liability is remeasured, with any changes in fair value recognised in profit or loss for the period. Details regarding the determination 
of the fair value of cash‑settled share‑based transactions are set out in note 24.

Leasing
Rentals payable under operating leases are charged to the income statement on a straight‑line basis over the term of the relevant lease.

Critical accounting estimates and judgements
In the application of the Group’s accounting policies, which are described above, the Directors are required to make judgements, 
estimates and assumptions about the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. 
The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. 
Actual results may differ from these estimates. 

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in 
the period in which the estimate is revised if the revision affects only that period, or in the period of revision and future periods if 
the revision affects both current and future periods. 

Carrying value of intangible exploration and evaluation assets 
The outcome of ongoing exploration, and therefore the recoverability of the carrying value of intangible exploration and 
evaluation assets, is inherently uncertain. Management makes the judgements necessary to implement the Group’s policy 
with respect to exploration and evaluation assets and considers these assets for impairment at least annually with reference to 
indicators in IFRS 6. Further details are provided in note 10.

When an asset is expected to be disposed of or abandoned, the recoverable amount reflects the expected net disposal 
consideration, together with the value of any liabilities avoided or transferred.

Carrying value of producing assets
Assets relating to the Shaikan block were transferred to property, plant and equipment as at the end of June 2013 following the 
approval of the Shaikan Field Development Plan (“FDP”). Commercial production commenced on this block in July 2013. Oil and 
gas assets within property, plant and equipment are held at historical cost value, less accumulated depreciation and impairments. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

99

Producing assets are tested for impairment whenever indicators of impairment exist. Management assesses whether such 
indicators exist, with reference to the criteria specified in IAS 36, at least annually. For 2013, management determined that there 
are no indicators of impairment by comparing management’s estimate of the discounted future cash flows that the Group expects 
to derive from the Shaikan field to its carrying value. Key judgements in deriving the future cash flows include future oil and gas 
prices, production volumes, future costs and the appropriate discount rate to be used. Further details are provided in note 11.

Decommissioning costs
The cost of decommissioning is estimated by reference to the Group’s experience, with key judgements including the application 
of local laws and regulations, estimates of the related costs, inflation and discount rates. Further details are provided in note 18.

Depreciation, depletion and amortisation
Amortisation and depreciation of oil and gas properties is calculated on a unit‑of‑production basis, using the ratio of oil and gas 
production in the period to the estimated quantities of proved and probable reserves on an entitlement basis at the end of the 
period plus production in the period, on a field‑by‑field basis. Proved and probable reserve estimates are based on a number 
of underlying assumptions, including oil and gas prices, future costs, oil and gas in place and reservoir performance, which are 
inherently uncertain. Management uses established industry techniques to generate its estimates and regularly references these 
estimates against those of joint venture partners and external consultants. Such external estimates include the Competent Persons’ 
Report prepared by ERC Equipoise, released in March 2014.

Reserves estimates
Commercial reserves are determined using estimates of oil‑in‑place, recovery factors and future oil prices. Future development 
costs are estimated using assumptions as to numbers of wells required to produce the commercial reserves, the cost of such wells 
and associated production facilities, and other capital and operating costs. Reserves estimates principally affect the depreciation, 
depletion and amortisation charges.

Revenue
The recognition of revenue during 2013, and particularly the recognition of revenue from exports, is considered to be a key 
accounting judgement. The Group began commercial production from the Shaikan field in July 2013, domestic commercial sales 
followed shortly afterwards and the export of crude oil by truck commenced in December 2013. For all commercial production, 
the goods are considered to be delivered and the title passed at the point of loading at the Shaikan field. For sales into the local 
market, it is clear that at this point of delivery, economic benefit will flow to the Group and that revenue and costs can be measured 
reliably and thus revenue is recognised. However, in contrast, as the payment mechanism for sales to the export market is currently 
developing within the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the Group considers that, at this point in time, revenue can be only reliably 
measured at the point of cash receipt. As at the date of this report, no cash receipts have been received for oil sent for export. 
However, given that exports by the KRG via truck only commenced in December 2013, management do not consider that the 
payment is past due and the Group expects to receive its full entitlement for trucked exports. 

Share‑based payments
The share‑based payments charge is determined based on a number of assumptions which include but are not limited to the fair 
value of awards, vesting period and number of shares to vest. Further details are provided in note 24. 

Capitalisation of borrowing costs
The accounting policy for oil and gas assets describes the nature of the costs that the Group capitalises, which include applicable 
borrowing costs that are directly attributable to qualifying assets as defined in IAS 23 Borrowing Costs (“IAS 23”). Management has 
considered the definition of qualifying assets in IAS 23 and has determined that the Group’s capitalised cash expenditures on its 
four Kurdistan blocks meets the definition of qualifying assets. Consequently, the interest associated with capital expenditures on 
the four Kurdistan blocks has been capitalised.

Classification of assets as held for sale
The classification of Akri‑Bijeel asset as an asset held for sale is one of the critical accounting judgements made by the Group’s 
Directors. The Directors believe that the Akri‑Bijeel block continues to meet the criteria of an asset held for sale as set out in IFRS 5, 
notwithstanding the fact that this intangible asset was classified as held for sale at 31 December 2011 and 2012. Further details are 
provided in note 12.

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Notes to the consolidated Financial statements

1.  Segment information
For the purposes of resource allocation and assessment of segment performance, the Group is organised into three regional 
business units – Algeria, Kurdistan and the United Kingdom. These geographical segments are the basis on which the Group 
reports its segmental information. The chief operating decision maker is the Chief Executive Officer. He is assisted by the Chief 
Operating Officer, the Finance Director, the Legal and Commercial Director and the Vice President of Operations as well as the 
Country Managers in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and Algeria. 

The accounting policies of the reportable segments are consistent with the Group’s accounting policies. 

Each segment is described in more detail below:

 l Kurdistan Region of Iraq: the Kurdistan segment consists of the Shaikan, Akri‑Bijeel, Sheikh Adi and Ber Bahr blocks and the Erbil 

office which provides support to the operations in Kurdistan; 

 l United Kingdom: the UK segment provides geological, geophysical and engineering services to the Gulf Keystone Group; and
 l Algeria: the Algerian segment consists of the Algiers office and the Group’s operations in Algeria. 

Corporate manages activities that serve more than one segment. It represents all overhead and administration costs incurred that 
cannot be directly linked to one of the above segments.

31 December 2013 

Revenue 

Oil sales 

Inter‑segment sales 

Total revenue 

Cost of sales 

Production costs 

Royalty costs 

Oil and gas properties depreciation expense 

Gross profit/(loss) 

General and administrative expenses 

Algeria 
$’000 

Kurdistan 
$’000 

6,696 

— 

6,696 

(8,829) 

(888) 

(2,377) 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

United 
Kingdom 
$’000 

— 

11,745 

11,745 

— 

— 

— 

(5,398) 

11,745 

Corporate 
$’000 

Elimination 
$’000 

Total 
$’000

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

(11,745) 

(11,745) 

144 

— 

— 

(11,601) 

6,696

—

6,696

(8,685)

(888)

(2,377)

(5,254)

Allocated general and administrative expenses 

(552) 

(2,353) 

(13,636) 

(11,161) 

12,657 

(15,045)

Depreciation and amortisation expense 

— 

(580) 

(217) 

(1) 

— 

(798)

Loss from operations 

Other gains and (losses)   

Interest revenue 

Finance costs  

(552) 

(8,331) 

(2,108) 

(11,162) 

1,056 

(21,097)

(4) 

— 

— 

(162) 

253 

(378) 

— 

105 

(1,032) 

573 

12 

(103) 

(1,186)

828

(103) 

(23,433) 

13,522 

(10,392)

(Loss)/profit before tax   

(556) 

(8,618) 

(2,106) 

(35,054) 

14,487 

(31,847)

Tax expense 

(Loss)/profit after tax 

Capital expenditure 

Total assets 

— 

— 

(118) 

— 

— 

(118)

(556) 

(8,618) 

(2,224) 

(35,054) 

14,487 

(31,965)

— 

85 

229,271 

886,079 

77 

— 

— 

229,348

29,717 

1,089,439 

(1,024,505) 

980,815

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
101

31 December 2012 

Revenue 

Oil sales 

Inter‑segment sales 

Total revenue 

Cost of sales 

Production costs 

Gross profit 

Algeria 
$’000 

Kurdistan 
$’000 

United 
Kingdom 
$’000 

— 

16,132 

16,132 

32,190 

— 

32,190 

(32,190) 

— 

— 

16,132 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

Corporate 
$’000 

Elimination 
$’000 

Total 
$’000

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

32,190

(16,132) 

—

(16,132) 

32,190

— 

(32,190)

(16,132) 

—

General and administrative expenses 

Allocated general and administrative expenses 

(4,946) 

(1,577) 

(16,862) 

(75,697) 

17,678 

(81,404)

Depreciation and amortisation expense 

(Loss)/profit from operations 

Other gains and (losses)   

Interest revenue 

Finance costs  

— 

(535) 

(4,946) 

(2,112) 

(7) 

— 

(159) 

(117) 

68 

(189) 

(Loss)/profit before tax   

(5,112) 

(2,350) 

(197) 

(927) 

— 

289 

(290) 

(928) 

(1) 

— 

(733)

(75,698) 

1,546 

(82,137)

5,334 

1,132 

(4,616) 

— 

(290) 

798 

5,210

1,199

(4,456)

(73,849) 

2,054 

(80,184)

Tax expense 

(Loss)/profit after tax 

Capital expenditure 

Total assets 

— 

— 

(1,638) 

— 

— 

(1,638)

(5,112) 

(2,350) 

(2,566) 

(73,849) 

2,054 

(81,822)

— 

102 

215,993 

671,680 

206 

1 

— 

216,200

40,465 

1,061,637 

(847,985) 

925,899

Geographical information
The Group’s information about its segment assets (non‑current assets excluding deferred tax assets and other financial assets) by 
geographical location is detailed below:

Algeria 

Kurdistan 

Bermuda 

United Kingdom 

2013 
$’000 

— 

2012 
$’000

—

737,047 

548,021

2 

351 

3

490

737,400 

548,514

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Information about major customers
Included in revenues arising from the Kurdistan segment are revenues of approximately $5.5 million (2012: $17.5 million) and 
$1.1 million (2012: $9.2 million) which arose from sales to the Group’s two largest customers. 

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102
Notes to the consolidated Financial statements
continued

2. Revenue

Oil sales 

Interest revenue 

2013 
$’000 

6,696 

828 

7,524 

2012 
$’000

32,190

1,199

33,389

During 2013, the Company sold Shaikan oil domestically, with exports commencing in December 2013. Of oil sales revenues, 
$5.5 million (2012: $nil) arose from commercial oil production following the approval of the Shaikan FDP on 25 June 2013. 
The remaining $1.2 million (2012: $32.2 million) sales revenues arose from test production prior to the approval of the Shaikan FDP. 
All revenues are from domestic sales.

Revenue for commercial sales was recognised in line with the terms of Shaikan PSC, the applicable sales contracts and the Group’s 
accounting policy. The price achieved on domestic sales in 2013 was $41.2/bbl. Revenue is recognised on cash receipt for export 
sales (see Critical accounting estimates and judgements for further details).

In arriving at the value of sales revenues, management have used the following assumptions:

 l Point of sale is the Shaikan facility;
 l Revenue is recognised gross of any royalty due in accordance with the terms of the Shaikan PSC; and
 l Company’s working interest in the Shaikan block is 80%.

3. Cost of sales

Production costs  

Royalty costs 

Depreciation of oil & gas properties 

2013 
$’000 

8,685 

888 

2,377 

2012 
$’000

32,190

—

—

11,950 

32,190

Following the approval of the Shaikan FDP at the end of June 2013, the Shaikan block asset was transferred from intangible assets 
to oil and gas properties within property, plant and equipment. This asset has been depreciated from 1 July 2013 on a unit of 
production basis, with a depreciation charge of $2.4 million being recorded within cost of sales (2012: $nil). See notes 10 and 11 
for further details. 

As all revenues resulted from test production in 2012, in accordance with the Company’s accounting policy for test production, 
an equal and offsetting amount to revenue of $32.2 million was recognised in cost of sales.

4. Loss from operations

Loss from operations has been arrived at after charging: 

Depreciation of property, plant and equipment 

Amortisation of intangible assets 

(Credit)/Charge in relation to Excalibur litigation (see note 23) 

Staff costs (see note 5) 

Auditor’s remuneration for audit services (see below) 

Operating lease rentals (see note 22) 

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

2,981 

194 

(18,973) 

26,289 

158 

1,769 

559

175

26,782

38,642

106

2,235

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Fees payable to the Company’s auditor for the audit of the Company’s annual accounts 

Fees payable to the Company’s auditor for other services to the Group 

– the audit of the Company’s subsidiaries pursuant to legislation   

Total audit fees 

Other assurance services  

Remuneration advisory services 

Corporate finance services  

Other services 

Total fees 

5. Staff costs
The average monthly number of employees (including Executive Directors) for the year was as follows:

Office and management  

Technical and operational 

Employee benefits recognised as an expense during the year comprised: 

Wages and salaries 

Social security costs 

Share‑based payment (see note 24) 

 6. Other gains and (losses)

Exchange (losses)/gains   

Mark‑to‑market valuation of foreign exchange contracts 

Change in the fair value of the SEDA derivative financial instrument 

2013 
$’000 

134 

24 

158 

59 

104 

373 

56 

750 

2012 
$’000

85

21

106

—

—

62

8

176

2013 
Number 

2012 
Number

78 

109 

187 

2013 
$’000 

13,917 

2,534 

9,838 

26,289 

2013 
$’000 

(1,186) 

— 

— 

63

88

151

2012 
$’000

15,005

3,663

19,974

38,642

2012 
$’000

6,355

(794)

(351)

(1,186) 

5,210

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
104
Notes to the consolidated Financial statements
continued

7. Finance costs 

Interest payable in respect of convertible bonds (see note 17) 

Unwinding of discount on provisions (see note 18)   

Capitalised finance costs  

2013 
$’000 

23,433 

378 

(13,419) 

10,392 

2012 
$’000

4,617

348

(509)

4,456

The amount of finance costs capitalised was determined in accordance with IAS 23 by applying the effective interest rate of 
9.26% on an annual basis applicable to the borrowings under the $275 million convertible bond to the expenditures on the 
qualifying asset (see note 17). The proceeds from the $50 million further issue in 2013 have not yet been utilised to generate 
a qualifying asset.

8. Tax 

Corporation tax 

Current year credit/(charge) 

Adjustment in respect of prior years 

Deferred UK corporation tax expense   

Tax expense attributable to the Company and its subsidiaries 

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

706 

(12) 

(812) 

(118) 

(1,092)

(203)

(343)

(1,638)

Under current Bermudian laws, the Group is not required to pay taxes in Bermuda on either income or capital gains. The Group has 
received an undertaking from the Minister of Finance in Bermuda exempting it from any such taxes at least until the year 2035.

Any corporate tax liability in Algeria is settled out of Sonatrach’s share of oil under the terms of the PSCs and is therefore not 
reflected in the tax charge for the year. 

In the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the Group is subject to corporate income tax on its income from petroleum operations under the 
PSCs. The rate of corporate income tax is currently 15% on total income. However, any corporate income tax arising from petroleum 
operations will be paid from the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq’s share of petroleum profits.

The tax currently payable is based on taxable profit for the year earned in the United Kingdom by the Group’s UK subsidiary. 
UK corporation tax is calculated at 23.25% (2012: 24.5%) of the estimated assessable profit for the year of the UK subsidiary. 

On 20 March 2013, the UK Government announced a reduction in the main rate of UK corporation tax from 24% to 23% effective 
from 1 April 2013. The Government has enacted a further 2% reduction to 21% at 1 April 2014 in the Finance Bill 2013 as well as an 
additional reduction to 20% on 1 April 2015. The 21% rate and the 20% rate were substantively enacted as at 31 December 2013 
and have been reflected in the deferred tax calculation, in accordance with IAS 12. 

Deferred tax is provided for due to the temporary differences which give rise to such a balance in jurisdictions subject to income 
tax. During the current period no taxable profits were made in respect of the Group’s Kurdistan PSCs, nor were there any temporary 
differences on which deferred tax is required to be provided. As a result, no corporate income tax or deferred tax has been provided 
for Kurdistan in the period.

In addition to the deferred tax charge to the income statement, a $2.3 million deferred tax charge (2012: $1.1 million charge) 
relating to estimated excess tax deductions related to share‑based payments has been recognised directly in equity (see note 19). 
All deferred tax arises in the UK. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
105

The expense for the year can be reconciled to the loss per the income statement as follows:

Loss before tax 

Tax at the Bermudian tax rate of 0% (2012: 0%) 

Effect of different tax rates of subsidiaries operating in other jurisdictions 

Tax (charge)/benefit for the year 

9. Loss per share
The calculation of the basic and diluted loss per share is based on the following data:

Loss 

Loss after tax for the purposes of basic and diluted loss per share  

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

(31,847) 

(80,184)

— 

(118) 

(118) 

—

(1,638)

(1,638)

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

(31,965) 

(81,822)

2013 
Number 
(000s) 

2012 
Number 
(000s)

Number of shares  

Weighted average number of common shares for the purposes of basic loss per share 

865,480 

851,486

Adjustments for: 

– bonus shares 

– share options 

– warrants 

– ordinary shares held by the Employee Benefit Trustee 

– ordinary shares held by the Exit Event Trustee 

– shares issuable under convertible bonds 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

Weighted average number of common shares for the purposes of diluted loss per share 

865,480 

851,486

The Group followed the steps specified by IAS 33 in determining whether potential common shares are dilutive or anti‑dilutive. 
It was determined that all of the potential common shares including bonus shares, share options, convertible bonds and common 
shares held by the Employee Benefit Trustee (“EBT”) and the Exit Event Trustee have an anti‑dilutive effect on loss per share. 
As a result, there is no difference between basic and diluted earnings per share. 

As at 31 December 2013, 37.5 million share options (2012: 41.9 million), 3.3 million unissued bonus shares (2012: 6.6 million), 
9.4 million common shares held by the EBT (2012: 12.9 million), 10 million common shares held by the Exit Event Trustee 
(2012: 10.0 million), and 74.0 million common shares to be issued if the bonds are converted at the initial conversion price of 
$4.39 (2012: 62.6 million) were excluded from the loss per share calculation as they were anti‑dilutive. As at 31 December 2013, 
the Company had no warrants outstanding (2012: 1.0 million).

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
106
Notes to the consolidated Financial statements
continued

10. Intangible assets

Year ended 31 December 2012 

Opening net book value   

Additions 

Reclassified to income statement 

Amortisation charge 

Accumulated amortisation eliminated on reclassification 

Foreign currency translation differences 

Closing net book value   

At 31 December 2012 

Cost 

Accumulated amortisation 

Net book value 

Year ended 31 December 2013 

Opening net book value   

Transfer of Shaikan assets to property, plant and equipment 

Additions 

Amortisation charge 

Foreign currency translation differences 

Closing net book value   

At 31 December 2013 

Cost 

Accumulated amortisation 

Net book value 

Exploration & 
  evaluation costs 
$’000 

Computer 
software 
$’000 

359,557 

186,383 

— 

— 

— 

— 

448 

109 

(125) 

(175) 

14 

18 

Total 
$’000

360,005

186,492

(125)

(175)

14

18

545,940 

289 

546,229

545,940 

858 

546,798

— 

(569) 

(569)

545,940 

289 

546,229

545,940 

(443,470) 

118,286 

— 

— 

289 

— 

110 

(194) 

2 

546,229

(443,470)

118,396

(194)

2

220,756 

207 

220,963

220,756 

977 

221,733

— 

(770) 

(770)

220,756 

207 

220,963

The net book value at 31 December 2013 includes intangible assets relating to: Ber Bahr $61.1 million (2012: $51.0 million), 
and Sheikh Adi $159.6 million (2012: $137.2 million). 

At 30 June 2013, the intangible assets relating to the Shaikan block were transferred from intangible assets to property, plant 
and equipment upon approval of the FDP. Prior to this point, all additions to the Shaikan assets were recorded in intangibles. 
Subsequent to the transfer, all additions to the Shaikan assets were recorded in property, plant and equipment. The balance 
relating to the Shaikan block at 30 June 2013 was $443.5 million (31 December 2012: $357.7 million).

The additions to oil and gas exploration and evaluation costs in the year include the acquisition and processing of 2‑D seismic data 
on the Sheikh Adi block, and the commencement of drilling Sheikh Adi‑3, as well as the drilling and side‑tracking of the Ber Bahr 
exploration well.

The amortisation charge of $194,000 (2012: $175,000) for computer software has been included in general and 
administrative expenses.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
107

11. Property, plant and equipment

Year ended 31 December 2012 

Opening net book value   

Additions 

Disposals 

Depreciation charge 

Accumulated depreciation eliminated on disposals   

Revaluation of Algerian oil and gas decommissioning assets 

Foreign currency translation differences 

Closing net book value   

At 31 December 2012 

Cost 

Accumulated depreciation 

Net book value 

Year ended 31 December 2013 

Opening net book value   

Transfer of Shaikan exploration and evaluation assets from intangibles 

Additions 

Disposals 

Depreciation charge 

Closing net book value   

At 31 December 2013 

Cost 

Accumulated depreciation 

Net book value 

Oil & gas 
properties 
$’000 

Fixtures & 
equipment 
$’000 

Total 
$’000

4,295

1,345

(169)

(559)

53

(2,690)

10

2,285

4,939

(2,654)

2,285

1,605 

1,345 

(169) 

(559) 

53 

— 

10 

2,285 

4,939 

(2,654) 

2,285 

2,690 

— 

— 

— 

— 

(2,690) 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

443,470 

73,545 

— 

2,285 

2,285

— 

118 

— 

443,470

73,663

—

(2,377) 

(604) 

(2,981)

514,638 

1,799 

516,437

517,015 

5,073 

522,088

(2,377) 

(3,274) 

(5,651)

514,638 

1,799 

516,437

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The net book value of oil & gas properties at 31 December 2013 is comprised of property, plant and equipment relating to the 
Shaikan block and has a carrying value of $514.6 million. At 30 June 2013, the assets relating to Shaikan were transferred from 
intangible assets to property, plant and equipment (see note 10) following the approval of the FDP on 25 June 2013 and in 
accordance with the Group’s accounting policies. Additions to the Shaikan assets subsequent to this transfer have been recorded 
as additions to property, plant and equipment.

The additions to the Shaikan block in the year include the construction of the Shaikan production facilities, PF‑1 and PF‑2, the 
drilling of Shaikan ‑7 and ‑10, workovers of Shaikan ‑2 and ‑4 and work associated with tie‑in of the Shaikan ‑2, ‑4 and ‑5 wells to 
PF‑1 and PF‑2.

The depreciation, depletion and amortisation charge of $2.4 million on oil and gas properties (2012: $nil) has been included within 
cost of sales (note 3).

The depreciation charge of $0.6 million on fixtures and equipment (2012: $0.6 million) has been included in general and 
administrative expenses.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
108
Notes to the consolidated Financial statements
continued

12. Asset classified as held for sale
In 2011, as part of the forward strategy to rationalise its asset portfolio, the Group announced the intention to sell the Group’s 20% 
working interest in the Akri‑Bijeel block. The Group subsequently appointed Joint Corporate Advisers responsible for co‑ordination 
of and advice on the sale and this process is ongoing. 

The Akri‑Bijeel asset of $103.1 million (2012: $64.6 million), which is included within the Kurdistan operating segment, is expected 
to be sold within twelve months and has been classified as an asset held for sale as at 31 December 2013 and presented separately 
in the balance sheet. The value of the asset held for sale as at 31 December 2013 includes $7.1 million (2012: $5.9 million) that 
relates to a prepayment balance to the operator. The additions in the year include the drilling and testing of exploration and 
appraisal wells, which include Bakrman‑1, Bijell ‑2, ‑4, ‑7 as well as the workover and sidetrack of Bijell‑1, the construction of the 
Akri‑Bijeel Extended Well Test Facility and the acquisition and processing of seismic data. 

The proceeds of disposal are expected to exceed the book value of the related net assets and, accordingly, no impairment losses 
have been recognised on the classification of this asset as held for sale. A further amount of $1.4 million (2012: $0.9 million), 
representing the net present value of the decommissioning costs associated with this asset is presented separately on 
the balance sheet as a liability directly associated with assets classified as held for sale at 31 December 2013 (see note 18). 
At 31 December 2013, all of the liability on the balance sheet associated with the assets held for sale is comprised of provisions. 
At 31 December 2012, this balance was included within the non‑current provisions balance.

Akri‑Bijeel assets: 

Intangible assets 

Prepayments to operator  

Akri‑Bijeel liabilities: 

Decommissioning provisions  

2013 
$’000 

96,007 

7,079 

103,086 

2013 
$’000 

1,378 

2012 
$’000

58,718

5,894

64,612

2012 
$’000

—

The Group is continuing to actively market its interest in Akri Bijeel and a number of interested parties have made enquiries during 
2013 and to date. The block was declared commercial in October 2013 by the operator. Early production has recently commenced 
from the Extended Well Test (“EWT”) facility following the tie‑in of Bijell‑1B, with initial production at around 3,500 barrels per day 
as stated by the operator. These developments, together with the Bakrman discovery in 2013 which is due to be appraised this year, 
and the expected completion of the field development plan in April 2014 are the reasons why management continue to consider 
that the criteria to classify the asset as held for sale continue to be met, notwithstanding the fact that this asset was classified as 
held for sale at 31 December 2011 and 2012. 

13. Subsidiaries
Details of the Company’s subsidiaries at 31 December 2013, and 31 December 2012, are as follows:

Name of subsidiary 

Place of 
incorporation 

Proportion 
of ownership 
 interest 

Proportion 
of voting 
power held 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum (UK) Limited  

United Kingdom 

100% 

100% 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum International Limited 

Bermuda 

100% 

100% 

Principal 
activity

Geological, geophysical  
and engineering services 

Exploration and evaluation  
activities in Kurdistan

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Numidia Limited 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum HBH Limited  

Shaikan Petroleum Limited 

Bermuda 

Bermuda 

Bermuda 

100% 

100% 

100% 

100% 

Exploration and evaluation activities 

100% 

Exploration and evaluation activities

100% 

Exploration and evaluation activities

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
109

14. Inventories

Exploration materials  

Crude oil  

15. Trade and other receivables

Trade receivables 

Other receivables  

Prepayments and accrued income 

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

19,893 

19,063

761 

720

20,654 

19,783

2013 
$’000 

— 

30,257 

3,766 

34,023 

2012 
$’000

6,983

12,759

3,932

23,674

Trade receivables relate to amounts due from oil sales with no outstanding debtors as at 31 December 2013 (2012: $7.0 million). 
Included within other receivables for 2013 is an amount of $27.9 million (2012: $nil) being the legal costs that are owed to the 
Company following the resolution of the Excalibur case in December 2013 (see note 23).

Also included within other receivables for 2013 is an amount of $0.3 million (2012: $0.7 million) being the deposits for leased 
assets which are receivable after more than one year. There are no receivables from related parties as at 31 December 2013 
(2012 $10.6 million) (see note 25). No impairments have been recognised during the year (2012: $1.2 million).

The Directors consider that the carrying amount of trade and other receivables approximates to their fair value and no amounts 
are provided against them.

16. Trade and other payables
Trade and other payables principally comprise amounts outstanding for trade purchases and ongoing costs. 

The Directors consider that the carrying amount of trade payables approximates to their fair value.

Trade payables 

Other creditors 

Accrued expenses 

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

14,495 

21,908

3,518 

82,782 

100,795 

—

68,964

90,872

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Accrued expenses include interest payable of $4.2 million (2012: $3.5 million) in respect of convertible bonds (see note 17). 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
110
Notes to the consolidated Financial statements
continued

17. Convertible bonds
On 18 October 2012, the Group issued senior unsecured convertible bonds at a par value of $275 million which will be convertible 
into common shares of the Company, at the option of the bondholder, at any time from 18 October 2012 until 10 days prior to 
the final maturity date, 18 October 2017 (the “original bonds”). As described in the convertible bonds listing particulars, available 
on the Borse de Luxembourg website, the Company can redeem all or some of the bonds under certain conditions. At the 
initial conversion price of $4.39 per common share (£2.72 at the prevailing USD:GBP spot rate at the time of pricing), there were 
62,642,369 common shares of the Company underlying the bonds. If the bonds have not been previously purchased and cancelled, 
redeemed or converted, they will be redeemed at par value on 18 October 2017. Interest of 6.25% per annum will be paid 
bi‑annually in arrears up to that date. 

On 6 November 2013 (the “closing date”), the Group issued further senior unsecured convertible bonds (the “new bonds”) at 100% 
of par in an aggregate principal amount of $50 million, plus accrued interest from and including 18 October 2013, to but excluding, 
the closing date. The new bonds were issued on the same terms (save for the issue price) as the original bonds and have been 
consolidated with the original bonds to form a single series. At the initial conversion price of $4.39 per common share (£2.72 at the 
prevailing USD:GBP spot rate at the time of pricing), there were 11,389,521 common shares of the Company underlying the bonds.

As with the 2012 issue, the 2013 net proceeds received from the issues of the convertible bonds were split between a liability 
element and equity component at the date of issue. The fair value of the liability component was estimated using the prevailing 
market interest rate for similar non‑convertible debt. The difference between the proceeds of issue of the convertible bonds and 
the fair value assigned to the liability component, representing the embedded option to convert the liability into equity of the 
Group, was included in equity reserves. 

Issue costs were apportioned between the liability and equity components of the convertible bonds based on their relative 
carrying amounts at the date of issue. The portion related to the equity component was charged directly to equity.

Liability component at 1 January  

Liability component of the new bonds at issue 

Interest charged during the year 

Interest paid during the year 

Liability component at 31 December    

Liability component reported in: 

Interest payable in current liabilities (see note 16) 

Non‑current liabilities  

2013 
$’000 

247,028 

47,627 

23,433 

(17,188) 

2012 
$’000

—

242,411

4,617

—

300,900 

247,028

2013 
$’000 

4,175 

2012 
$’000

3,533

296,725 

243,495

300,900 

247,028

The equity component of the 2013 New Bonds at issue of $1.4 million has been credited to equity reserves.

The interest charged for the year has been calculated by applying an effective interest rate on an annual basis to the liability 
component for the period since the bonds were issued. The effective interest rate for the initial $275 million bond issue in 
October 2012 is 9.26%. The effective interest rate for the $50 million tap issue is 7.20%. Each year, an amount equal to the 
difference between the total interest charge and the coupon rate charge (at 6.25% per annum) is transferred within equity 
from the convertible bonds reserve to accumulated losses. 

There is no material difference between the carrying amount of the liability component of the convertible bonds, which is carried 
at amortised cost, and their fair value. This fair value is calculated by discounting the future cash flows at the market rate.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
111

The Group’s remaining contractual liability comprising principal and interest, based on undiscounted cash flows at the earliest date 
on which the Group is required to pay and assuming the bonds are not purchased and cancelled, redeemed or converted prior to 
18 October 2017, is as follows:

Within one year 

Within two to five years    

18. Provisions

Current provisions 

Non‑current provisions 

Assets held for sale provision 

Decommissioning provision 

At 1 January 2013 

Transfer of Akri‑Bijeel provision 

New provisions and changes in estimates 

Unwinding of discount 

At 31 December 2013 

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

20,313 

17,188

385,937 

343,750

 406,250 

360,938

2013 
$’000 

4,185 

15,365 

1,378 

2012 
$’000

4,185

9,044

—

20,928 

13,229

Current  
provisions  
(Algeria)  
$’000 

Non‑current 
provisions 
 (Kurdistan) 
$’000 

Assets held 
for sale 
provision 
$’000 

Total 
$’000

4,185 

— 

— 

— 

9,044 

(1,217) 

7,179 

359 

— 

13,229

1,217 

142 

19 

—

7,321

378

4,185 

15,365 

1,378 

20,928

The provision for decommissioning is based on the net present value of the Group’s share of expenditure which may be incurred 
in the removal and decommissioning of the wells and facilities currently in place and restoration of the sites to their original state. 
This expenditure is estimated to be incurred over the next twelve months on Algerian oil and gas assets and over the next 30 years 
on Kurdistan blocks.

At 30 June 2013, the provision associated with Akri‑Bijeel (note 12), an asset held for sale, was transferred to current liabilities.  
It is presented separately on the balance sheet as a liability associated with assets classified as held for sale. The decommissioning 
provision is the sole component of this liability balance.

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112
Notes to the consolidated Financial statements
continued

19. Deferred tax asset
The following are the major deferred tax liabilities and assets recognised by the Group and movements thereon during the current 
and prior reporting period.

  Accelerated tax  
depreciation 
$’000 

Share‑based 
payments 
$’000 

(32) 

33 

— 

— 

1 

13 

— 

— 

14 

At 1 January 2012 

(Charge)/credit to income statement 

Charge direct to equity 

Exchange differences 

At 1 January 2013 

(Charge)/credit to income statement 

Charge direct to equity 

Exchange differences 

At 31 December 2013 

20. Share capital

Authorised 

Common shares of $0.01 each 

Non‑voting shares of $0.01 each 

Preferred shares of $1,000 each 

Series A preferred shares of $1,000 each 

Total 
$’000

7,977

(343)

8,009 

(376) 

(1,093) 

(1,093)

255 

6,795 

(825) 

255

6,796

(812)

(2,273) 

(2,273)

(31) 

(31)

3,666 

3,680

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

10,500 

10,500

500 

20,000 

40,000 

71,000 

500

20,000

40,000

71,000

There was no change to the authorised common share capital during 2013.

Issued and fully paid 

Balance at 1 January 2012 

Bonus scheme shares issued 

Shares issued under option scheme 

Exit Event shares issued   

Warrant exercise 

Balance 31 December 2012 

Bonus scheme shares issued 

Shares issued under option scheme 

Warrant exercise 

Balance 31 December 2013 

Common shares 

No. of shares 
000 

Amount 
$’000 

Share capital  Share premium 
$’000

 $’000 

854,119 

798,062 

7,627 

790,435

10,980 

322 

10,000 

761 

110 

170 

 100 

884 

110 

3 

100 

7 

—

167

—

877

876,182 

799,326 

7,847 

791,479

7,126 

4,650 

975 

71 

2,515 

2,162 

71 

47 

10 

—

2,468

2,152

888,933 

804,074 

7,975 

796,099

During the year, a total of 7,125,837 shares were issued as part of the Company’s bonus share scheme (2012: 10,979,672), of which 
6,459,169 new common shares were issued to the Gulf Keystone Employee Benefit Trust (“EBT”) at par value of $0.01 (see note 24). 
Following exercises of warrants in September 2013, 975,350 common shares were issued at a price of £1.40 per share.

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113

A further 4,650,250 common shares were issued following exercise of options by employees, Directors, former employees and 
former Directors of the Company during the year. The details of the options exercised are as follows:

Date of issue 

1 March 2013 

23 September 2013 

12 December 2013 

Total 

Number of shares issued 

Weighted average 
option exercise price 

Weighted average share 
price realised on issue

4,379,500 

20,750 

250,000 

4,650,250 

32.90 pence 

30.00 pence 

80.75 pence 

35.46 pence 

187.75 pence

206.58 pence

182.50 pence

187.55 pence

At 31 December 2013, a total of 9,444,109 common shares were held by the EBT and 10,000,000 shares were held by the Exit Event 
trustee. All 19,444,109 common shares were included within reserves. 

Rights attached to share capital
The holders of the common shares have the following rights (subject to the other provisions of the Bye‑laws):

(i)  entitled to one vote per common share;
(ii)  entitled to receive notice of, and attend and vote at, general meetings of the Company;
(iii) entitled to dividends or other distributions; and
(iv)  in the event of a winding‑up or dissolution of the Company, whether voluntary or involuntary or for a reorganisation or 

otherwise or upon a distribution of capital, entitled to receive the amount of capital paid up on their common shares and to 
participate further in the surplus assets of the Company only after payment of the Series A Liquidation Value (as defined in the 
Bye‑laws) on the Series A preferred shares.

21. Reconciliation of loss from operations to net cash used in operating activities

Loss from operations 

Adjustments for: 

Depreciation, depletion and amortisation of property, plant and equipment 

Amortisation of intangible assets 

Increase in Algerian decommissioning provision 

Share‑based payment expense 

Impairment of overdue receivables 

Increase in inventories 

Increase in receivables 

Increase/(decrease) in payables 

Net cash used in operating activities   

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

(21,097) 

(82,137)

2,981 

194 

— 

9,838 

— 

559

175

3,462

19,974

1,212

(871) 

(2,550)

(10,561) 

(14,845)

(5,556) 

15,176

(25,072) 

(58,974)

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
114
Notes to the consolidated Financial statements
continued

22.  Commitments
Operating lease commitments – the Group as a lessee

Minimum lease payments under operating leases recognised as expense for the year 

2013 
$’000 

1,769 

2012 
$’000

2,235

At the balance sheet date, the Group had outstanding total commitments under non‑cancellable operating leases, which fall 
due as follows:

Within one year 

In the second to fifth years inclusive 

After five years 

2013 
$’000 

1,299 

82 

— 

2012 
$’000

1,345

566

—

1,381 

1,911

Operating lease payments represent rentals payable by the Group for certain of its office and residence properties and facilities in 
the United Kingdom and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The UK office leases are for five and four years from February 2010 and April 
2011 respectively. The office equipment lease is for five years and commenced in 2009. The non‑cancellable operating leases within 
Kurdistan are for up to one year in duration.

Exploration and development commitments
Due to the nature of the Group’s operations in exploring and evaluating areas of interest and development of assets, it is difficult to 
accurately forecast the nature or amount of future expenditure, although it will be necessary to incur expenditure in order to retain 
present exploration and appraisal rights.

Expenditure commitments on current permits for the Group could be reduced by selective relinquishment of exploration 
tenure, by the sale of assets or by the renegotiation of expenditure commitments. The level of current committed exploration 
and development expenditure expected in the year ending 31 December 2014 for the Group is approximately $208.8 million 
(2013: $197 million) of which the majority is contracted. This includes the minimum amounts required to retain the relevant 
licences.

23. Contingent liabilities
In December 2010, Excalibur commenced legal action against Gulf Keystone and two of its subsidiaries (together “the 
Companies”) and Texas Keystone Inc. (“Texas Keystone”) asserting certain contractual and non‑contractual claims against the 
Companies and Texas Keystone and claiming that Excalibur is entitled to an interest of up to 30% in the Companies’ blocks in the 
Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The operations in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq comprise the substantial majority of the Group’s overall 
petroleum operations. 

On 13 December 2013 the Court handed down its full judgment dismissing all of the claims asserted by Excalibur and deciding all 
issues in favour of Gulf Keystone and Texas Keystone. Excalibur does not propose to appeal the Judgment. 

On 13 December 2013, the Court also ordered that the Companies should recover the costs of these legal proceedings and that 
these costs, if not agreed, should be assessed on an indemnity basis, which is typically more generous than the standard basis. 
Excalibur must pay interest on the Companies’ costs at the rate of 1.5% per annum, from 13 December 2013 until the date of 
payment of the invoices.

The Court further ordered that the full sum of £17.5 million, which had been paid by Excalibur into the Court as security for the 
Defendants’ costs, be paid out to the Defendants, i.e. £10.7 million to Gulf Keystone and its two subsidiaries and £6.8 million to 
Texas Keystone Inc. A total amount of £16.9 million, net of £0.6 million outstanding legal costs, was received by Gulf Keystone in 
January 2014. This payment has been recognised within administrative expenses as a credit to legal fees in the 31 December 2013 
consolidated Financial statements of Gulf Keystone, which provided all of the funds required to defend the case.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
115

The Court further ordered Excalibur to provide an additional security for the costs of the Company and its two subsidiaries in 
the sum of £3,209,210 and an additional security for the costs of Texas Keystone Inc. in the sum of £2,402,800 by payment into 
Court by 31 December 2013. As at the date of this report, the funds have not been received. Gulf Keystone intends to pursue the 
claimants, and their financial backers, for the full sum. These sums have not been recognised in the 31 December 2013 consolidated 
Financial statements.

As at 31 December 2012, due to uncertainty surrounding the outcome of the legal proceedings and the wide range of potential 
financial outcomes, the ultimate outcome of the legal case could not be reliably estimated and a contingent liability was disclosed. 
Following the outcome of the legal proceedings, the Company no longer has any contingent liability associated with the 
Excalibur claims.

24. Share‑based payments

Bonus shares charge 

Share options charge 

2013 
$’000 

5,281 

7,287 

12,568 

2012 
$’000

15,881

10,018

25,899

During the year $2.9 million (2012: $6.0 million) of the above charge has been capitalised into the cost of the Group’s exploration 
and development assets in accordance with the Group’s accounting policy for E&E assets. 

Equity‑settled share option plan
The Group’s share option plan provides for an exercise price at least equal to the closing market price of the Group shares on the 
date prior to grant. Awards made under the Group’s share option plan have a vesting period of at least three years except for 
awards made under the Long Term Incentive Plan, which vest in equal tranches over a minimum of three years subsequent to the 
achievement of a number of operational and market‑based performance conditions. If options remain unexercised after a period of 
10 years from the date of grant, the options expire. Furthermore, options are forfeited if the employee leaves the Group before the 
options vest.

Outstanding at 1 January  

Granted during the year   

Exercised during the year 

Cancelled during the year 

Forfeited during the year  

Outstanding at 31 December 

Exercisable at 31 December  

2013 

2012

Number of 
share options 
’000 

Weighted 
average 
exercise price 
(in pence) 

41,873 

650 

(4,650) 

(400) 

— 

37,473 

21,827 

94.3 

180.8 

35.5 

250.0 

— 

101.4 

65.2 

Number of 
share options 
’000 

41,795 

650 

(322) 

— 

(250) 

41,873 

22,472 

Weighted 
average 
exercise price 
(in pence)

91.9

250.0

33.0

—

175.0

94.3

55.8

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The weighted average share price at the date of exercise for share options exercised during the period was £1.88. The options 
outstanding at 31 December 2013 had a weighted average exercise price of £1.01, and a weighted average remaining contractual 
life of six years.

In February 2013, 400,000 options that were issued in 2012, with an exercise price of £2.50 per share, were replaced with the 
same number of new options, which were granted with an exercise price of £1.95 per share and an expiry date 20 March 2022. 
The fair value of the modified options has been calculated using the assumptions stated below and has resulted in an immaterial 
incremental charge. During July 2013, a further 250,000 options with market‑based performance conditions attached were granted 
to new employees under the Group’s share option plan. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
116
Notes to the consolidated Financial statements
continued

24. Share‑based payments continued
The inputs into the stochastic (binomial) valuation model were as follows:

Weighted average closing share price on date of grant (in pence)  

Weighted average exercise price of options granted in the year (in pence) 

2013 

180.8 

180.8 

2012

272.6

250.0

The expected volatility was calculated as 85.5% (2012: 85.5%) and has been based on the Company’s share price volatility averaged 
for the five years prior to grant date. 

The expected term of the 2013 awards is two years for the replacement options and three years for the new options (2012: three 
years). The risk free rate was 0.28% for the replacement options and 0.55% for the new options (2012: 0.61%). 

The weighted average fair value of the options granted in 2013 was £0.88 for the replacement options and £0.87 for the newly 
issued options (2012: £1.54). 

The Company has made no dividend payments to date and as there is no expectation of making payments in the immediate future 
the dividend yield variable has been set at zero for all grants. 

Share options outstanding at the end of the year have the following expiry date and exercise prices:

Exercise price
(pence) 

30.00 

30.00 

30.00 

30.00 

30.00 

80.75 

80.75 

75.00 

147.50 

175.00 

175.00 

146.25 

146.25 

146.25 

146.25 

152.50 

146.25 

194.50 

250.00 

194.50 

158.75 

Options (’000)

2013 

1,100 

2,001 

1,350 

250 

1,000 

— 

— 

2012

1,450

2,110

4,391

250

1,650

250

250

18,882 

18,882

250 

250 

250

250

9,440 

9,440

550 

250 

250 

500 

250 

250 

250 

— 

400 

250 

550

250

250

500

250

250

250

400

—

—

37,473 

41,873

Expiry date 

13 February 2018 

24 September 2018 

31 December 2018 

15 March 2019 

30 July 2019 

25 March 2020 

3 June 2020 

23 June 2020 

22 September 2020 

11 October 2020 

6 February 2021 

19 June 2021 

7 July 2021 

14 July 2021 

21 July 2021 

19 September 2021 

26 October 2021 

25 November 2021 

20 March 2022 

20 March 2022 

8 July 2023 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
117

Bonus shares
Through the Company’s Executive Bonus Scheme, the Group has issued bonus shares to certain employees for $nil consideration. 
Bonus shares have been generally awarded over three years, vesting in three equal tranches during those years subject to 
continued employment. These share‑based payments are measured at fair value at the date of grant. The fair value of the shares 
granted is recognised as an employee expense with a corresponding increase in equity. The fair value of the shares granted is the 
market price on the date of the award and is charged to the income statement over the vesting period taking into account the 
terms and conditions upon which the shares were granted. 

As in 2012, no new grants have been made during the year. Awards of 7,125,837 relating to the 2010 and 2011 Executive Bonus 
Schemes, as reported in 2010 and 2011 Annual reports and accounts, vested in February 2013 and were included in the 2012 
Annual report and accounts as they represented bonuses for the period from 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2012. The final 
awards of the 2011 Executive Bonus Scheme have not yet vested at the date of this report.

Balance at 1 January 

Granted during the year   

Forfeited during the year  

Issued during the year 

Balance at 31 December   

Bonus shares (’000)

2013 

3,306 

— 

— 

— 

3,306 

2012

10,474

—

(42)

(7,126)

3,306

Exit Event Awards
On March 2012, the Remuneration Committee recommended that the Company make cash settled awards to certain Executive 
Directors and employees conditional on the occurrence of an Exit Event (as defined below) up to a maximum amount equivalent to 
the value of 10.0 million common shares each at the time of an Exit Event, and that a trustee (the “Exit Event Trustee”) be appointed 
to hold and, subject to the occurrence of an Exit Event, to sell sufficient common shares to satisfy the Exit Event Awards.

On 21 March 2012, the Board approved the Exit Event Awards to certain Executive Directors and employees, subject to the occurrence 
of an Exit Event, equivalent to the value of 2.0 million common shares. The Exit Event Trustee will hold the remaining 8.0 million 
common shares to satisfy any future Exit Event Awards to full‑time employees of the Company and subsidiary companies, subject to the 
occurrence of an Exit Event, with such beneficiaries to be determined in due course. A further award of 0.9 million common shares was 
made to staff in December 2013, with no additional Exit Event Awards made to Directors. The Exit Event Awards expire in March 2017.

An Exit Event envisages a sale of either the Company or a substantial proportion (i.e. more than 50%) of its assets.

These share‑based payments are measured at the fair value of the associated liability at the year end. As at 31 December 2013, 
the fair value of Exit Event Awards was $nil (2012: $nil) based on the market value of the shares and the probability of the Exit Event 
occurring assessed as of that date. 

25. Related party transactions 
Transactions with related parties
During the year, Group companies entered into the following transactions with related parties which are not members of 
the Group.

 Texas Keystone Inc.
Texas Keystone Inc. is a related party of the Group because Mr Todd Kozel, a Director of the Company, is also a Director of Texas 
Keystone, Inc. (“TKI”).

On 21 December 2007, Gulf Keystone Petroleum International Limited (“GKPI”) entered into a Joint Operating Agreement (“the 
Agreement”) for the Shaikan block in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq in which TKI holds a 5% participating interest. TKI initially led 
the pursuit of opportunities in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and participated in the successful signature of the Production Sharing 
Contract for the Shaikan Block. In return for this and TKI’s continuing participation, GKPI was liable to pay for TKI’s share of the costs 
of the Exploration Work Programme and all costs ancillary to the joint operations up until the drilling of the first exploration well. 
TKI elected not to participate in the drilling of the Shaikan‑1 well and as a consequence agreed to assign its interest under the 
contract to GKPI. Currently TKI holds its interest in trust for GKPI pending the transfer of its interest to GKPI.

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
118
Notes to the consolidated Financial statements
continued

25. Related party transactions continued
Directors’ transactions
During 2013, the Company paid for certain personal expenses of $2.4 million (2012: $2.8 million) on behalf of Todd Kozel that 
will be refunded to the Company at its demand. No interest was charged on these amounts. These personal expenses, together 
with the amounts outstanding at 31 December 2012 were settled during the year through a combination of cash payment to 
the Company and by offsetting against amounts otherwise owed to Todd Kozel in respect of the second tranche of his 2012 
bonus award. 

In 2012, the Group issued an interest‑bearing loan of $7.0 million to Todd Kozel and $0.7 million to another Director. The loans were 
taken out in order to meet the Directors’ tax and other liabilities and bore an annual interest charge of 7.5%. All outstanding loan 
balances at 31 December 2012, together with interest due to the date of repayment, were paid in full during 2013.

The individuals concerned, by virtue of their directorships, are related parties to the Company. 

Personal expenses of key management personnel to be refunded to the Group 

Loans to key management personnel   

Interest on loans to key management personnel 

2013 
$’000 

— 

— 

— 

— 

2012 
$’000

2,846

7,710

68

10,624

Remuneration of key management personnel
The remuneration of the Directors and Officers, the key management personnel of the Group, is set out below in aggregate for each 
of the categories specified in IAS 24 Related Party Disclosures. Those identified as key management personnel include the Directors 
of the Company and the following key personnel:

CH Garrett – Vice President Operations 
AR Peart – Legal and Commercial Director 
U Eminkahyagil – Kurdistan Country Manager 
M Messaoudi – Algeria Country Manager

The values below are calculated in accordance with IAS 19 and IFRS 2. 

Short‑term employee benefits 

Other allowances 

Share‑based payment – options 

Share‑based payment – bonus shares   

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

10,264 

17,310

422 

5,234 

4,197 

20,117 

169

8,085

14,305

39,869

Further information about the remuneration of individual Directors is provided in the Directors’ Emoluments section of the report 
of the Remuneration Committee.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
119

26. Financial instruments

Financial assets 

Cash and cash equivalents 

Liquid investments 

Loans and receivables 

Other derivative assets (Level 2) 

Financial liabilities 

Loans and payables 

Other derivative liabilities (Level 2) 

Convertible bonds (Level 1) 

2013 
$’000 

2012 
$’000

81,972 

253,713

— 

30,257 

— 

8,600

19,742

207

112,229 

282,262

100,795 

90,872

— 

168

296,725 

243,495

397,520 

334,535

All loans and payables, except for the convertible bonds, are due to be settled within one year and are classified as current liabilities.

The maturity profile of the convertible bond is disclosed in note 17. The maturity profile of all other financial liabilities is indicated 
by their classification in the balance sheet as “current” or “non‑current”. Further information relevant to the Group’s liquidity position 
is disclosed in the Directors’ report under “Going concern”. 

Fair value hierarchy
In line with IFRS 13 – “Fair Value Measurement” the Group uses the following hierarchy for determining the fair value of financial 
instruments by valuation technique:

 l Level 1: quoted (unadjusted) prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities; 
 l Level 2: other techniques for which all inputs which have a significant effect on the recorded fair value are observable, either 

directly or indirectly; and

 l Level 3: techniques which use inputs which have a significant effect on the recorded value that are not based on observable 

market data.

Capital risk management
The Group manages its capital to ensure that the entities within the Group will be able to continue as going concerns 
while maximising the return to stakeholders through the optimisation of the debt and equity balance. The Group is not 
subject to externally imposed capital requirements. The capital structure of the Group consists of cash, cash equivalents and 
liquid investments, convertible bonds and equity attributable to equity holders of the parent, comprising issued capital, 
reserves and accumulated losses as disclosed in note 20, the Consolidated statement of comprehensive income and the 
Consolidated statement of changes in equity.

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Capital structure
The Group’s Board of Directors reviews the capital structure on a regular basis and makes adjustments to it in light of changes 
in economic conditions. As part of this review, the Board considers the cost of capital and the risks associated with each class 
of capital. 

Until 2012, the Group had financed its business by means of internally generated funds and external share capital. On 18 October 
2012, the Group raised $275.0 million through an issue of convertible bonds. In November 2013, the Group raised further funds 
through a $50m “tap issue” of convertible bonds, which have been consolidated to form a series with the 2012 issue. The net 
proceeds of the issue of the bonds have contributed, and will continue to contribute to, the Group’s move to the large‑scale stage 
development of its Shaikan block and its exploration and appraisal of the Akri‑Bijeel, Ber Bahr and Sheikh Adi blocks. As a result, 
the Group carried a non‑current liability of $296.7 million as at 31 December 2013 (2012: $243.5 million) (see note 17).

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
120
Notes to the consolidated Financial statements
continued

26. Financial instruments continued
Significant accounting policies
Details of the significant accounting policies and methods adopted, including the criteria for recognition, the basis of measurement 
and the basis on which income and expenses are recognised, in respect of each class of financial asset, financial liability and equity 
instrument are disclosed in the Summary of significant accounting policies.

Financial risk management objectives
The Group’s management monitors and manages the financial risks relating to the operations of the Group. These financial risks 
include market risk (including commodity price, currency and fair value interest rate risk), credit risk, liquidity risk and cash flow 
interest rate risk.

The Group has entered into no new currency risk hedges and interest rate hedges during 2013. The Group does not presently 
hedge against other financial risks as the benefit of entering into such agreements is not considered to be significant enough 
as to outweigh the significant cost and administrative burden associated with such hedging contracts. The Group does not use 
derivative financial instruments for speculative purposes.

The risks are closely reviewed by the Board on a regular basis and steps are taken where necessary to ensure these risks 
are minimised.

Market risk
The Group’s activities expose it primarily to the financial risks of changes in foreign currency exchange rates, oil prices and changes 
in interest rates in relation to the Group’s cash balances. The operating currencies of the Group are Great British Pounds (GBP), US 
Dollars (USD), Algerian Dinars (DZD) and Iraqi Dinars (IQD). 

The Group’s exposure to currency risk decreased in 2012 following the issue of the convertible bonds where the proceeds were 
received in USD, which is the main currency for the Group’s transactions, and following the utilisation of sterling funds from 
previous equity raises. Previously, currency hedges were entered into to address foreign currency risk arising when entering into 
funding transactions in GBP. 

There have been no changes to the Group’s exposure to other market risks or any changes to the manner in which the Group 
manages and measures the risk. The Group does not hedge against the effects of movement in oil prices. The risks are monitored 
by the Board on a regular basis.

Foreign currency risk management
The Group undertakes certain transactions denominated in foreign currencies, being any currency other than the functional 
currency of the Group subsidiary concerned. Hence, exposures to exchange rate fluctuations arise. 

At 31 December 2013, a 10% weakening or strengthening of the US dollar against the other currencies in which the Group’s 
monetary assets and monetary liabilities are denominated would not have a material effect on the Group’s net current assets or loss 
before tax. 

Interest rate risk management
The Group’s policy on interest rate management is agreed at the Board level and is reviewed on an ongoing basis. The current 
policy is to maintain a certain amount of funds in the form of cash for short‑term liabilities and have the rest on relatively 
short‑term deposits, usually one month notice to maximise returns and accessibility. The Group entered into liquid investments 
of up to twelve months maturity during 2012, which have matured in 2013, to maximise interest returns. No such investments 
have been entered into during 2013. The Group pays fixed coupon interest rate on the convertible bonds and has no floating rate 
financial liabilities. 

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

121

Interest rate sensitivity analysis
Based on the exposure to the interest rates for cash and cash equivalents at the balance sheet date, a 0.5% increase or decrease 
in interest rates would have resulted in $0.8 million decrease or increase in the Group’s loss for the year. A rate of 0.5% is used as it 
represents management’s assessment of the reasonably possible changes in interest rates.

Credit risk management
Credit risk refers to the risk that a counterparty will default on its contractual obligations resulting in financial loss to the Group. 
Similar to 31 December 2012, as at 31 December 2013, the Group does not have any significant trade receivables outstanding from 
any one customer. 

The credit risk on liquid funds is limited because the counterparties for a significant portion of the cash and cash equivalents at the 
balance sheet date are banks with good credit ratings assigned by international credit‑rating agencies.

Liquidity risk management
Ultimate responsibility for liquidity risk management rests with the Board of Directors. It is the Group’s policy to finance its business 
by means of internally generated funds, external share capital and debt. In common with many exploration companies, the Group 
raises finance for its exploration and appraisal activities in discrete tranches to finance its activities for limited periods. The Group 
seeks to raise further funding as and when required. 

27. Events after the balance sheet date
On 25 March 2014, the Company’s common shares were admitted to the Official List of the UKLA and commenced trading on the 
Main Market of the LSE at 8.00am. Trading in the Company’s common shares on AIM was simultaneously cancelled.

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Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

Broker
Mirabaud Securities LLP
33 Grosvenor Place 
London SW1X 7HY 
United Kingdom

Bankers
Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son Ltd
65 Front Street 
PO Box HM 195 
Hamilton 
HM AX 
Bermuda

Credit Agricole (Suisse) S.A.
Lintheschergasse 15 
8001 Zurich 
Switzerland

Intercontinental Bank of Lebanon
DAR Building 
Ainkawa Road, Mahala 319 
Bakhtyari 
Erbil 
Iraq

Royal Bank of Scotland Plc.
43 Curzon Street 
London W1J 7UF 
United Kingdom

122
Directors, officers and advisers

Registered office
Cumberland House 
9th Floor, 1 Victoria Street 
Hamilton HM11  
Bermuda

Directors
Simon Murray
Non‑Executive Chairman

Todd F Kozel
Chief Executive Officer

John B Gerstenlauer
Chief Operating Officer

Ewen Ainsworth
Finance Director

Jeremy Asher
Non‑Executive Director and 
Deputy Chairman

Andrew Simon
Senior Independent  
Non‑Executive Director

Lord Charles Guthrie
Non‑Executive Director

Mark Hanson
Non‑Executive Director

John Bell
Non‑Executive Director

Philip Dimmock
Non‑Executive Director

Thomas Shull
Non‑Executive Director

Officers
Tony Peart
Business Development Officer

Bermudan Company Secretary
Theresa M Grant 
Coson Corporate Services Ltd
Cumberland House 
9th Floor, 1 Victoria Street 
Hamilton HM11 
Bermuda

Bermudan Legal Advisor
Cox Hallett Wilkinson
Cumberland House 
9th Floor, 1 Victoria Street 
Hamilton HM11 
Bermuda

Algerian Legal Advisor
Thompson & Knight
Cabinet Yassine 
Parc Paradou 
Rue No 3 
Villa 4.5, Hydra 
Algiers 
Algeria

UK Solicitor
Memery Crystal
44 Southampton Buildings 
London WC2A 1AP 
United Kingdom

Auditors
Deloitte LLP 
2 New Street Square 
London EC4A 3BZ 
United Kingdom

Registrars
Computershare Investor Services 
(Jersey) Ltd
Queensway House 
Hilgrove Street 
St Helier 
Jersey JE1 1ES 
Channel Islands

Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited Annual report and accounts 2013

Glossary

AB: Akri-Bijeel

AGM: annual general meeting

BB: Ber Bahr

Bbl: barrel

Bcf: billion cubic feet

Bopd: barrels of oil per day

CBF: competency based framework

CPR: competent persons report

CSOP: company share option plan

CSR: corporate social responsibility

Mmbls: million barrels

Mmboe: million barrels of oil equivalent

MMstb: million stock tank barrels

MNR: Ministry of Natural Resources

NPV: net present value

PF-1: Shaikan production facility -1

PF-2: Shaikan production facility -2 

PSCs: production sharing contracts

SA: Sheikh Adi

SH: Shaikan

DD&A: depreciation, depletion and amortisation

STOIIP: stock tank oil initially in place

E&E: exploration and evaluation

E&P: exploration and production

EBT: employee benefit trust

EWT: extended well test

Excalibur: Excalibur Ventures LLC

FDP: field development plan

TKI: Texas Keystone Inc. 

TSR: total shareholder return

UKLA : United Kingdom Listing Authority

UOP: unit of production

WI: working interest

2C: best estimate of contingent resources 

HSSE: health, safety, security and environment

3C: high estimate of contingent resources

IFRS: international financial reporting standards

2D  Seismic: 2 dimensional data that are acquired by 

KG: kilograms

KRG: Kurdistan Regional Government

KRI: Kurdistan Region of Iraq

LSE: London Stock Exchange

LTIP: long-term incentive plan

reflecting sound from underground strata

3D  Seismic: 3 dimensional data that are acquired by 

reflecting sound from underground strata

2P: proved plus probable reserves

Designed and produced by 

www.lyonsbennett.com

WEST SUSSEX PRINT LTD

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Iraq
Gulf Keystone Petroleum
International Ltd.
3rd Floor
UB Centre
Bakhtyari
Erbil
Kurdistan Region of Iraq

Bermuda
Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd.
Cumberland House
9th Floor, 1 Victoria Street
PO Box 1561
Hamilton HMFX
Bermuda

UK
Gulf Keystone Petroleum (UK) Ltd.
16 Berkeley Street
Mayfair
London W1J 8DZ
United Kingdom

Algeria
Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd.
122 Lotissement Aissat Idir
Chéraga
Alger
Algeria