| |
NEWS
|
 BENAZIR
BHUTTO TRIBUTE
(London, 28
December 2007)
"My colleagues and I are stunned and
saddened by the brutal murder of former Prime Minister Benazir
Bhutto of Pakistan. The world is a poorer place at her passing.
"
For the past several years, members of the Scribe team in
Washington and in London have provided advice and
counsel to Mrs. Bhutto and her associates in the Pakistan
People's Party. Most of this advice has been in regard to
political issues. I personally met with Mrs. Bhutto on several
occasions in Washington, London, and Dubai. Our relationship
was cordial and Mrs. Bhutto was always gracious, kind, and
intellectually engaged during our conversations.
 In recent days, in a new partnership with Aristotle
International, Inc., Scribe designed and deployed a web site
for use by the Pakistan People's Party for political fundraising
outside of Pakistan. The web site was launched, unfortunately,
barely 24 hours before Mrs. Bhutto's assassination, so its
future is uncertain. It does remain active until further
notice, and may be used as a portal to send messages of sympathy
to Mrs. Bhutto’s political associates.
"BiBi was more than a client. She was a friend and she
will be
impossible to forget. We wish to convey our
sincere condolences
to her family, her colleagues, and
the people of Pakistan."
-- Joseph Szlavik, President
Benazir Bhutto and Anthony Mc-Call
Judson,
from the London office
OILFIELDS
MAKE PROGRESS IN OFFSHORE NIGERIAN WATERS
(London, 18 December 2007) Via PR Newswire -- Energy
Equity Resources (EER), the London-based upstream oil and gas
company, announces imminent drilling of a further appraisal well on
the growing Aje Field, in offshore Nigerian waters. Aje-4 well is
located in Oil Mining Lease (OML) 113, 24 kms from the coast in
western Nigeria, on the Benin border. This is 64 kms from Lagos and
close to the West Africa Pipeline - only 12 kms away.
The Aje field was discovered in 1996 and revealed oil and gas
reservoirs, of Cretaceous age, in water depths of 100 to over 1,500
metres. A second and third well were later drilled there, in 1997
and 2005 respectively. All three wells have intersected
hydrocarbons. Click here for full story.
NUCLEAR
DETECTIVES
 (London,
February 2007)
The mysterious death in London of
the Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko was a story that
could have come from a spy novel. But it happened - and has
still not been fully explained.
In a two-part
series, first broadcast in February 2007, the BBC World Service
examined the work of scientists acting as nuclear detectives
seeking to identify and control the spread of radioactive
materials.
Scribe’s
Senior Vice-President for Defence & Homeland Security, Andrew
Koch, was interviewed for the programme. He spoke of Iran's
early efforts to produce fissile material and subsequent
attempts to hide their research from the International Atomic
Energy Agency.
Click
here for the interview. |
|
|
SCRIBE
UK SPONSORS CHARITY LAUNCH IN HOUSE OF LORDS
 (London,
1 July 2006)
Scribe UK sponsored a charity launch yesterday held in the House of
Lords
and
hosted by Crossbench peer and Deputy Leader, Baroness Cox. It was
Chelsea and Westminster Hospital’s official launch for a new medical
charity, BirthLink.
Scribe UK’s Director of Communications, Anthony McCall-Judson,
joined Caroline Cox, several speakers and invited guests for a
presentation on BirthLink’s ground-breaking maternal and neo-natal
healthcare work in developing countries, including Africa and the
South Caucasus, where it has already made an impact.
A reception was held afterwards opposite the Houses of Parliament,
in the Abbey Gardens, with catering sponsored by Scribe UK. Notably
exotic canapés and finger food were provided by celebrity chef Jamie
Oliver’s company.
Anthony McCall-Judson commented, “It’s appropriate for us to help a
charitable event taking place in the heart of Westminster, where so
much of our time is spent and our professional work is done. But
today we put aside fine words and lofty sentiments – the stuff of
Westminster life – and swap them for practical assistance”. He then
proposed a toast to BirthLink and its work, which was
enthusiastically endorsed by all present.
Guests were drawn from the media, not-for-profit organisations,
London embassies, government officials and interested multinational
corporations.
Andrew Koch,
Scribe’s senior security specialist was quoted by Agence France
Presse about Iran's ability to disrupt shipping through the Straits
of Hormuz – thanks to its newly-purchased sophisticated weaponry and
the influx of petrodollars into the country. The report was used
from The Times of London to the Jang Group of Newspapers, Pakistan.
IRAN
RAISES SPECTRE OF DAMAGE TO WORLD’S OIL SHIPPING
 (London, 6 April 2006, AFP)
Amid concern over Iran’s nuclear ambitions, analysts are worried it
could resort t o a wide range of weapons and tactics to disrupt the
world’s busiest oil shipping lanes, if armed conflict erupts with
the United States.
Because its shores line the narrow Straits of Hormuz, Iran could
quickly hit both military and commercial shipping with missiles
launched from land, air or sea as well as cripple maritime traffic
with mines or sunken ships, they said. Despite a technological
edge, US and allied navies would have less time to react to such
threats in the lanes between the Gulf and the Indian Ocean than in,
say, neighbouring Iraq, Washington-based analyst Andrew Koch said.
"You don’t have a lot of manoeuvring room," Koch, senior vice
president for defence and homeland security at Scribe Strategies and
Advisors, told AFP. Iran is also better armed than it was during
the 1987 tanker war, at the height of the Iran-Iraq conflict, when
it was able to disrupt shipping with mines and missiles and raise
oil prices, Koch and other analysts said.
"There is a concern that Iran is flush with a lot of oil cash," Koch
said. "They are buying more and more sophisticated weapons."
In
what analysts called serious "sabre-rattling," Iran said during war
games in the Gulf this week that it had test-fired a new land-to-sea
missile as well as a rocket torpedo. World oil prices leapt towards
68.0 dollars per barrel on Monday as traders fretted over tensions
in both Iran and Nigeria, another major crude producer.
While US military experts finish analysing data on the weapons, Koch
said Iran can resort to other choices, including sinking some of its
own ships to block the Straits or mounting "swarms" of small missile
boats. "Absolutely, they have the ability to do that (block
shipping) today," he said.
PRESS RELEASES
UGANDAN
PRESIDENT OPENS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SUMMIT IN LONDON
(LONDON,
Sunday, 3
June 2007)
-- The President of Uganda and his Foreign Minister will be
opening a major business gathering on Monday, 4 June 2007 at
London’s Marlborough House in Pall Mall, headquarters of the
Commonwealth Secretariat.
 This
is the latest in of a series of international trade and investment
initiatives organised by the Commonwealth Business Council, (CBC) to
promote Uganda as an inward investment hub in East Africa, in the
lead-up to November’s opening of the main Commonwealth summit (CHOGM)
in Kampala by HM the Queen.
H.E.
President Yoweri Museveni and Hon. Min. Sam Kutesa will address the
CBC’s Uganda Investment Round Table on Monday, which will be opened
by Uganda’s High Commissioner, HE Mrs Joan Rwabyomere. Leading
businessmen from Uganda will also offer their insights and comments,
including
Nick Mbuvi
of Barclays Uganda,
Aidan Heavey
of Tullow Oil and
Baker Magunda
of East African Breweries.
The private and public sectors in Uganda are
collaborating in a joint search for fast-track solutions, under the
aegis of the Commonwealth. Objectives include building bilateral
trade between Commonwealth countries, especially within Africa -- by
simplifying banking procedures, reducing the ‘digital divide’, and
minimizing bureaucratic obstacles, explained Dr. Mohan Kaul,
Director General of CBC.
Just as the potential of the mobile phone has been
seized on in Africa and successfully transformed large areas of the
informal private sector, so the CBC’s focus is on finding other
‘keys’ to unlock more economic potential, with low-cost, high impact
ideas.
“Examples of successful initiatives to date” said
Foreign Minister Kutesa, “are an IT park planned for Entebbe, near
our capital Kampala. It will act as an IT centre for East Africa,
creating jobs and, we hope, many new opportunities -- locally and
internationally. In the banking sector”, he added, “innovations
like ATM cash machines will be added to post offices across Uganda,
introducing more modern and time-saving banking practices”.
For more information contact: Mumtaz Kassam, Ugandan
High Commission, 020 7839 5783; Ishara Bhasi, Commonwealth Business
Council, 020 7024 8200; or Anthony McCall-Judson, Scribe Strategies
& Advisors, 020 7969 2759 or 07717 682117.
Issued on behalf of the High Commission of the
Republic of Uganda, Uganda House, 58-59 Trafalgar Square, London
WC2N 5DX.
www.ugandahighcommission.co.uk
ENERGY EQUITY RESOURCES
BUILDS PORTFOLIO OF ENERGY ASSETS
(London, 29 June 2006) Energy Equity Resources (EER), the Anglo-Norwegian
energy company, has built a steady portfolio of oil and energy assets
since its formation in 2003, with a current focus on the Middle East
and Africa. While the company's core interests are in exploration
and production worldwide, these regions have offered exceptional opportunities
to date.
Significant
developments have been seen in these energy markets and EER now stands
poised to obtain the best returns on these assets. The company has
been most active to date in Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe (see footnote),
Equatorial Guinea and Angola; however, other assets are also under
development, including Gabon, Mauritania, Libya, Sudan and Egypt.
EER
has built strategic alliances and relationships with governments and
commercial partners in these countries that maximize benefits -- to
the host countries and to the commercial partners. Key factors include
a proven management team, ability to act quickly and to navigate effectively
through host countries' bureaucracies, plus a real commitment to indigenous
development in its areas of operation. At the same time, EER aims
to add competitive advantage by using some of the most innovative
exploration technologies currently available, allowing it to effectively
identify and qualify deep-water prospects.
"There
has been impressive progress to report over the last year", commented
Olav Eimstad, EER's Norwegian Chairman, "and we're proud that
the alliances we are building are soundly-based and will benefit all
the parties involved. There will be further developments for us to
announce before long," he added, "which will increase the
company's influence and add to our portfolio of assets.
"We
feel EER's competitive advantage can make a real difference to our
partners -- whether governments or commercial operators. Our strengths
are appreciated, we believe, which is why we have seen steady consolidation
and growth".
The
most recent joint venture to be announced is with London-based mining
group Mwana Africa plc, which will see a number of African assets
developed jointly. Two of these have already had a memorandum of understanding
signed following detailed negotiations.
Osamede
Okhomina, EER's Nigerian Senior Vice-President for Business Development,
is delighted at the recent alliance with Mwana, an AIM-quoted company,
with operations in Ghana, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zimbabwe.
"This is an important alliance for us", he explained, "which
we believe will add significant regional influence to our operations.
Our joint venture with Mwana, which is one of equal partners, will
complement both companies and allow solid growth in the African market,
whose energy sector has seen a growing number of important opportunities
recently. We have high hopes that all parties involved can benefit
from this joint venture".
Footnote to editors:
-
EER was part of the winning consortium for Block 1 in the Joint Development
Zone (JDZ) of Nigeria / Sao Tome and Principe, together with Chevron
and Exxon Mobil; also for Block 3 in this JDZ, together with Anadarko
and others.
-
Energy Equity Resources was established in August 2003 in Norway.
Its principal operating offices are in Guildford, United Kingdom.
- Energy
Equity Resources, 1 Farnham Road, Guildford, Surrey GU2 4RG, United
Kingdom.
SCRIBE
STRATEGIES ENTERS STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP WITH STRIX CONSULTANCY
(Washington, 19 June 2006) Scribe Strategies and Advisors is pleased
to announce that it has joined forces with the Strix Consultancy Ltd,
a London-based firm active in providing editorial and media services
to clients in the defence and aerospace industries.
Together, the two firms are able to offer a comprehensive approach
for defence and national security clients—from strategic planning
advice and market studies to business development implementation,
marketing and public relations assistance.
The Strix Consultancy is a full-spectrum editorial and media services
firm that assists its clients in reaching target audiences in a highly
effective and efficient manner. Its core capabilities include marketing
communications advice, market intelligence studies, provision of turnkey
publication services for internal and external audiences, ghost writing
corporate marketing materials, and media support.
Scribe Strategies & Advisors is a multi-disciplinary consulting,
government relations, and communications firm with a wide range of
substantive expertise in defence consulting, policy analysis, risk
management, and media relations.
The partnership will offer clients of both companies a broader array
of services. Strix will provide editorial, public relations, and branding
support while Scribe will contribute strategic planning, market research,
and business development expertise.
For more information on Strix Consultancy, please visit: www.thestrixgroup.com
For more information on Scribe Strategies, please visit: www.scribeus.com
 Return
to Top
|
|
