Skip Hobbs and Dr. Robert Merrill at the entrance to the offices of CPC Corporation, Taiwan

The week of October 22,  Ammonite’s Bob Merrill and Skip Hobbs travelled to Taipei, Taiwan to present a short course on the due diligence process for international exploration new ventures to the management and staff of the Exploration & Production Business Division of CPC Corporation, Taiwan, the national oil company of Taiwan. The five day visit in Taiwan began with a lecture by Hobbs on global exploration for high risk and high potential plays. Merrill and Hobbs then spent two days lecturing about the geotechnical and business issues of selecting new venture exploration opportunities, establishing a consistent screening methodology, and portfolio optimization. The lectures were illustrated with case studies of companies that have been very successful in the exploration game, and those that have destroyed shareholder value. On the final day in Taiwan, CPC took us to their research laboratory in Miaoli, about a two-hour drive south of Taipei, where we were shown some of CPC’s current exploration activities, looked at core samples from a recent well, and were then taken on a geological and sight-seeing trip into the mountains of central Taiwan. We visited one of Taiwan’s onshore oil and gas fields. Hobbs commented that the visit to Taiwan was one of the most enjoyable business trips of his career due to the graciousness of Ammonite’s Chinese hosts, their interest in what we had to say, and the cultural experience.

One of our many enjoyable cultural experiences in Taipei with the management of the Exploration & Production Business Division of CPC Corporation, Taiwan.

At the CPC Core Laboratory in Miaoli, Taiwan

Our students