Roc Oil Company

Roc Oil Company Limited

Company type	Public company (formerly private)
Industry	Petroleum
Founded	1997
Founder	John Doran
Fate	Merged with Anzon Australia in 2008; acquired by Fosun International in 2014
Headquarters	Sydney , Australia
Area served	Australia, Asia, Africa, Middle East
Key people	John Doran (founder and CEO until 2008), Bruce Clement (CEO after 2008)
Products	Oil and gas exploration and production
Owner	Hainan Mining (majority stake acquired by 2023)
Parent	Fosun International (until majority stake sold to Hainan Mining)

Roc Oil Company Limited is an Australian petroleum enterprise based in Sydney. Established in 1997 by John Doran, the firm remained privately held until its public debut on the Australian Securities Exchange in 1999. Expanding its financial footprint, Roc Oil secured a listing on London's Alternative Investment Market in 2004, thus becoming dual-listed. The company merged with Anzon Australia in 2008 and was subsequently acquired by Fosun International in 2014.

Roc Oil has managed oil extraction operations in locations including Mauritania, Angola, Malaysia, and China. In 2013, its production volume reached approximately 2.7 million barrels of oil equivalent.

History

John Doran, the founder and CEO from 1999 until his death in 2008, brought a wealth of expertise in geology and petroleum exploration from his work across Europe, the Middle East, and Australia. Prior to founding Roc Oil, he led Command Petroleum and oversaw its sale to Cairn Energy in 1996.

Founded as a private enterprise in 1996, Roc Oil initially focused on oil and gas exploration and production opportunities throughout Australia, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. It operated without assets or partners until its 1999 listing on the ASX raised $150 million. This capital facilitated acquisitions of oil and gas properties in the East of England and the North Sea, notably the Saltfleetby Gas Field in Lincolnshire, which evolved into one of the largest onshore gas fields in the UK.

Following Doran's unexpected passing at age 62 in mid-2008, Bruce Clement, previously Chief Operating Officer, was promoted to CEO.

Major Capital Raisings and Mergers & Acquisitions

In April 2001, Roc Oil made an unsolicited but amicable offer to purchase a 40% interest in Gulfstream Resources Canada for C$28.3 million; however, this proposal was declined by Gulfstream.

To fuel expansion plans, Roc Oil completed a 3-for-5 rights issue raising $92 million. Later that year, it divested its entire stake in the Saltfleetby Gas Field subsidiary (acquired in 1999) for $110 million. This transaction yielded an estimated after-tax profit of £28.5 million for 2005. The purchaser was Wingas—a joint venture between Wintershall and Gazprom. Funds from this sale were allocated toward developing the Chinguetti Oil Field offshore Mauritania, the Cliff Head Oil Field offshore Western Australia, among other projects.

In June, Roc announced intentions to acquire a 24.5% interest in an Apache-operated Chinese oil field to strengthen its Asian portfolio. Concurrently, it planned to divest assets in the North Sea and Africa—including its 12.5% shareholding in the Blane Oil Field—due to underwhelming drilling outcomes.

Roc pursued acquisition of Anzon Australia’s crude oil production assets to significantly increase reserves. By September, shareholders approved a merger valued at $600 million that resulted in Roc holding a 53.1% controlling interest in Anzon Australia.

Prior to finalizing an anticipated A$800 million merger of equals with Horizon Oil—which aimed at expanding Roc's operations into Malaysia and Papua New Guinea—Fosun International’s subsidiary Transcendent Resources launched an off-market takeover bid. Roc accepted Fosun’s offer of A$474 million (A$0.69 per share), representing a 10% premium over the market price and a 23% premium before public announcement. Fosun sought entry into upstream oil and gas through this acquisition.

In 2017, Roc divested its 42.5% interest in the Cliff Head Oil Field for US$3.75 million to Triangle and Royal Energy to reallocate capital toward exploration activities primarily focused on China.

The following year, Roc purchased a 50% interest in the Ungani Oil Field along with exploration permits from Buru Energy for up to A$84 million—comprising A$60 million for the oil field plus financing 80% of the initial A$25 million exploration expenditure.

In June 2019, Hainan Mining acquired a majority stake of 51% in Roc from Fosun International and subsequently completed acquisition of the remaining 49% by 2023.

On 13 September 2024, Roc Oil Company Pty Limited declared a recommended cash offer directed at shareholders of Tethys Oil AB.

Beibu Gulf

ROC initiated drilling of a side-track appraisal well in the Beibu Gulf area off the coast of China in 2006. Early assessments from the initial discovery well indicated a total output of 5,700 barrels per day of oil across three separate columns.

In 2014, ROC resumed activities in the Beibu Gulf by drilling two exploration wells, successfully encountering oil in one. These wells reached depths as deep as 1,406 metres, penetrating basement granite formations. A side-track drilled to 1,265 metres confirmed oil at the upper section of the Jiaowei formation. CEO Alan Linn highlighted that this find could contribute valuable incremental oil to the broader project. Both wells were subsequently plugged and abandoned by September 2014.

Perth

ROC discovered hydrocarbons at its Dunsborough well in the offshore Perth Basin in 2007, where it holds a 37.5% interest. This well concluded a drilling campaign that began in April 2007; earlier wells named Frankland and Perseverance had identified gas deposits.

The Frankland well was soon plugged and abandoned due to its limited gas discovery, consistent with ROC’s focus on oil production. The company noted that any associated oil quantities were expected to be minimal.

Canning Basin

ROC operates within Western Australia’s Canning Basin at the Ungani Oil Field, which it jointly owns with Buru Energy Limited on a 50/50 basis. The field yields roughly 850 barrels of oil per day (gross) from five active wells. Crude oil is exported through the Wyndham terminal for offshore shipment. Initial drilling took place in 2015, with two additional wells brought online in May 2018.

Cabinda

In 2001, ROC was designated operator for Angola’s Cabinda block, securing a 45% stake in an onshore concession with historic discoveries exceeding 4.5 billion barrels. The fifth well drilled, Coco, uncovered oil and associated gas during testing in 2008.

Despite this, by October 2008 ROC plugged and abandoned its first appraisal well after five out of seven drilled wells failed to yield commercially viable oil quantities. Notwithstanding this challenge, ROC intended to re-engage with the Angola project to conduct further testing of the Coco well to explore future development potential.