I really pity the Emcee. He must be wondering why he did this stupid thing. Now have ice bags on his arse and trying to cool it.

EPIC FAIL: Watch How The Emcee Interrupts Rosmah’s Speech

Malaysia’s First Lady, Rosmah Mansor was left surprised when an emcee accidentally cut in through her speech thinking that she had finished.
She was speaking at an appreciation dinner and the appointment of committee members of the 2017 Malaysian Chinese Women Entrepreneurs Association (MCWEA) in conjunction with World Women’s Day in KL last Thursday.
The incident happened when the emcee thought she had ended her speech and started to thank her, he later apologized for the interruption.
Despite being cut off so suddenly, Rosmah kept her cool and remained calm. Rosmah also played it off nicely and accompanied by a light-hearted laugh, subtly telling the emcee that she wasn’t done with her speech.
Watch the hilarious video below:

Public Service announcement - Beware Bangkok Airport Duty Free Scam

Public Service announcement - Beware Bangkok Airport Duty Free Scam

This was forward by someone. Just be careful and safe. Thailand is a great place to holiday and the people are real friendly

Recently, an Indian was detained in Bangkok for stealing a box of cigarettes in a duty-free shop in Bangkok International Airport . He had paid for chocolates and a carton of cigarettes. The cashier put a packet of cigarettes extra into his bag and he thought it was a free pack. He was arrested for shop-lifting and the Thai Police extortion price was 30,000 Baht for his release. He spent two nights in jail and paid 500 Baht for an air-conditioned cell, 200-300 baht for each visitor and 11,000 baht for his final release. The Police shared the money in front of his eyes. On top of that, he was charged in court and fined 2,000 baht by the magistrate and handcuffed and escorted to his plane. His passport was stamped "Thief". While there, his relatives requested help from the Indian Embassy and were told that embassy is helpless. Many Asians are victimized similarly daily and letters and phone-calls to Thai authorities are ignored. He shared a cell with a Singaporean the first night who paid 60,000 baht for his release. The second night was a Malaysian national who paid 70,000 baht. Mind you this was not in a shanty shop in downtown Bangkok but in a duty free shop at the Bangkok Int'l Airport . BE WARNED. The above is 100% correct information because Mr Rajan Khera's customer from India faced exactly the same scenario mentioned above when he was in transit at Bangkok Int'l Airport coming to Taipei. Someone who went through the same ordeal in Dubai . He bought stuff at the Duty Free upon entering. The girl at Duty Free put a bottle of cologne in his shopping bag (he did not even see it happen). He was arrested for stealing (this is before he even picked up his luggage). He sat at the airport jail where he was harassed for the whole day. NO FOOD, NO WATER for one day and only after he paid a fine (bribe of US 500...). That is all the cash he had in his pocket at the time. They let him go.!! These are scams happening all over the place. Please BE CAREFUL! All of this is pre-planned and the people who work at the airport know whom to target. Unbelievable but apply caution.... the duty free employees intentionally put extra items to Trap the passengers..... ALWAYS TAKE A RECEIPT FOR ANY FREE GIFT THAT THE DUTY FREE SHOP GIVES. PLEASE BE CAREFUL AND WATCHFUL.... PLZ DO NOT HURRY. MAKE SURE to CHECK WHEN YOU ARE BEING ' BILLED '...AND ...ALSO WHEN THE ITEMS ARE 'PACKED ' IN INTERNATIONAL AIR PORTS (DUTY FREE SHOPS). Please Pass this info to Others. Before Holiday season.... Or... Before the go on Official Duties ABROAD...Anywhere across the WORLD. You may save someone a

Harvard Scientist Proposing Mysterious Power Source Fueling Alien Spacecraft

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) captured this image of an M5.7 class flare on May 3, 2013 at 1:30 p.m. EDT. (Rex Features via AP Images)

A Harvard scientist is speculating mysterious fast radio bursts, which generate as much energy as 500 million suns, could be powering alien probes in distant galaxies, Science Alert is reporting.

The theory comes from Professor Avi Loeb of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.

"Fast radio bursts are exceedingly bright given their short duration and origin at great distances, and we haven't identified a possible natural source with any confidence," Loeb said in a statement by the center. "An artificial origin is worth contemplating and checking."

Loeb admitted that this work is speculative, the center noted.

Asked whether he actually is convinced fast radio bursts are due to aliens, he said, "Science isn't a matter of belief, it's a matter of evidence. Deciding what's likely ahead of time limits the possibilities. It's worth putting ideas out there and letting the data be the judge."

Analyzing these powerful bursts have been difficult since they last less than 5 milliseconds. But six were detected coming from a faint dwarf galaxy more than 3 billion light-years from Earth, Science Alert noted.

Loeb and his team raised the possibility that the bursts were coming from a giant radio transmitter on a distant planet that beams the signals across the universe.

The amount of power involved would be sufficient to push a payload of a million tons, or about 20 times the largest cruise ships on Earth, the center reported.

"That's big enough to carry living passengers across interstellar or even intergalactic distances," added fellow researcher Mansavi Lingam of Harvard University.

NASA Unveils Deep Space Gateway Plan to Aid Space Travel

NASA officials are aiming to build an moon-orbiting spaceport to serve as a gateway for missions to Mars and the lunar surface – replacing an Obama administration plan to use an asteroid as a stepping stone for exploration, USA Today reported.

The agency has spent the past six years building a Space Launch System rocket, but has not provided much detail about how the SLS booster would be used for Mars exploration – until Tuesday when the agency's chief of human spaceflight, Bill Gerstenmaier, briefed the agency's advisory council on tentative plans for the first dozen launches of the rocket, Ars Technica reported.

Dubbed Deep Space Gateway, the new program would build a mini space station that would be equipped with a small habitat for astronauts, docking capability, an airlock, and would be serviced by logistics modules to enable research, USA Today reported.

"I envision different partners, both international and commercial, contributing to the gateway and using it in a variety of ways with a system that can move to different orbits to enable a variety of missions," Gerstenmaier said in a news release, USA Today reported.

USA Today reported the new program makes no mention of an Obama administration asteroid plan for travel to Mars; President Donald Trump's 2018 budget cancels the Asteroid Redirect Mission, USA Today reported.

Latest in North Korea-Malaysia meltdown: Hostage taking?

Read more here North Korea - Malaysia meltdown

Perhaps no greater example of diplomatic cutting of noses to spite faces has ever emerged than the rapidly collapsing ties between North Korea and Malaysia. After Pyongyang ordered the assassination of the ne’er-do-well brother of the dictator in Kuala Lumpur using a banned nerve agent, the two countries have expelled each other’s ambassadors, ending any practical diplomatic relations. North Korea has escalated the row even further by Blocking the exit of Malaysian nationals,  Malaysia says amounts to hostage-taking:

North Korea barred Malaysians from leaving the country on Tuesday, sparking tit-for-tat action by Malaysia, as police investigating the murder of Kim Jong Nam in Kuala Lumpur sought to question three men hiding in the North Korean embassy.

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak accused North Korea of “effectively holding our citizens hostage” and held an emergency meeting of his National Security Council.

The moves underscored the dramatic deterioration in ties with one of North Korea’s few friends outside China since the murder of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s estranged half-brother at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Feb. 13.

Malaysia returned the favor after North Korea’s action, in line with the usual reciprocal action involving diplomatic relations. The two nations are on a trajectory toward war after decades of a rather close alignment, so much so that visa-free travel was possible between the two countries until last month’s clumsy and brutal assassination of Kim Jong-nam, the dissipated older brother of Kim Jong-un.

Just how stupid was this operation? The UN has concluded that Pyongyang used its close relations with Malaysia as  a major artery  for hard currency and evasion of international sanctions:

Malaysia, where VX nerve agent was used in the murder of Kim Jong Un’s half-brother, is one of the many transit points where, the report says, foreign nationals and entities conduct business through multinational financial centers that conceal financial activity by North Korea.

If that’s the case, why assassinate Kim Jong-nam there, and use a toxin that immediately points back to a state actor in the plot? (Why bother targeting Jong-nam at all is a question that will almost certainly never be satisfactorily answered, either.) There are numerous ways to kill a man without drawing attention to the method itself, including the option of making it look like a robbery gone bad. The Kim regime clearly wanted to send a message, but what message and to whom?

Even the experts are scratching their heads over this one:

Euan Graham, Director, International Security at the Lowy Institute in Sydney, called the latest events “a classic own goal of North Korea’s making”, triggered “by the most outrageous public murder than you can image, using a chemical weapon in a crowded international airport.

“You’d have to go back a long way for this kind of wholesale diplomatic meltdown.”

Hostage taking takes the meltdown to a new level. Even apart from the potential for war that exists when nations hold citizens of another sovereignty, it also eliminates any hope the Kim regime might have of regaining control over its sanctions-evasion channels in Malaysia for some time to come. Malaysia will likely seize businesses and assets of North Koreans in Malaysia if Pyongyang doesn’t come to its diplomatic senses soon, and it’s a sure bet that North Koreans won’t have the same range of action in Malaysia in the foreseeable future. Even if the Malaysia-North Korea crisis doesn’t go hot, it’s going to be a very, very cold relationship for a long time to come.

The Kim regime has burned its bridges with one of its few friends for no discernible rational reason. Its remaining friends have to be watching this and re-evaluating their own relationships with this gangster regime, including China.

Big John' Is About To Register Northern Drilling... What Does It Mean For Seadrill?

More than their assets. Share value in the minus. Advice sell fast and sell when can as the bottom lid of Seadrill as company is going to fall off very soon. This is going to be the biggest bankruptcy of oil and gas drilling contractor and Ensco International For Seadrill and their shareholders only very Big trouble and worthless shares as Seadrill liabilities are is not that far off also , maybe 1 or 2 years away if this continue getting bad in the oil industry

Summary

John Fredriksen is planning to register a brand new offshore drilling company in Norway called Northern Drilling.

Can we draw a parallel with what John Fredriksen did with Frontline back in 2012?

John Fredriksen is the most powerful piece of the puzzle, and it is not a sound idea to dismiss his influence at this stage of the game.M. John Fredriksen. Courtesy: Bloomberg

This article is an update of my preceding article on Seadrill published on March 15, 2017.

Investment Thesis:

As a reminder, Seadrill (NYSE:SDRL) is undergoing a $14 billion restructuring of debt and liabilities. According to Per Wulff, CEO, those negotiations have taken longer than expected.

As a reminder, Per Wullf announced last year that the company was about to announce "some sort of agreement" with the 42 banks involved with the company. It was first expected in early January but has been pushed now to April.

M. Mark Morris, CFO, said in the 3Q'16 conference call the following:

Our objective is and remains to have a comprehensive package that will provide a long-term solution to address our capital structure needs while positioning us for a recovery in the industry...

We have a strong preference for a consensual solution, but given the number of parties involved, we have also developed contingency plans should the need arise. We are confident about our business and our recovery for this sector.

Again, Mark Morris indicated in the 4Q'16 conference call:

Regarding our restructuring, our objective is to find a solution that bridges us to a recovery in the sector, achieves a sustainable capital structure, and protects value for our stakeholders. We've been engaged in extensive discussions with our lenders and potential new investors, including Hemen, regarding the terms of a comprehensive restructuring.

These discussions have also included the ad hoc committee of bondholders. While the ad hoc committee is not presently restricted, they have indicated a willingness to become restricted again in the future.

We currently believe that material additional amendments to the terms of the proposed bank amendments will be necessary to raise the new capital. Feedback from stakeholders and potential new investors also indicates that a comprehensive and consensual agreement will likely require conversion of our bonds to equity.

Under such circumstances, the new capital raise and any resulting debt conversion would likely result in substantial dilution to our shareholders and potential losses for other financial stakeholders.

It's ultimately going to come down to a large issuance of equity and Mark Morris is clear about that. The question is how many shares and what will happen to SDRL?

Seadrill said in February that it would be challenging to meet an April 30 deadline for talks with banks and bondholders to yield a solution.

The company alluded that it could be forced to file chapter 11. However, it is possible that Seadrill may ask for more time to complete a deal without being forced to file for bankruptcy protection?

Meanwhile, John Fredriksen is planning to register a brand new offshore drilling company in Norway, as early as next week according to Bloomberg. Northern Drilling is the name of the new company.

Northern Drilling, which is purely an investment company and not a rig operator, will be registered on the Norwegian over-the-counter market -- making shares available to securities dealers -- and a full public listing on the Oslo stock exchange is planned for later this year, a person familiar with the matter said Friday. Fredriksen has raised about $230 million in capital for the company, about half of which he contributed himself, the person said.

Northern Drilling has been set up after John Fredriksen bought up to two completed semi-submersible drilling rigs from South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI), using his private Cyprus company, Seatankers.

1. The 6th generation Semi-submersible West Mira, firm deal to buy the rig. John Fredriksen bought the rig for $365 million as part of an settlement. This is approximately 44% discount from the original $650 million rig cost.
2. Also John Fredriksen secured an option to buy the Semi-submersible Bollsta Dolphin for about $400 million. Option runs till 2019. The rig was also cancelled by Fred Olsen Energy due to delays. The yard will be responsible for stacking the rig in the meantime.

Bloomberg explained:

Northern Drilling will leave commercial and technical management of any rigs it owns to Seadrill, which had originally ordered the West Mira rig before canceling the contract. The objective is for Northern Drilling to sell its rigs at a profit in the future, and the intention is to give Seadrill the opportunity to match any future offer to acquire them, the person said.

Can we draw a parallel with what John Fredriksen did with Frontline?

On September 2012, John Frederiksen was also buying as he navigated the worst shipping market since the 70's. He invested $7 billion in 18 rigs and $4 billion in about four dozen new vessels to transport liquefied natural gas, gasoline, propane and other fuels.

John Frederiksen said in 2012, in a rare interview:

Basically, I'm a trader, I think as we are sitting here we are very close to the bottom of the market, and I like to be a buyer at the bottom. This is the game.

He could have said these exact same words recently as well.

Frontline's shares took off, returning an average of 70% every year from 1999 to 2007.

Unfortunately, the wheel of fortune turned against Frontline and in December 2011, John Fredriksen rescued his tanker company by splitting it up in two and shifting 11 of his best ships and $666 million in debt, into a new firm called Frontline 2012 Ltd.

Finally, On July 1, 2015, Frontline Ltd. (NYSE:FRO) and Frontline 2012 Ltd. agree to merge. Pursuant to the Merger Agreement, one share in Frontline 2012 Ltd., gave the holder the right to receive 2.55 shares in Frontline.

In December 2016, FRO closed a $100 million shares offering.

Due to very strong demand, the Company's largest shareholder, Hemen Holding Ltd. ("Hemen"), has agreed to be allocated 1,342,281 New Shares in the Offering, corresponding to 10 per cent of the Offering. Hemen will own an aggregate of 82,145,703 shares in the Company upon completion of the Offering, equalling approximately 48.4 per cent of the Company's shares and votes.

Hemen holding (John Fredriksen) owns also 119,097,583 shares or 24.15% of SDRL.

Finally Bloomberg said:

Fredriksen's move to also comes just months after his former top adviser, Tor Olav Troim, with whom he had a falling out in 2014, set up his own rig company, Borr Drilling Ltd. Borr has bought two jack-up rigs, registered in the OTC system and is reported to be close to buying 15 more machines from Transocean Ltd. for $1.2 billion.

I commented recently on the Borr Drilling - Transocean (NYSE:RIG) potential deal. Please click here.

Conclusion:

John Fredriksen is the most powerful piece of the puzzle, and it is not a sound idea to dismiss his influence at this stage of the game.

M. Morris said:

We have a strong preference for a consensual solution, but given the number of parties involved, we have also developed contingency plans should the need arise.

It leaves the door open to many different alternatives, and I am certain that "Big John" will surprise again.

Another not so good news for the Oil and Gas Industry - Ocean Rig Files For Bankruptcy

The Oil and Gas have never seen a slump as bad as this and lasting that long with no end in sight. Reasons greed and power led Oil and Gas industry to this worst ever slump

OPEC especially felt that they were at the height of their power and could do no wrong. OPEC with Saudi goading, flooded crude oil in excess of 10 million barrels of oil per day way above the daily crude oil demand to force the emerging Shale Oil sands industry in North America to fold .This was a serious miscalculations as the Oil Shale sand players proved resilient and cutting down on excess to stay leaner meaner stronger and profitable

OPEC saw slump in their revenue and with Oil Shale sand not giving in and tried to reverse the oversupply by cutting the supply of Crude oil produces and Shale oil sand smelling blood kept on pumping more and more oil as OPEC started cutting production

OPEC and Shale Oil are now in a total war with no prisoners taken war. OPEC will be the biggest loser as they only have oil but no expertize by themselves to produce oil and where else the western are finding innovative ways to produce oil at cheaper prices and soon the cost to pump a barrel of OPEC oil compared to Shale oil will be minimal

Oil rig owners did not keep an eye on long term rig demand and also did not learn from the oil boom and cycle in the past. The drilling companies started building rigs at furious speed and the rig market was oversupplied by nearly 70% more rigs than demand for the rigs. The rigs were expensive and need high day rates to pay off bank loans, pay high wages to crew and also pay high dividends to their shareholders. When the bottom fell over on the Rig day rates, these companies had debts in excess of the assets and also no much liquidity to weather the low day dates. This started with furious under cutting of day rates to land contracts for the rigs.

When industry picks up and when and if, do not expect the oil workers to flood back as they have suffered enough and now have secured jobs in other industry will not be flocking back unless the wages are high. To pay the worker high wages the rig day rates and the service contracts have to be high.

The industry will correct itself when fewer rigs are ready for work due to the lack of workers, the day rates will go up slow and steady. Recovery if there is will only start from 2021 onwards when the oil companies can expect high returns on their investments

80% of the workers who were retrenched, this was their first oil boom and bust cycled and a bad one. Do not expect all to return and only those who will return will be the workers who do not have jobs or unhappy with their present jobs. Rate of return maybe 30 to 40% of the old work force. Oil field wages will go up and up starting 2019 onwards

Shipyards became too greedy and started building rigs and an explosive pace and built over 200 new offshore rigs in the last 10 years and adding to the oversupply. Rigs were built by shipyard with no buyers in anticipation that buyers will be buying the rigs sooner than later. That was boom time and now with no buyers for these partly or fully built rigs, the shipyards are also in big financial mess and have lay off nearly 80% of their work force. No recovery for rig building until 2014 or later. Workers will need to be retrained as these workers who are building rigs in the future will be new workers with no experience in rig building.

It was all a matter of greed and power and Oil and Gas producing countries and companies can blame no one but themselves

Summary

As expected, Ocean Rig filed for bankruptcy.

Management will get 9.5% of new equity.

Common shareholders will get next to nothing.

Finally, the saga is over. Ocean Rig (NASDAQ:ORIG) filed for bankruptcy protection. In my previous article on the topic, I stated that the wipeout was inevitable for the common equity. Now these words received factual confirmation.

Ocean Rig entered into an agreement with creditors. According to the agreement, the company will be deleveraged by an exchange of $3.69 billion principal amount of debt for 1) new equity of the company, 2) approximately $288 million of cash, and 3) $450 million of new secured debt.

The company stated that existing shareholders will be diluted to an insignificant amount of post-restructuring equity of the company. Interestingly, 9.5% of new equity will be reserved under a new management equity plan.

This means that George Economou will be able to save his stake in Ocean Rig despite bankruptcy. Although painful, this is an invaluable experience for investors which teaches them to watch management incentives closely and to not automatically expect that management interests are aligned with interests of common shareholders.

You do not need a crystal ball to forecast the market's reaction - Ocean Rig's chart is available to everyone:

There is no need to gamble on Ocean Rig unless you are a day trader trying to profit from current volatility. The company will end up being owned by creditors and management. The "insignificant amount" mentioned by Ocean Rig in its recent filing will be truly insignificant, practically close to zero.

The story ends for the current Ocean Rig stock, but does not end for the company or for the industry. Shareholders of other drillers should watch this development closely because it is a major event for the whole offshore drilling industry.

Ocean Rig will emerge from bankruptcy as a much stronger competitor with a fleet of modern rigs. This will put additional pressure on the floater segment. Floater-oriented drillers are Diamond Offshore Drilling (NYSE:DO) and Transocean (NYSE:RIG), which recently signed a letter of intent to sell its jack-up fleet to Borr Drilling. Noble Corp. (NYSE:NE), Rowan (NYSE:RDC), Ensco (NYSE:ESV) and Atwood Oceanics (NYSE:ATW) also have floater presence. The Ocean Rig restructuring will have a significant impact on Atwood Oceanics, which has problems with the backlog and whose jack-up fleet mostly sits without work.

I expect that upcoming Pacific Drilling (NYSE:PACD) restructuring will end similarly for common shareholders. If Pacific Drilling reaches an agreement with creditors as planned, the floater segment will be put under more pressure due to the presence of a debt-free player with modern rigs. Only the outcome of Seadrill's (NYSE:SDRL) restructuring is unclear and there is still possibility that the company will remain leveraged after restructuring.

Bottom line

Ocean Rig opens the "restructuring season". Pacific Drilling and Seadrill will follow. If you feel the urge to gamble, stick to day trading offshore drilling stocks. Action that is called "investing" is now limited to the potential survivor group - Diamond Offshore, Rowan, Ensco, Transocean and Noble Corp.