Pacific Energy Development Announces Closing of Merger With Blast Energy Services

August 03, 2012 09:50 AM Eastern Daylight Time

DANVILLE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pacific Energy Development Corp., a privately-held energy company focused on the acquisition and development of proven, producing shale oil and gas plays in the U.S. and participating in the high growth energy shale oil and gas opportunities in Pacific Rim Countries (“PEDCO”), today announced the closing of its merger, effective July 27, 2012, with Blast Energy Services, Inc. (“Blast”), a U.S. publicly-traded operating oil and gas company.

Effective August 3, 2012, the merged company’s stock ticker has been temporarily changed to BESVD.OB (formerly “BESV.OB”), and continues to trade on the OTC Bulletin Board securities market. A new stock symbol will be assigned and announced within 20 business days.

As a result of the merger, PEDCO merged into a wholly-owned subsidiary of Blast, with PEDCO remaining as the surviving company and wholly-owned subsidiary of Blast, and Blast changed its name to “PEDEVCO Corp.”, with the newly combined company now doing business as “Pacific Energy Development.”

Blast was engaged in the exploration and production of petroleum resources in the U.S. and the development and commercialization of a patented applied fluid jetting down-hole stimulation technology (AFJ).

Frank C. Ingriselli, the new Chairman and CEO of Pacific Energy Development, stated, “We are very pleased with the closing of the merger with Blast and having our stock publicly-traded on the OTC exchange. This event is another key milestone among many exciting developments for the company. These include: the recent successful drilling, discovery and initial production of oil and gas from at our first well (the FFT2H well) in our Niobrara, Colorado Asset; the recently announced successful drilling of our third well (Peeler EFS #1H) in our Eagle Ford Asset with initial production flow rates of 1,072 bopd and 1.137 mmcfgpd (1,262 BOEPD), as tested and disclosed by our operating partner, Texon Petroleum; and the successful closing of PEDCO’s Series A Preferred stock financing offering, which was oversubscribed and raised more than $11.5 million.”

Mr. Ingriselli added, “In addition to enhancing our asset portfolio with additional production, developmental acreage, and the exciting patented AFJ stimulation technology, the merger with Blast provides us an opportunity to rapidly expand our shareholder base and provides access to additional funding opportunities that were previously unavailable to PEDCO as a private company. We hope that such additional assets and capital resources will help Pacific Energy Development fund and accelerate its existing drilling operations, as well as acquire and develop the additional domestic and foreign opportunities that we are currently pursuing. We anticipate that our continued organic growth from our currently producing assets in Colorado’s Niobrara and Texas’ Eagle Ford plays, combined with our ability to identify and capitalize on new acquisition opportunities through our strategic relationships with our partners in the U.S. and China, will continue to provide a solid foundation for our continued growth and enhanced shareholder value.”

As a result of the merger, Blast converted all of its existing preferred stock into common stock and consummated a 1:112 reverse stock split, with the stockholders of PEDCO receiving approximately 95% of the issued and outstanding capital stock of Blast at the close of the merger. In addition, the officers and directors of Blast resigned and were replaced by officers and directors designated by PEDCO.

For more information on PEDEVCO, please visit our corporate website at www.pacificenergydevelopment.com.

About PEDEVCO Corp. (Pacific Energy Development)

Pacific Energy Development (PEDEVCO) (OTCBB: BESVD) is a publicly-traded energy company engaged in the acquisition and development of strategic, high growth energy projects, including shale oil and gas assets, in the United States and Pacific Rim countries. The company’s producing assets include its Niobrara Asset located in the DJ Basin in Colorado, the Eagle Ford Asset in McMullen County, Texas, and North Sugar Valley Field located in Matagorda County, Texas. The company was founded in early 2011 by a group of former senior executives from Texaco, Inc. and CAMAC Energy Inc. (formerly Pacific Asia Petroleum, Inc.), and became publicly-traded in the U.S. in July 2012 through its merger with Blast Energy Services, Inc., a U.S. publicly-traded oil and gas operating company. Pacific Energy Development is headquartered in Danville, California, and also has office in Beijing, China.

Contacts

Media Contact:
Pacific Energy Development
Bonnie Tang, 1-855-733-3826 ext 21
PR@pacificenergydevelopment.com
or
Investor Relations Contact:
Liviakis Financial Communications, Inc.
415-389-4670
john@liviakis.com