Plains Petroleum Company and Subsidiaries - Page 29




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          Tri-Power properties.  During these visits, Mr. Billings and Mr.            
          Cassell reviewed, in detail, the geological and seismic data                
          relating to the Tri-Power reserves and the 1986 LAM reserve                 
          report.  Mr. Cassell was candid with Mr. Billings and Mr. Wagner,           
          disclosing Tri-Power's strengths as well as its weaknesses.  In             
          addition, Mr. Billings visited the LAM offices, where he reviewed           
          the Tri-Power properties with Mr. Martin.                                   
               Petitioner's policy was to use its in-house personnel to               
          evaluate prospective properties, and during its investigation of            
          the Tri-Power properties, petitioner's acquisition team consulted           
          petitioner's in-house petroleum engineers and geologists.  In-              
          house personnel also conducted title and lease reviews.  Messrs.            
          Wagner and Miller reviewed Tri-Power's contracts for the purchase           
          and sale of its oil and natural gas production.  Mr. Wagner also            
          took the lead investigating those Tri-Power properties with which           
          he had prior experience, including the Meeteetse field located in           
          Wyoming's Big Horn Basin.  In connection with that investigation,           
          Mr. Wagner reviewed Tri-Power's land files and met with Tri-                
          Power's landman, Paul Vandergriff.                                          
               In addition to its in-house review, petitioner engaged                 
          Gerald Swonke, an oil and gas attorney from Houston, Texas, to              
          review Tri-Power's major producing properties.  Mr. Swonke's                
          investigation included, inter alia, a review of Tri-Power's                 







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