Reversal of fortune

A turn in the fortunes of Gulf Canada Resources Ltd following the appointment in January 1995 of J.P. Bryan as CEO, were chronicled. At that time the Company' total debt stood at $1.4 billion and a consortium of banks, the A and G Resources Corp., controlled 70% of the shares. Since 1990, the company had lost $550 million. Oil production had dropped 14.5% and gas production had dropped 21%. Over five years, the company's total asset value dropped $891 million. The company had not't paid a dividend since 1993. Bryan and Torch Energy Advisors Inc (a Houston-based acquisitions company founded by Bryan in 1981) invested $296 million to take a 25% stake in the company and options to increase its control to 43% by 1998.The series of deals, acquisitions, layoffs, and debt restructuring apparently worked. It gave Gulf Canada some room to increase capital spending, and to reduce its costs by about $100 million. With revenue enhancement, it put Gulf on solid financial ground for the first time in years