Bahrain blues dominate shambolic Bula annual meeting

If you weren't prone to despair then the annual general meetings of Bula Resources might be entertaining. Might.

Albert Reynolds put in a fighting performance at yesterday's, a smile on his face as often as not, the words tumbling out of his mouth, confusion and misunderstanding the order of the day.

"Doing business in an Arab country is different," he said, when asked about a deal in Bahrain, which involved Bula putting down a $1.5 million (€1.53 million) "refundable deposit" on a potential oil deal - the details of which shareholders seemed to know little about.

Because he had recently offered to buy the Bula interest in the Bahrain deal for US company Life Energy, of which he is also chairman, Mr Reynolds said he had been accused of having a "conflict of energy".

He didn't agree with this view but he was not going to put himself forward for re-election as Bula chairman, just in case, for the good of the company.

This solemn announcement was met by applause from some shareholders.

As usual, the Bula shareholders were full of passion, demanding - fruitlessly in the main - to know what was happening with their company. Some of the people who were demanding five years ago to know the truth about the former chairman and chief executive, Mr Jim Stanley, were yesterday demanding to be told the truth about Bahrain, Libya, Iraq and the dissemination of information among the company's directors. As usual, there was no dividend.

During the meeting it emerged that a typographical error in documents produced for last year's a.g.m. had prevented Bula raising funds on the market since December. The resolution allowing for the raising of funds had referred to the wrong year. The company's shares were suspended in April, largely, it would seem, because it had no cash.

But the Bahrain deposit was the main topic of conversation. Now that Bula is not proceeding with the deal, it is expecting to get its money back. It should have been given the money in July but, Mr Reynolds explained, people in Bahrain go on holiday in July and August.

It was that sort of meeting. At times the logic of the debate was hard to follow. "The people who I deal with down there [in Bahrain\] are honourable people," Mr Reynolds said at one stage. "Brutus was an honourable man," shouted one shareholder. "Until he was found out," replied Mr Reynolds.

One shareholder said Bula had been a shambles since it was incorporated 30 years ago. When another expressed the view that Bula shares would never be traded on the stock exchange again, Mr Reynolds bet him €100 that he would be proved wrong. The bet was placed.

It was probably a better bet than a punt on a Bula share. And that's not saying much.