HARBIN, China and NEW YORK, March 22, 2012 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- China North East Petroleum Holdings Limited (the "Company") (NYSE Amex: NEP) previously announced that on March 1, 2012, the Company discovered that the Securities & Exchange Commission ("SEC") issued an Order of Suspension of Trading of the stock of the Company. In the Order, the SEC stated that: "Questions have arisen regarding the accuracy and completeness of information contained in NEP's public filings with the Commission concerning, among other things, certain transfers of cash from the company's bank accounts to the personal bank accounts of related parties."
In a press release issued after close of market on March 14, 2012, the Company provided updated information regarding the matters discussed in the SEC Order. The March 14, 2012 release, however, contained a typographical error, which this press release corrects. The reference in the second paragraph of the March 14, 2012 press release to $3.9 million should have said $39 million. Thus, the second paragraph should have read:
The trading suspension appears related to an investigation the Staff of the SEC is conducting that addresses these issues. Although the Company cannot be certain of the scope of the investigation, it appears that the principal focus is on various related party transactions aggregating approximately $39.0 million that occurred in 2009 and were identified in the previously-disclosed report provided to the Company by John Lees & Associates, the accuracy of the Company's books and records and financial statements concerning those transactions, and related disclosures in the Company's 2009 S-3 registration statement and S-8 registration statements.
About China North East Petroleum
China North East Petroleum Holdings Limited is an independent oil company that engages in the production of crude oil in Northern China. The Company is a pioneer in China's private oil exploration and production industry, and the first Chinese non-state-owned oil company trading on the NYSE Amex.
The Company has a guaranteed arrangement with the PetroChina to sell its produced crude oil for use in the China marketplace. The Company currently operates five oilfields in Northern China. For more information about the Company, please visit http://www.cnepetroleum.com.
