Author Archives: Freestone Resources

A New Year Brings New Opportunities to Freestone

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January 3  |  CEO Blog  |   Freestone Resources

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday, and I want to wish you all a healthy, happy and prosperous New Year!

This past year was certainly one of substantial developments and continued progress towards realizing the goals of our company.  We successfully demonstrated our oil extraction technology prototype machine, had a major university test and analyze our oil extraction technology with extremely positive results and a few months ago we announced a joint venture with MEA Solutions.  Creating this joint venture with MEA was a major milestone towards realizing our goal of becoming a leader in providing innovative and exceptional solutions to the energy industry.

As mentioned in last month’s press release, pilot operations will commence this month to demonstrate our technology for treating and recycling flowback and produced water for subsequent reuse in the fracking process.   The next two weeks will be extremely busy for me.  I will personally be involved in overseeing the setup of the water treatment operation and will be on site for the demonstrations to our financial and strategic partners.  My hope is that these demonstrations will set the stage for proving and validating our technology and business model.

As you may have read, last week there was a magnitude 4.0 earthquake that struck Youngstown, Ohio.  The Christian Science Monitor reported that, “[t]he temblor struck Dec. 31 and was the latest and strongest of 11 minor-to-light quakes that have hit the region since March. The epicenters are clustered around a wastewater injection well for a hydraulic fracturing operation. Understanding the potential effect hydraulic fracturing or related activities could have on local earthquake risks is one question some researchers hope to answer as they try to develop tools for communities.”

Bloomberg News stated “A New Year’s Eve earthquake in Youngstown, Ohio, that prompted the state to stop operations at five wells used to dispose of wastewater from natural-gas and oil drilling won’t affect production.”

The most common way to dispose of flowback and produced water is to inject the water into disposal wells that carry it deep into formations beneath the surface. In some, but not all, locations a problem arises when these pressurized fluids find their way into faults.  This procedure causes the fluids to act like a hydraulic jack eventually separating locked sections in the formations allowing them to slip.  This process is believed to have caused the recent earthquakes in Ohio.

Freestone Water Solutions treatment system assists in reducing the amount of flowback and produced water that must be injected into disposal wells. Our ability to treat, recycle and most importantly reuse the water is what the industry and the affected communities need.  Water is our earth’s most precious commodity and Freestone Resources and MEA have pledged to do its part in safeguarding our nation’s precious resource, as well as providing, what I believe, is the best model for establishing the greatest value for our loyal and patient shareholders.

Freestone Resources will update our shareholders this month on the outcome of these important demonstrations.

 

Very Sincerely,

Clayton Carter, President and CEO

 

 

 

Freestone Resources, Inc. Frac Water Recycling Update

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December 6  |  News  |   Freestone Resources

DALLAS, TX– Freestone Resources, Inc. would like to update its shareholders on the progress of the joint venture, Freestone Water Solutions (FWS), which was recently formed with MEA Solutions, LLC to treat and recycle flowback water, as well as produced water for subsequent reuse in the fracking process.

Since the previous announcement, the FWS team has been working diligently to form strategic partnerships with oil and gas service companies to expand its service offerings by introducing water recycling. These discussions have resulted in pilot operations that will commence in January 2012. The operation of the first FWS unit will demonstrate the technology in several shale plays in order to develop additional strategic partnerships, and this unit will allow FWS to demonstrate the technology to certain financial partners as well.

“We have been working with MEA over the last couple of months in order to begin commercial operations of the frac water treatment technology,” said Clayton Carter, President of Freestone Resources. “These activities include the preparation of detailed financial models and business plans, the collection, sampling and analysis of multiple frac and produced water samples, negotiations and discussions with strategic and financial partners, visiting with industry regulators, fine tuning the technology with our manufacturer, and visiting the various shale locations across the U.S. to name just a few. Logistically, we plan to have our first commercially viable unit on site demonstrating our ability to treat water next month, and shortly thereafter have our even larger capacity unit operational.”

Freestone Resources will continue to update shareholders on the status of the first FWS unit’s field operations, performance and financing activities.

About MEA Solutions, LLC:
MEA Solutions is a Houston, Texas-based company owned by Michael McGhan, Charles “Chet” Erwin and Gerald “Oj” Armstrong that consolidated their leadership and experience in the oil gas service industry with water resource, management and treatment services for industrial, municipal, and governmental authorities to address the growing issues facing the interdependent industries.

About Freestone Resources, Inc.:
Freestone Resources is a Dallas, Texas based oil and gas technology development company. The continuing goal of the Company is to develop new technologies that allow for the utilization of our vast resources in an environmentally responsible and cost effective way.
http://www.freestoneresourcesinc.com/.

SAFE HARBOR STATEMENTS:
Certain statements in this news release may contain forward-looking information within the meaning of Rule 175 under the Securities Act of 1933 and Rule 3b-6 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and are subject to the safe harbor created by those rules. All statements, other than statements of fact, included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding the commercial potential of the Oil Recovery Units and other potential future plans and objectives of the company, are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.

Freestone Resources, Inc. Announces a Joint Venture to Treat and Recycle Frac Water

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October 11  |  News  |   Freestone Resources

Freestone Resources, Inc. (OTC.BB: FSNR.OB – News) announced today that it has formed a joint venture with MEA Solutions, LLC to deliver a total solution for water resource management in the oilfield services sector. An integral component of the service includes owning and operating water recycling systems. The joint venture, Freestone Water Solutions, LLC, will utilize specialized, proprietary technology designed to treat and recycle flowback water (frac water that immediately flows back to the surface), as well as produced water for subsequent reuse in the fracking process.

The Freestone Water Solutions’ system minimizes the amount of new water required in the fracking process, as well as the amount of water that must be trucked offsite and disposed of at disposal well locations. This creates a significant cost savings to the exploration and production companies, minimizes oilfield truck traffic on municipal roadways, and provides a comprehensive water conservation effort. Furthermore, this proven water recycling process has been shown to be extremely efficient, durable and cost effective in other various industries. The mobile units are designed to process 500-800 gallons per minute, and stationary operations can process up to 6500 gallons per minute.

“Freestone Resources has worked diligently with MEA Solutions to research various water treatment and recycling technologies that are the most optimal for use in the oil and gas industry,” said Clayton Carter, Freestone Resources’ President. “This newly formed joint venture will utilize a technology that has been selected and modified based on that research and our specific water management needs. Most importantly, this venture will combine MEA’s experience with industrial, private, public and governmental authorities that manage and treat water and wastewater with our knowledge of oil and gas technology, onsite services, exploration and production. This cross-industry knowledge will allow us to meet the specific and unique requirements of each water recycling and treatment site that implements our technology.”

“I’m excited about our technologies and business model, which will bridge the expansion of the oil and gas industry with an obligation to deliver the appropriate water necessary for cost effective and environmentally conscious utilization of our most important resource,” said Gerald “Oj” Armstrong, Managing Director at Freestone Water Solutions.

About MEA Solutions, LLC:

MEA Solutions is a Houston, Texas based company owned by Michael McGhan, Charles “Chet” Erwin and Gerald “Oj” Armstrong that consolidated their leadership and experience in the oil gas service industry with water resource, management and treatment services for industrial, municipal, and governmental authorities to address the growing issues facing the interdependent industries.

About Freestone Resources, Inc.:

Freestone Resources is a Dallas, Texas based oil and gas technology development company. The continuing goal of the Company is to develop new technologies that allow for the utilization of our vast resources in an environmentally responsible and cost effective way. http://www.freestoneresourcesinc.com/.

SAFE HARBOR STATEMENTS:

Certain statements in this news release may contain forward-looking information within the meaning of Rule 175 under the Securities Act of 1933 and Rule 3b-6 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and are subject to the safe harbor created by those rules. All statements, other than statements of fact, included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding the commercial potential of the Oil Recovery Units and other potential future plans and objectives of the company, are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.

Market Volatility and the Oil and Gas Service Sector

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August 8  |  CEO Blog  |   Freestone Resources

There is a lot of uncertainty in today’s markets.  Specifically investors do not know what to think of the latest credit downgrade issued by Standard & Poor’s.  Last week the Dagong Global Credit Rating Co. (China’s premier credit rating agency) downgraded America’s rating to ‘A with a negative outlook’.  Due to the fact that China’s credit rating agency is a newcomer in the sovereign debt rating industry, the downgrade did not get much attention from the American media.  That has all changed since the S&P has followed suit.

The current market uncertainty stems from fact that Dagong Global is a new credit rating agency, and there is speculation that since it is a China-based agency that it might have ulterior motives for their recent downgrade.  It also stems from a poor S&P rating history that recently gave AAA ratings to the mortgage backed securities which led to the financial crisis in 2008.  Personally, I am watching Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings to see if they follow S&P’s lead (or should I say Dagong Global’s lead).  I am also watching to see if the executive and legislative branches of our government take active steps to decrease our spending and increase our revenues.  The debt problem will not be fixed overnight, but passing a balanced budget that shows fiscal responsibility will help prove to the world that America is nothing less than AAA.

Europe’s Problem

There is another global issue that we need to watch closely due to the fact that it could have a cascading effect on the global economy if it is not handled properly.  The creation of the Eurozone in 1999 bundled countries with high credit ratings and countries with low credit ratings by the introduction of the Euro currency.  (It sounds a lot like the creation of the mortgage backed securities doesn’t it?)  Now the European Central Bank is discussing a strategy to bail out the distressed economies of Italy and Spain, and Eurozone countries with a strong economy, such as Germany, may need to provide assistance to these distressed economies to avoid a European financial meltdown.

O&G Service Sector

Many sectors will feel the effects of this turbulent economy and the financial problems listed above, but I believe the oil and gas service industry will stay strong and mostly stable despite the market fluctuations.  Oil and gas prices may rise and fall with the current economic concerns, but the fact is that hundreds of companies have spent millions (if not billions) of dollars to secure leases in some of the major oil and gas shale opportunities throughout the United States.  These leases have term limits that require the companies to drill or forfeit their lease within a certain time frame (typically three years).  Rigs are also in limited supply, and many companies are on year long waiting lists with various drilling companies.  Thus, the drilling will continue and the need for pipe, tubing, compressors, pumpjacks, fracking equipment, operations, etc. will remain constant despite the economic fluctuations.  The costs for these services may fluctuate slightly, but they will not fall and rise as drastically as oil and gas prices.  For this reason, I am confident in Freestone’s sector and Freestone’s future despite the economic instability that may occur in our near future.

Clayton Carter, President and CEO

 

Oil and Gas Shale and the Deficit

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August 2  |  CEO Blog  |   Freestone Resources

Recently it would seem that “politics as usual” have consumed the airwaves.  CNN, Fox News, MSNBC and all of the major news networks were enamored with the recent debate, and subsequent vote to increase the Debt Ceiling.  We were told that if a vote did not take place by August 2, 2011 (oddly enough a date that became a moving target over the last few months) that the world markets would collapse and chaos would ensue.  Obviously this pending doomsday scenario is to network news as chum is to a shiver of sharks.

As expected, both parties eventually compromised and passed a bill at the last minute to save the day, and both parties took credit for staving off catastrophe.  What exactly does this mean for the state of our economic stability?  Unfortunately, it doesn’t do anything.  Typically debt negotiations include the lender (in this case China) and the borrower, but this debate was solely between borrowers, and thus no clear solution for fiscal responsibility was reached.    The Bill increases our Nation’s ability to borrow without increasing revenues.  This isn’t exactly the best business model for America’s future.

Now that I’ve said my peace, I think that we should look to our Lender as an example.  Currently China is purchasing natural resources and raw materials throughout the world.  They are even purchasing mineral rights in the United States!  Last week I had a discussion with the CEO of a company operating leaseholds in the Eagle Ford Shale, and he notified me that there are more than a few Chinese-owned companies purchasing producing minerals and working interest in his immediate location.  This is not a new occurrence.  Chinese-owned companies have purchased mineral interests in Utah, Colorado, Pennsylvania, and elsewhere in the United States (and even in the Canadian oil sands), and the oil and gas shale plays are fertile ground for their future investments.  Personally I would like to see American-owned companies develop these oil and gas shale plays, but the production of these natural resources here in the United States are necessary to reduce our immediate debt responsibilities.

 

Looking to Texas

I’ll preface this portion of the blog with the disclaimer that as a native Texan I am acknowledging some bias towards my state.  But there are some undeniable facts that the main reason the Texas’ economy is strong is because of our oil and gas production and exploration. Between fall 2009 and spring 2011 more than half the jobs created in the United States were created in Texas, and many of these were either directly or indirectly associated with the oil and gas sector.  Other states, such as New York, are taking steps to open their doors for business (to take a line from Gov. Perry) in the oil and gas sector.  The recent decision to lift New York’s moratorium on shale drilling is vital to job growth and additional revenues in one of the states that needs it the most.  Earlier this week Chesapeake announced its plan to commence drilling in the little known Utica Shale in Ohio, and preliminary analysis of this new oil rich formation indicates it could be a large shale play.  I predict that this new discovery will help Ohio look a lot like Texas over the next few years.

As a company focused on the oil service industry, the future production and exploration of our Nation’s oil and gas shale is paramount to our Company’s success.  This sector’s growth can continue in an environmentally responsible way with the innovation and development of new state-of-the-art technologies that Freestone intends to bring to the market for years to come.

 

Sincerely,

Clayton Carter, President and CEO

 

New York to Lift Moratorium on Hydraulic Fracking

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July 1  |  CEO Blog  |   Freestone Resources

When discussing the production of natural gas from shale formations one of the last states one thinks about is New York.  In fact New York has had a moratorium on the use of hydraulic fracking since 2008, but it looks like that might change.  Recently legislation has been proposed that would allow for the use of hydraulic fracking in approximately 85% of the state’s Marcellus Shale.  It also looks like proponents for this legislation have the votes to get it passed in the New York State Assembly.

Opponents of the plan to lift the moratorium are concerned that hydraulic fracking will cause contamination of underground aquifers and water tables.  It is common practice to dispose of frack water in injection wells, and it’s this process that is the cause for concern.  The frack water typically contains a variety of chemicals, hydrocarbons and salt that must all be disposed of, and for good reason no one wants this mixture to end up in aquifers and water tables that supply cities with drinking water.  That’s why I feel it’s important for the major oil companies to thoroughly consider recycling their frack water rather than disposing of it through the controversial use of injection wells.

The Pros of Frack Water Recycling

1)      It can be very expensive to pay a water disposal company to take the frack water.  Recycling the frack water would eliminate this cost.

2)      Disposing of the water via injection well creates an increase in 18 wheeler traffic on farm and ranch land that must haul the waste water to an injection well site.

3)      If you eliminate the need, or reduce the need for frack water disposal via injection well then fracking becomes less of an issue with environmentalists and local governments that might otherwise cause road blocks in the production of oil and gas from shale formations.

4)      The use of recycled frack water in new fracks reduces the amount of  new water that must be purchased.

In closing, our energy independence is the paramount issue at hand.  It’s my belief that reducing our dependence on foreign oil will stabilize our economy and ensure our national security.  The use of hydraulic fracking to obtain natural gas trapped in our vast shale formations is the first step to reducing our dependence on foreign oil.  Natural gas is abundant in the United States. Our vehicles can run on it, and it’s a cleaner burning, cheaper hydrocarbon than oil (we’ve all heard Mr. Pickens preach this for years).  The environmentalists, government agencies and oil companies can work together on a solution to responsibly produce natural gas from our domestic shale formations.  I firmly believe that frack water recycling is a key first step to resolving the issues between these groups.  I hope New York will embrace these technologies, and show the rest of the United States that even one of the most environmentally stringent states can responsibly produce this domestic energy source.

Clayton Carter, President and CEO

From Waste to Water: The Eagle Ford Shale

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June 21  |  CEO Blog  |   Freestone Resources

In response to yesterday’s post that discussed our evaluation of various water recycling technologies, I received an email that caught my attention. The email contained an article from Bloomberg that discussed water shortages in the Eagle Ford Shale formation. Bloomberg News reports that one well in the Eagle Ford requires 13 million gallons of fracking water, which is approximately the amount of water consumed by 240 adults per year. Since the Eagle Ford Shale formation is located in an area that is facing one of the worst droughts in Texas’ history, water will be at the forefront of every south Texan’s mind and more scrutiny will be placed on the fracking process.

The bottom line is that we can’t let the oil boom in the Eagle Ford Shale formation damage the ability of ranchers to feed their livestock and farmers to grow their crops. Studies indicate that more than 5,000 new wells will be drilled by 2020 in the Eagle Ford. This means that the demand for water will only increase, and the need for new innovative water recycling technologies will be continuously sought after. Furthermore, due to the massive scale of this issue multiple companies will be able to operate in this market, which will allow smaller companies, like Freestone, to work alongside the major oil and gas service companies.

The development of new technologies that can be utilized in various capacities in the oil and gas service industry, including a viable water recycling system, will continue to be the paramount focus of the management at Freestone. The ability to bring these new technologies to the marketplace will assist in the diversification of Freestone’s oil and gas service solutions and potential revenue streams.

I encourage everyone to read this article: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-06-13/worst-drought-in-more-than-a-century-threatens-texas-oil-natural-gas-boom.html

Clayton Carter, President and CEO at Freestone Resources

Welcome! Blog Entry #1 from Freestone’s President and CEO

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June 20  |  CEO Blog  |   Freestone Resources

Good afternoon Freestone investors.  This is my first blog post as the President and CEO of Freestone Resources, Inc.  I felt that it was time to utilize the blogosphere as a forum to keep investors up-to-date, opine on issues that affect the energy industry, and discuss new technologies that can help promote a greener oil and gas industry.

As announced in our most recent Press Release, Freestone is working with Hydrex Technologies in order to develop the very first commercial Oil Recovery Units (or as we call them—the ORUs).  The ORUs are a unique mechanized technology that utilizes specially formulated, non-carcinogenic chemicals to separate oil from solid material.  As oil production increases in the United States and globally, there will be an increase of oil-based waste byproducts that must be disposed of at hazardous waste sites.  These hazardous waste sites are already facing environmental and capacity issues.  We plan to work with Hydrex in order to convert this waste into a viable energy source, and our primary focus is to get our first ORU operating on the frontline of this battle ASAP.

During the ORU development phase we are also evaluating other technologies that can be used in the oil and gas arena.  As oil and gas drilling and production increases in areas that are experiencing major drought conditions, we will be forced to protect one of our world’s most precious resources—water.  Water is used for the hydraulic fracking of oil and gas wells located in shale formations, and it is also a byproduct of daily oil and gas production.  As these drilling and production areas face difficult drought conditions, it will be important to manage and recycle this precious resource.  Thus I am actively working with Freestone’s advisory board to evaluate some of the state-of-the-art water recycling technologies, and desalinization technologies that are in production and in the development stage.

Thanks for taking the time to read my first blog post, and I look forward to many more entries.  Our precious resources are exactly that—precious.  While it is important to increase our domestic energy output for national security and economic stability, it is also necessary to do it in a responsible way.  It is my goal to keep Freestone active in the development of the technologies necessary to reach the goal of increasing domestic energy production while decreasing our environmental footprint.

Thanks for reading!

Clayton Carter, President and CEO at Freestone Resources

Freestone Resources, Inc. Announces Master Agreement With Hydrex Technologies

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June 9  |  News  |   Freestone Resources

DALLAS, TX-(06/09/11) – Freestone Resources, Inc. (OTC.BB:FSNRNews) announced today that it has finalized a Master Agreement with Hydrex Technologies, LLC., a subsidiary of Hydrex Corp., which is based in San Antonio, Texas. The Agreement provides Hydrex with the license rights to specific territories in the United States to manufacture, own and operate thirty Oil Recovery Units (ORU) using Freestone Resources’ proprietary technology. The Oil Recovery Units are designed to recover and extract crude oil from oil sands, contaminated soil, as well as oil from oil field tank bottom sludge and other oil waste depositories. Each ORU will be manufactured for a specific application and processing capacity.

The ORUs are designed as closed-loop systems that utilize environmentally friendly solvents to extract the maximum amount of hydrocarbons from the medium that they are processing. The ORUs will not utilize or require the use of steam, and no measurable air contaminants or emissions will be released into the atmosphere. Since each ORU will operate without steam, utilize limited energy, and recycle the solvents used in the process, they will provide an economic advantage compared to conventional oil separation systems.

“We are excited to begin the construction of our first commercial scale Oil Recovery Unit with Hydrex Technologies,” said Clayton Carter, President of Freestone Resources. “This Agreement represents the culmination of Freestone’s efforts to begin the construction of our first commercial scale ORU. We have had to leap over many hurdles to get this far, but through great determination and perseverance we feel that we have developed a technology that will help achieve our goals of extracting the vast amounts of oil from oil sands and sludge, while reducing oil production waste and having a positive impact on our environment. These are the common goals that we share with Hydrex, and I feel that our Agreement will allow us to achieve these goals through Hydrex’s construction and operation of the Oil Recovery Units under its license from us.”

“We are delighted to have consummated the Master Agreement with Freestone, and we are looking forward to furthering the development of Freestone’s technology. The Freestone technology will advance Hydrex’s goal of being part of the ‘Green Solutions Movement’ in cleaning up waste oil depositories, and moving the industry toward a cleaner environment,” said Mark Woodward, President of Hydrex Corp.

About Hydrex Corp.:
Hydrex Corp. is an energy company based in San Antonio, Texas which is involved in oil and gas exploration and production, oil and gas property operations and management, importation of crude oil, fuels and petrochemicals, and the development and implementation of environmentally friendly processes associated with the recovery and remediation of crude oil from oil sands, contaminated soil, and waste oil (sludge) depositories.
http://www.hydrexcorp.com/

About Freestone Resources, Inc.:
Freestone Resources is a Dallas, Texas based oil and gas technology development company. The continuing goal of the Company is to develop new technologies that allow for the utilization of our vast resources in an environmentally responsible and cost effective way.
http://www.freestoneresourcesinc.com/.

SAFE HARBOR STATEMENTS:
Certain statements in this news release may contain forward-looking information within the meaning of Rule 175 under the Securities Act of 1933 and Rule 3b-6 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and are subject to the safe harbor created by those rules. All statements, other than statements of fact, included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding the commercial potential of the Oil Recovery Units and other potential future plans and objectives of the company, are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.

Freestone Resources, Inc. Announces Richard Feldman Joins Its Advisory Board

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May 4  |  News  |   Freestone Resources

DALLAS, TX–(Marketwire – 05/03/11) – Freestone Resources, Inc. (OTC.BB:FSNRNews) announced today that Richard Feldman has joined its Advisory Board as its newest member.

Mr. Feldman, age 58, is a New York-based businessman. He is the major shareholder and CEO of a multi-million dollar, privately held apparel manufacturing company with facilities in both New York and the Caribbean. Additionally he is an active partner and board member of several privately held real estate companies that own and operate commercial and industrial properties in and around Manhattan.

As a private investor, Mr. Feldman has made previous investments in oil sand extraction and production technology. As such he has a keen awareness of the enormous economic potential of the Freestone oil recovery system. He is also excited by the larger geo-political impact that can be realized from the successful development of Freestone’s environmentally conscious method of hydrocarbon extraction.

“Mr. Feldman is a well respected businessman with decades of experience in various industries, as well as a successful history of corporate negotiations. We are pleased that he has joined the Freestone team, and are very proud to add him to our Advisory Board,” said Clayton Carter, President of Freestone Resources. “In addition, we look forward to updating our shareholders very shortly on the status of our previously announced negotiations with Hydrex Corp.”

About Freestone Resources, Inc.:
Freestone Resources is a Dallas, Texas based oil and gas technology development company. The continuing goal of the Company is to develop new technologies that allow for the utilization of our vast resources in an environmentally responsible and cost effective way.

SAFE HARBOR STATEMENTS:
Certain statements in this news release may contain forward-looking information within the meaning of Rule 175 under the Securities Act of 1933 and Rule 3b-6 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and are subject to the safe harbor created by those rules. All statements, other than statements of fact, included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding potential future plans and objectives of the company, are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.