"This option, if exercised, provides us the flexibility to redeploy capital to advance our projects in 2014 without sacrificing production volumes or strategic optionality for the remainder of the year" said Sveinung Svarte, AOC's president and chief executive officer. "The transaction validates our view that the greater Kaybob area is an increasingly important growth area for future Canadian oil and gas production." AOC is one of the largest lease holders in the area with more than 350,000 acres of prospective Duvernay leases of which 200,000 acres have been high-graded.