Board seeks next CEO
Ferguson has served as CEO since July 2024. He has agreed to offer advisory support, if needed, after the company appoints a replacement.
TMK's Nov. 6, 2026, ASX announcement said the recruitment process had recently begun under an ongoing succession plan, with Ferguson's full endorsement and support. The board is seeking someone equipped to lead the appraisal, development and commercialization of its wholly owned Gurvantes XXXV Project.
His departure follows corporate restructuring and development work on TMK's Mongolian energy assets. Chairman Professor John Warburton credited Ferguson with operational progress and improvements to the company's structure and shareholder base.
"Dougal leaves the company with a strong foundation to build on, with significant operational gains being made during his tenure and a far more robust corporate structure and shareholder base," Warburton said.
Gurvantes resources and pilot output
The Gurvantes XXXV Coal Seam Gas Project, in Mongolia's South Gobi Basin, is TMK's principal resource development asset. The project moved from private ownership to an ASX listing before TMK eventually acquired full ownership.
According to The West Australian's Oct. 6, 2026, report, Gurvantes has an independently certified 2C contingent coal seam gas resource of 1.2 trillion cubic feet within 60 square kilometers. The wider 8,400-square-kilometer project area holds a best-estimate prospective resource of 5.3 trillion cubic feet. Its pilot is less than 20 kilometers from China.
The newspaper also reported that TMK's average gas output in September 2026 reached 872 cubic meters per day, or about 30,800 standard cubic feet per day, an 8% increase from August. Output averaged 33,400 standard cubic feet per day in September's final week, more than 300% above the level when TMK introduced its revised reservoir management plan in August 2025.
Discovery declaration and appraisal steps
On Oct. 2, 2026, TMK submitted a formal Declaration of (Gas) Discovery for wells LF-01 through LF-07 at its wholly owned Gurvantes XXXV Pilot Well Project under Article 22.2 of Mongolia's Petroleum Law. Mongolian regulator MRPAM accepted the declaration on Oct. 15.
That acceptance opened a 90-day period for TMK to submit and agree on an appraisal program. Once the regulator accepts the program, an extended production testing period of at least 180 days will follow. During testing, TMK will prepare its initial reserves report and plan of development ahead of a possible exploitation license.
