Exhibit 99 (a)
CANADA SOUTHERN PETROLEUM LTD.
Canada Southern Announces
Final Oral Arguments to be
Heard on February 6, 2001
CALGARY, Alberta, January 12, 2001 - Canada Southern Petroleum Ltd.
[NASDAQ: CSPLF; Toronto/Boston/Pacific: CSW] said that the Court has ordered
that no additional written arguments may be filed with the Court and that final
oral arguments will be heard on February 6, 2001.
After the Court hears the oral arguments, it will then consider the
evidence presented and deliver a written opinion. A Company spokesman said that
it would probably be at least late 2001 before a decision was rendered in view
of the lengthy trial and mass of evidence presented.
Statements in this press release that are not historical in nature are
intended to be - and are hereby identified as -- "forward-looking statements"
for purposes of the "Safe Harbor Statement" under the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are subject to certain
risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially
from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Among these risks and
uncertainties are (a) uncertainties as to the costs, length, and outcome of the
Kotaneelee litigation, and (b) the uncertainty as to when or if the company will
receive any revenue from the Kotaneelee gas field.
Contact: Ben A. Anderson at (403) 269-7741.
