SOQDQ Sonde Resources Corporation (CE)

ITEM 1A. Risk Factors

The following risk factors should be considered with the other information included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K/A. As we operate in a continuously changing environment, other risk factors may emerge which could have material adverse effects on our results of operations, financial condition and cash flow.

Risk Factors Related to Our Business

Unsatisfactory safety performance may subject us to penalties, can affect customer relationships, result in higher operating costs, negatively impact employee morale and result in higher employee turnover.

Workplace safety is important to the Company, our employees, and our customers. As a result, we maintain comprehensive safety programs and training for all applicable employees throughout our organization. While we focus on protecting people and property, our work is performed at construction sites and in industrial facilities and our workers are subject to the normal hazards associated with providing these services. Even with proper safety precautions, these hazards can lead to personal injury, loss of life, damage to or destruction of property, plant and equipment, and environmental damage. We are intensely focused on maintaining a strong safety environment and reducing the risk of accidents to the lowest possible level.

Although we have taken what we believe are appropriate precautions to adequately train and equip our employees, we may experience accidents in the future. Serious accidents may subject us to penalties, civil litigation or criminal prosecution. Claims for damages to persons, including claims for bodily injury or loss of life, could result in costs and liabilities, which could materially and adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

Demand for our products and services is cyclical and is vulnerable to the level of capital and maintenance spending of our customers and to downturns in the industries and markets we serve as well as conditions in the general economy.

The demand for our products and services depends upon the existence of construction and repair and maintenance projects in the downstream petroleum, power and other heavy industries in the United States and Canada. Therefore, it is likely that our business will continue to be cyclical in nature and vulnerable to general downturns in the United States, Canadian and world economies and declines in commodity prices, which could adversely affect the demand for our products and services.

Our Construction Services segment’s revenue and cash flow are dependent upon engineering and construction projects. The availability of these projects is dependent upon the economic condition in the oil, gas, and power industries, specifically, the level of capital expenditures on energy infrastructure. A prolonged period of sluggish economic conditions in North America has had and may continue to have an adverse impact on the level of capital expenditures of our customers and/or their ability to finance these expenditures. Our failure to obtain projects, the delay of project awards, the cancellation of projects or delays in the completion of contracts are factors that may result in under-utilization of our resources, which would adversely impact our revenue, operating results and cash flow. There are numerous factors beyond our control that influence the level of capital expenditures of oil, gas and power companies, including:

Our results of operations depend upon the award of new contracts and the timing of those awards.

Our revenues are derived primarily from contracts awarded on a project-by-project basis. Generally, it is difficult to predict whether and when we will be awarded a new contract due to lengthy and complex bidding and selection processes, changes in existing or forecasted market conditions, access to financing, governmental regulations, permitting and environmental matters. Because our revenues are derived from contract awards, our results of operations and cash flows can fluctuate materially from period to period.

The uncertainty associated with the timing of contract awards may reduce our short-term profitability as we balance our current capacity with expectations of future contract awards. If an expected contract award is delayed or not received, we could incur costs to maintain an idle workforce that may have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. Alternatively, we may decide that our long-term interests are best served by reducing our workforce and incurring increased costs associated with severance and termination benefits which also could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations for the period when incurred. Reducing our workforce could also impact our results of operations if we are unable to adequately staff projects that are awarded subsequent to a workforce reduction.

We face substantial competition in each of our business segments, which may have a material adverse effect on our business.

We face competition in all areas of our business from regional, national and international competitors. Our competitors range from small family owned businesses to well-established, well-financed entities, both privately and publicly held, including many major equipment manufacturers, large engineering and construction companies and specialty contractors. We compete primarily on the basis of price, customer satisfaction, safety performance and programs, quality of our products and services, and schedule. As a result of the continuing effects of the economic slowdown on capital and maintenance spending, we may continue to experience pressure on our operating margins.

The loss of one or more of our significant customers could adversely affect us.

One or more customers have in the past and may in the future contribute a material portion of our revenues in any one year. Because these significant customers generally contract with us for specific projects or for specific periods of time, we may lose these customers from year to year as the projects or maintenance contracts are completed. The loss of business from any one of these customers could have a material adverse effect on our business or results of operations.

Our profitability could be negatively impacted if we are not able to maintain appropriate utilization of our workforce.

The extent to which we utilize our workforce affects our profitability. If we under utilize our workforce, our project gross margins and overall profitability suffer in the short-term. If we over utilize our workforce, we may negatively impact safety, employee satisfaction and project execution, which could result in a decline of future project awards. The utilization of our workforce is impacted by numerous factors including:

We are exposed to credit risk from customers. If we experience delays and/or defaults in customer payments, we could suffer liquidity problems or we could be unable to recover amounts owed to us.

Under the terms of our contracts, at times we commit resources to customer projects prior to receiving payments from customers in amounts sufficient to cover expenditures on these projects as they are incurred. Delays in customer payments require an investment in working capital. If customers default in making payments on projects, it could have an adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations and cash flows.

Actual results could differ from the estimates and assumptions that we use to prepare our financial statements.

To prepare financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles, management is required to make estimates and assumptions, as of the date of the financial statements, which affect the reported values of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities. Areas requiring significant estimation by our management include:

Our actual results could materially differ from these estimates.

An inability to attract and retain qualified personnel, and in particular, engineers, project managers and skilled craft workers, could impact our ability to perform on our contracts, which could harm our business and impair our future revenues and profitability.

Our ability to attract and retain qualified engineers, project managers, skilled craftsmen and other experienced professionals in accordance with our needs is an important factor in our ability to maintain profitability and grow our business. The market for these professionals is competitive, particularly during periods of economic growth when the supply is limited. We cannot provide any assurance that we will be successful in our efforts to retain or attract qualified personnel when needed. Therefore, when we anticipate or experience growing demand for our services, we may incur additional cost to maintain a professional staff in excess of our current contract needs in an effort to have sufficient qualified personnel available to address this anticipated demand. If we do incur additional compensation and benefit costs, our customer contracts may not allow us to pass through these costs.

Competent and experienced engineers, project managers, and craft workers are especially critical to the profitable performance of our contracts, particularly on our fixed-price contracts where superior design and execution of the project can result in profits greater than originally estimated or where inferior design and project execution can reduce or eliminate estimated profits or even result in a loss.

Our project managers are involved in most aspects of contracting and contract execution including:

Future events, including those associated with our growth strategy, could negatively affect our liquidity position.

We can provide no assurance that we will have sufficient cash from operations or the credit capacity to meet all of our future cash needs should we encounter significant working capital requirements or incur significant acquisition costs. Insufficient cash from operations, significant working capital requirements, and contract disputes have in the past, and could in the future, reduce availability under our credit facility.

There are integration and consolidation risks associated with our acquisition strategy. Future acquisitions may result in significant transaction expenses, unexpected liabilities and risks associated with entering new markets, and we may be unable to profitably operate these businesses.

An aspect of our business strategy is to make strategic acquisitions in markets where we currently operate as well as in markets in which we have not previously operated.

We may lack sufficient management, financial and other resources to successfully integrate future acquisitions. Any future acquisitions may result in significant transaction expenses, unexpected liabilities and risks associated with entering new markets in addition to the integration and consolidation risks.

If we make any future acquisitions, we likely will have exposure to third parties for liabilities of the acquired business or assets that may or may not be adequately covered by insurance or by indemnification, if any, from the former owners of the acquired business or assets. Any of these unexpected liabilities could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We are involved, and are likely to continue to be involved in legal proceedings, which will increase our costs and, if adversely determined, could have a material effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We are currently a defendant in legal proceedings arising from the operation of our business and it is reasonable to expect that we would be named in future actions. Many of the actions against us arise out of the normal course of performing services on project sites, and include claims for workers’ compensation, personal injury and property damage. From time to time, we are also named as a defendant for actions involving the violation of federal and state labor laws related to employment practices and wages and benefits and in contract disputes with customers.

We maintain insurance against operating hazards in amounts that we believe are customary in our industry. However, our insurance has deductibles and coverage exclusions so we cannot provide assurance that we are adequately insured against all types of risks that are associated with the conduct of our business. A successful claim brought against us in excess of, or outside of, our insurance coverage could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Litigation, regardless of its outcome, is expensive, typically diverts the efforts of our management away from operations for varying periods of time, and can disrupt or otherwise adversely impact our relationships with current or potential customers and suppliers. Payment and claim disputes with customers may also cause us to incur increased interest costs resulting from incurring indebtedness under our revolving line of credit or receiving less interest income resulting from fewer funds invested due to the failure to receive payment for disputed claims and accounts.

International Plant Services, LLC (IPS) depends on the Foreign Guest Worker Visa Program for a significant portion of its revenue. We have been unable to obtain new Visas since 2011. If the current policies of the United States Department of Labor and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security regarding the Guest Worker Visa Program do not change, IPS will continue to see a decline in available workers which will likely have an adverse effect on our revenues.

IPS continues to process Visas for guest workers but has not had a new visa or renewal approved since 2011. While we continue to deploy American workers under IPS, particularly into Canada and other foreign locations, IPS will lose most of its foreign workers by the 3 ^rd quarter of 2013 if there is no change in US Policy. This will reduce revenue and earnings from IPS to near zero, if we are not successful in deploying American Workers or winning approval of new Visas.

Our projects expose us to potential professional liability, product liability, warranty and other claims, which could be expensive, damage our reputation and harm our business. We may not be able to obtain or maintain adequate insurance to cover these claims.

We perform construction services at large industrial facilities where accidents or system failures can be disastrous and costly. Any catastrophic occurrence in excess of our insurance limits at locations engineered or constructed by us or where our products are installed or services performed could result in significant professional liability, product liability, warranty and other claims against us by our customers, including claims for cost overruns and the failure of the project to meet contractually specified milestones or performance standards. Further, the rendering of our services on these projects could expose us to risks and claims by third parties and governmental agencies for personal injuries, property damage and environmental matters, among others. Any claim, regardless of its merit or eventual outcome, could result in substantial costs, divert management’s attention and create negative publicity, particularly for claims relating to environmental matters where the amount of the claim could be extremely large. We may not be able to or may choose not to obtain or maintain insurance coverage for the types of claims described above. If we are unable to obtain insurance at an acceptable cost or otherwise protect against the claims described above, we will be exposed to significant liabilities, which may materially and adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

Employee, subcontractor or partner misconduct or our overall failure to comply with laws or regulations could harm our reputation, damage our relationships with customers, reduce our revenues and profits, and subject us to criminal and civil enforcement actions.

Misconduct, fraud, non-compliance with applicable laws and regulations, or other improper activities by one of our employees, subcontractors or partners could have a significant negative impact on our business and reputation. Such misconduct could include the failure to comply with safety standards, laws and regulations, customer requirements, regulations pertaining to the internal controls over financial reporting, environmental laws and any other applicable laws or regulations. The precautions we take to prevent and detect these activities may not be effective, since our internal controls are subject to inherent limitations, including human error, the possibility that controls could be circumvented or become inadequate because of changed conditions, and fraud.

Our failure to comply with applicable laws or regulations or acts of misconduct could subject us to fines and penalties, harm our reputation, damage our relationships with customers, reduce our revenues and profits and subject us to criminal and civil enforcement actions.

We rely on internally and externally developed software applications and systems to support critical functions including project management, estimating, human resources, accounting, and financial reporting. Any sudden loss, disruption or unexpected costs to maintain these systems could significantly increase our operational expense as well as disrupt the management of our business operations.

We rely on various software systems to operate our critical operating and administrative functions. We depend on our software vendors to provide long-term software maintenance support for our information systems. Software vendors may decide to discontinue further development, integration or long-term software maintenance support for our information systems, in which case we may need to abandon one or more of our current information systems and migrate some or all of our project management, human resources, estimating, accounting and financial information to other systems, thus increasing our operational expense as well as disrupting the management of our business operations.

Our business may be affected by difficult work sites and environments, which may adversely affect our overall business.

We perform our work under a variety of conditions, including, but not limited to, difficult terrain, difficult site conditions and busy urban centers where delivery of materials and availability of labor may be impacted. Performing work under these conditions can slow our progress, potentially causing us to incur contractual liability to our customers. These difficult conditions may also cause us to incur additional, unanticipated costs that we might not be able to pass on to our customers.

We are susceptible to adverse weather conditions, which may harm our business and financial results.

Our business may be adversely affected by severe weather in areas where we have significant operations. Repercussions of severe weather conditions may include:

Environmental factors and changes in laws and regulations could increase our costs and liabilities.

Our operations are subject to environmental laws and regulations, including those concerning emissions into the air; discharges into waterways; generation, storage, handling, treatment and disposal of hazardous material and wastes; and health and safety.

We are subject to numerous other laws and regulations including those related to the business registrations and licenses, environment, workplace, employment, health and safety. These laws and regulations are complex, change frequently and could become more stringent in the future. It is impossible to predict the effect on us of any future changes to these laws and regulations. We can provide no absolute assurance that our operations will continue to comply with future laws and regulations or that the costs to comply with these laws and regulations and/or a failure to comply with these laws will not significantly adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

International operations are subject to a number of risks that could negatively affect future operating results or subject us to criminal and civil enforcement actions.

We are seeking to expand our business internationally. International business is subject to a variety of risks, including:

International risks and violations of international regulations may negatively affect future operating results or subject us to criminal or civil enforcement actions. Although we have policies and procedures to monitor legal and regulatory compliance, our employees, subcontractors and agents could take actions that violate these requirements. As a result, our international risk exposure may be more or less than the percentage of revenues attributed to our international operations.

We may need to raise additional capital in the future for working capital, capital expenditures and/or acquisitions, and we may not be able to do so on favorable terms or at all, which would impair our ability to operate our business or achieve our growth objectives.

To the extent that cash flow from operations are insufficient to make future investments, make acquisitions or provide needed additional working capital, we may require additional financing from other sources. Our ability to obtain such additional financing in the future will depend in part upon prevailing capital market conditions, as well as conditions in our business and our operating results; and those factors may affect our efforts to arrange additional financing on terms that are satisfactory to us. If adequate funds are not available, or are not available on acceptable terms, we may not be able to make future investments, take advantage of acquisitions or other opportunities, or respond to competitive challenges.

Risk Factors Related to Our Common Stock

Our common stock, which is quoted on the Over the Counter Market, has from time-to-time experienced significant price and volume fluctuations. These fluctuations are likely to continue in the future, and our stockholders may not be able to resell their shares of common stock at or above the purchase price paid.

The market price of our common stock may change significantly in response to various factors and events beyond our control, including the following:

Some companies that have volatile market prices for their securities have been subject to security class action suits filed against them. If a suit were to be filed against us, regardless of the outcome, it could result in substantial costs and a diversion of our management’s attention and resources. This could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Future sales of our common stock may depress our stock price.

Sales of a substantial number of shares of our common stock in the public market or otherwise, either by us, a member of management or a major stockholder, or the perception that these sales could occur, could depress the market price of our common stock and impair our ability to raise capital through the sale of additional equity securities.

We may issue additional equity securities, which would lead to dilution of our issued and outstanding stock.

The issuance of additional common stock or securities convertible into our common stock would result in dilution of the ownership interest in us held by existing stockholders. We are authorized to issue, without stockholder approval 100,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.00001 per share, in one or more series, which may give other stockholders dividend, conversion, voting, and liquidation rights, among other rights, which may be superior to the rights of holders of our common stock. In addition, we are authorized to issue, without stockholder approval, a significant number of additional shares of our common stock and securities convertible into either common stock or preferred stock.

The DTC placed a “chill” on deposits of the Company’s common stock, which may negatively impact an investor’s ability to trade in our common shares.

The DTC placed a “chill” on deposits of our common stock. The “chill” does not affect our normal business operations. However, stockholders with internet brokerage accounts with firms such as Scottrade, TD Ameritrade or E*Trade may not be able to trade in our common shares through these internet brokers as usual. Because some stockholder may trade through these internet brokers which clear and settle through the DTC, we believe the “chill” may contribute to limitations on the ability for investors to purchase our shares. However, if an investor has an account with a full service broker, it will still typically clear and settle our stock manually, and the investor can typically buy and sell our stock as freely as usual without any DTC imposed restrictions.