1st Jul 2015 07:17
LONDON (Alliance News) - Independent Oil and Gas PLC shares tumbled on Wednesday after it said it will issue new shares to raise some short term funding whilst it finalises long term funding talks, which are "progressing well", as it reiterated it aims to have secured the financing before the middle of August.
Independent shares were down 18% to 17.00 pence per share on Wednesday morning, one of the worst performers in the AIM All-Share.
"Long term financing discussions on the funding of Skipper, Cronx, Elgood and Blythe through to production are progressing well with an internationally listed group with a multi-billion dollar market capitalisation and all parties continue to work towards completion of the transaction by 15 August 2015," said the company in a statement.
The Skipper, Cronx, Elgood and Blythe assets are all located in the UK North Sea. Last week, the company said Baker Hughes RDS completed the remapping in the southern section, which helped better define the commercial volumes at both the Cronx and Elgood discoveries and the company said Baker Hughes was set to evaluate the prospectivity beneath the Skipper discovery and also to evaluate other southern North Sea prospects and discoveries including Truman, Harvey, Hambleton, Tetley and Rebellion.
That additional work by Baker Hughes will not start until funding has been secured.
Independent said it is talking to a third party which subscribed to 609,500 shares at a price of 23.79 pence on June 22, for a total of GBP145,000. The funds from the purchase have not been received by the company and the talks are aiming to establish when payment will be received.
In the meantime, the company said it plans to issue a further 210,174 new shares at 23.79 pence to raise GBP50,000 in short term funding. Those shares will be purchased by Chief executive Mark Routh and Chief Financial Officer Peter Young.
Independent is currently in the process of acquiring the 50% stake in the Cronx prospect that it does not already own and said last week that it is expecting the deal to be finalised "shortly".
By Joshua Warner; [email protected]; @JoshAlliance
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