February’s US$26.5 million fundraising marked something of a watershed in the short but eventful history of Madagascar Oil.

US Oil & Gas (GXG:USOP) shares rocketed today after the group reported that the Eblana-1 exploration well in Nevada has encountered what it believes to be live light oil.  The stock saw heavy trade all day and by late afternoon was trading at 150 pence, after having started the session at just under 66 pence.

The iodine producer is raising £4.3 million to  support a scale up in its operations. Separately the group reported record sales in 2011 which allowed the company to halve losses.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum (LON:GKP) said this morning work on the Sheikh Adi-2 well had begun.

New analysis suggests that the RPS peak production rate could be achieved with just 1.5 horizontal development wells compared to 13 vertical production wells.

Leni Gas & Oil expects a work-over programme to get underway in Trinidad this coming weekend.

Providence Resources revealed this morning that horizontal drilling could significantly lift the productivity of its Barryroe oil discovery.

Oil and gas giant Shell today refused to give up the chase for East Africa-focused junior Cove Energy.

The battle for East African oil and gas assets was reignited today as global giant Shell was gazumped by a rival bidder in its quest to secure Cove Energy.

Oil giant BP could see a share price revival if it can make progress on US Macondo-related fines, according to Canaccord Genuity.

Entrepreneur Algy Cluff is in no mood for hanging around. The 72-year-old hopes that by the end of July, his new venture - Cluff Natural Resources - would have snapped up the first of its investment deals, on its journey towards building a global resource player.

Energy group Wasabi Energy has received approval to buy into an advanced geothermal power generator in Turkey from the current owner.

Transeuro Energy chief executive David Worrall said the group has put together an innovative, flexible funding package that guarantees the company access to funding as required and manages and minimises dilution for equity investors.

Range Resources’ Shabeel-1 well in Puntland, Somalia could produce up to 130mm barrels of recoverable oil, the company’s MD said in an interview.

Heritage Oil said it is pleased with the results of the Miran West-3 well in Iraqi Kurdistan, which continued to de-risk the Miran field. The group added that with US$154 million in the bank it is fully funded for its work programmes going into 2013.

Optiva Securities analyst Jason Robertson highlighted global oil giant Total's US$320 mln investment for a 50 per cent participating interest in Red Leaf's Seep Ridge project, which lies just 15 km away from TomCo's Holliday block.

FTSE 250 firm Afren, which has assets across 12 countries, has a potentially game-changing exploration campaign this year, says Bank of America Merrill Lynch. It is targeting 630 million barrels of oil equivalent through drilling up to 14 wells across Kurdistan and Africa.

The gas and good news just keep on flowing for AIM listed explorer Cove Energy, which this morning announced a major new discovery off the coast of Mozambique.

Shares in Chariot Oil & Gas fell by almost 40 per cent in morning trade after it plugged and abandoned the Tapir South exploration well, off the coast of Namibia.

Shares in Enegi Oil shot up 30 per cent in morning trade after it said its Garden Hill South discovery in Canada is larger than first thought.

Providence Resources signalled this morning it isn’t prepared to dwell on its recent success – and nor can it afford to with no fewer than seven appraisal, exploration opportunities slated for the next 18 months.

Providence Resources signalled this morning it isn’t prepared to dwell on its recent success – and nor can it afford to with no fewer than seven appraisal, exploration and production opportunities slated for the next 18 months.

Shares in Gulf Keystone Petroleum rose 10 per cent in morning trade as it hit back “unfounded speculation” it is planning a cash call.

3Legs Resources is an unconventional oil and gas resources company with big ambitions for shale gas in Europe.

The Irish oil explorer today told investors that the basal reservoir sands that flowed in the recent Barryroe well are ‘widely developed’ in the surrounding area.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum hit back today at “unfounded speculation” it is planning a cash call.

Coal bed methane is already used extensively in Australia and Asia and advocates say it can do the same for the energy supply in the UK as shale has for the US.

The new strategy will focus on low-cost, shallow appraisal drilling around the Tkibuli-Shaori coal bed methane field, which straddles the central sections of the Range's two onshore blocks VIa and VIb.

Tower has a 15 per cent stake in an exploration venture led by operator Arcadia Expro Namibia which, the broker says, is close to completing a farm-out deal that would help the partners move closer to drilling.