The UK Government has committed to granting UK oil and gas licences despite new projects going against 2050 net-zero targets.
Graham Stuart, minister for climate and net zero, confirmed the government’s stance at the Innovate Zero Congress but refused to comment on any specific project.
Solar investments will outdo oil for the first time in 2023, the International Energy Agency predicts, likely surpassing £1bn a day globally.
“If these clean energy investments continue to grow in line with what we have seen in the past few years […] we will soon start to see a very different energy system emerging and we can keep the 1.5C goal alive,” executive director Fatih Birol said.
RA International Group PLC (AIM:RAI) shares dropped 17.5% to 13p after the specialist in remote construction sites reported a big fall in underlying profits and remained cautious for the year ahead.
Revenue rose 15% to US$62.9mln in 2022 but underlying profit (EBITDA) crumbled 91% to US$0.6mln, with underlying EBITDA margin shrinking to 1.0% from 12.3%.
ADM Energy PLC (AIM:ADME, ETR:P4JC) shares jumped 7% as the company revealed an investment in five onshore US oil leases through a joint deal with OFX Holdings, a substantial shareholder.
The total maximum cost is US$1.61mln, which will be made through the acquisition of Blade Oil V, a Texas limited liability company established as a vehicle for the deal.
Scirocco Energy PLC (AIM:SCIR) told investors it could receive a US$5.5mln boon in the coming months if the Ruvuma project in Tanzania accelerates as currently predicted.
The company, in a statement, said that ARA Petroleum Tanzania (APT) – the operator and the acquirer of Scirocco’s interest in the asset – is continuing its advanced negotiations with the Tanzanian authorities over a gas sales deal which could bring forward the timeline to commercial production from Ruvuma.
Barclays strategists say UK and European small and mid caps (SMID) offer an attractive opportunity for long-term investors after they sharply underperformed large caps since the banking wobbles in March.
The MSCI Europe Small Cap Index is down 20% from its 2021 highs while the large cap equivalent is pretty much back at its highs. And as for the UK, the mid-caps are in focus, with the FTSE 250 down around 20% versus the FTSE 100 from the relative highs of two years ago.
Dividends from the world’s largest companies reached a record in the first quarter of this year, as banks and oil companies led the way in rewarding shareholders.
Some US$326.7bn was paid out by 1,200 companies in the first three months of the year, according to asset manager Janus Henderson, a rise of 12% year on year.
Bitcoin billionaires Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss are mulling setting up a second headquarters for their Gemini exchange in the UK to avoid what they say is a hostile climate for crypto in the US.
Famous for once suing Mark Zuckerburg over claims he stole the idea for Facebook from them, the twins reportedly met with the FCA this week to discuss the proposal and also look at potential locations for a base in London.
Corcel PLC (LSE:CRCL) shares advanced in Wednesday morning’s trade after the firm announced a deal to acquire onshore oil assets in Angola, including past-producing fields which it plans to reactivate.
The company, in a statement, said it agreed to buy a 90% stake in Atlas Petroleum Exploration Worldwide (APEX), which has interests of between 20% and 35% in a total of seven fields in the Kwanza basin.
Hurricane Energy PLC's (LSE:HUR) takeover by Prax Exploration & Production is now advancing after the proposed transaction was approved by the UK authorities.
The company, in a stock market statement, told investors that Prax has now received confirmation from the Cabinet Office that the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster has determined that no further action will be taken under the National Security and Investment Act 2021.
Jersey Oil and Gas PLC (AIM:JOG, OTC:JYOGF) (JOG) chief executive Andrew Benitz described “an instrumental year in securing the future success of the company” as the UK North Sea junior reported its financial results for the 12 months ended 31 December 2022.
It covers the financial period that preceded Jersey’s divestment of a 50% stake in the Greater Buchan Area (GBA) in a partnership deal with NEO Energy, which is due to completed before the end of next month.
Africa Oil Corp (TSX:AOI) has announced it is to withdraw from its joint venture agreements and production-sharing contracts in Kenya.
The company said it has submitted withdrawal notices to its joint venture partners on Blocks 10BB, 13T, and 10BA, effectively terminating its involvement in these concessions.
Saudi Arabia’s energy minister has warned oil speculators to “watch out” ahead of the latest meeting since OPEC+ members opted to slash output in early April.
“I would just tell them to watch out,” Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said on Tuesday, hinting that those betting against oil price rises could be left hurting after the meeting in Vienna on June 4.
Tullow Oil PLC (LSE:TLW) stock stayed steady in Tuesday morning’s deals after the London-listed oiler told investors its partners in Kenya have exited the appraisal and field development project.
The company, in a statement, said it will now retain 100% of Blocks 10BB, 13T and 10BA in the South Lokichar Basin following the exit of Africa Oil and TotalEnergies from the joint venture.
Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited (LSE:GKP) (GKP) has cancelled plans for a US$25mln shareholder payout as the production shutdown in the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq persists.
The Kurdistan-focussed small-cap oiler’s Shaikan field was closed after a pipeline from Iraq into Turkey was shut-in back in March.
Southern Energy Corp (TSX-V:SOU, AIM:SOUC, OTC:MAXMD) has agreed a deal to acquire the remaining producing acreage in the Gwinville field in Mississippi that it does not already own.
The acquisition assets presently produce around 400 barrels of oil equivalent per day (comprising 99% natural gas) and it is paying US$3.2mln to buy the wells.
Canadian Overseas Petroleum Limited (LSE:COPL, CSE:XOP) (COPL) has updated on the progress of its gas gathering system at the Barron Flats Shannon Unit (BFSU) project in Wyoming, where construction work is now advancing after pipe welding began earlier this month.
The company, in a statement, said that welding started on 10 May and construction is expected to take two to three months to complete. It will span some five miles of high-pressure steel pipe routed through the core area of the field.
Helium One Global has had its share price target tweaked upwards at from broker Liberum following the new CRR published today for the Tai prospect in Tanzania.
Describing the increase as “material, Liberum now puts a fair price on the shares of 20p, up from 19p, and against 7.1p, up 4%, in the market.
Quadrise PLC (AIM:QED) has paused its fuel trial in Morocco due to unexpected mechanical issues.
The AIM-listed company (QED) began an industrial demonstration test this week, in line with the client's production calendar.
Shares in Irish oil and gas firms Barryroe Offshore Energy PLC (AIM:BEY, OTC:PVDRF) and Lansdowne Oil & Gas (AIM:LOGP) fell in Monday’s early deals as efforts to deliver a project off the Cork coast have been stifled by the leader of Ireland’s Green Party.
Eamon Ryan, Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications in Ireland’s coalition government, at the end of last week sent a letter to the partners in the Barryroe venture stating that he is “not satisfied with the financial capability of the applicants” following a protracted assessment of an application to extend the licences that cover the Barryroe field.
Helium One Global Ltd (AIM:HE1, OTCQB:HLOGF) said it received independent verification of the prospective resources at the Tai prospect in Tanzania, with a new competent person's report (CPR) indicating a 61% upgrade in the size.
Reserves auditors ERCE now estimate Tai's unrisked prospective resources (2U) at 2.8bn cubic feet (Bcf) and total gas resources at 212.2Bcf across all formations.