A reasonably busy week on the small cap oil front.
Falcon Oil & Gas (LON:FOG) chief executive Philip O'Quigley said that with “very encouraging” results in a new emerging shale play, the firm was uniquely positioned in an otherwise challenging oil and gas sector.
A fast-tracked exploration drilling programme, of three wells, was completed earlier this month.
Positive results from the first two wells, both vertical, lead to the drilling of an additional horizontal well being brought forward by about 12 months.
Elsewhere, Nigeria-focused Mart Resources (CVE:MMT) said Umusadege field production during October 2015 averaged around 14,320 barrels of oil per day as it gave its usual update on operations.
Production for the month for the field was in the region of 443,860 barrels.
Aggregate calculated Umusadege field downtime during October was around eight days; there were shut-downs of the Trans Forcados pipeline and the NAOC export pipeline during October 2015 due to operational interruptions for general pipeline and facility maintenance; a shut-down due to a lack of storage capacity at the Forcados terminal, and repairs required due to vandalism, Mart revealed.
To the other side of the planet and Alaska oil explorer 88 Energy (LON:88E) expects to resume drilling at its Icewine project after successful repairs to the drawworks.
The well reached a depth of 8,773 feet before the delay and is scheduled to go down to 11,600 feet.
“Current operations involve pulling out of hole to conduct a routine statutory test of the blow out preventer equipment prior to drilling ahead through the remaining Brookian sequence.
“Fortunately, significant time was clawed back prior to the issues and we currently expect to remain within the bdget despite the downtime,” said the company.
Oilex (LON:OEX, ASX:OEX) has launched a review of its strategy and financing plans after shareholders voted down all resolutions at the company’s AGM this week.
The vote means Jeffrey Auld has not been re-elected as an independent director, nor has Sundeep Bhandari who withdrew his nomination. Shareholders also voted against resolutions relating to director remuneration and changes to the company’s constitution.
“The remaining board members recognise the dissatisfaction demonstrated by these votes,” chairman Max Cozijn said in a stock market statement.
Cozijn told investors that the company would now review its strategic plan and financing of the Cambay field, its core asset.
SeaEnergy (LON:SEA) has agreed a £1mln working capital loan for 12 months to help it battle the impact of the slide in oil prices, it emerged this week.
The group’s main subsidiary R2S has developed software that generates 3D photographic models of facilities such as oil rigs to help with their maintenance.
Business has slowed as oil majors have cut back and revenue in 2015 is now expected to be between £2.6 and £2.8mln, resulting in a significant loss.
Software licence income has held up, but the reduction in oil company operating budgets had severely impacted new image capture and recapture activities and levels of digital media work.
Fresh from hailing Argentina's election result earlier this week Madalena Energy (CVE:MVN, OTCMKTS:MDLNF) was celebrating a move into the black on Wednesday.
Net income in the three months ended 30 September was C$5.30mln, compared to a net loss the year before of C$612,000.
Gross revenue surged to C$45.88mln from C$30.86mln, taking the revenue for the first nine months of the year just over the C$100mln mark (2014: C$46.3mln).
Meanwhile, Teythys Petroleum (LON:TPL, TSE:TPL) says it intends to repay owed monies to both AGR Energy and Nostrum Oil & Gas as soon as it receives a draw-down of a new financing facility from Olisol Investments.
The AIM quoted company today told investors that it has received an accelerated repayment notice from AGR, which notifies of events of default and demands repayment of a US$7.5mln debenture and accrued interest of US$443,984.