Sound Energy PLC (LON:SOU) received another show of faith after its boss pumped a further £30,000 of his own money into the gas explorer.
James Parsons, who has been at the helm of Sound for more than four years now, bought 44,500 shares at the market price of 67.37p.
That purchase takes Parsons’ holding just over 1.64mln shares, representing 0.25% of the firm.
Sound’s biggest asset is its Tendrara gas licence, onshore Morocco, although it does have a portfolio of assets in Italy, including Badile which has a net present value of over £400mln.
The team at Sound reckon Tendrara has between 300bn and 500bn cubic feet of gas in place based on work carried out so far.
Also this week, Aim-listed junior Empyrean Energy PLC (LON:EME) has been awarded an large offshore permit near to Hong Kong and adjacent to an existing oil field.
Tom Kelly, chief executive, said the permit was a fantastic opportunity given the significant resource potential and the presence of two large and relatively mature drilling prospects, Jade and Topaz.
The permit area is 1,800 sq km and also contains ten leads for follow-up work as well as the two identified prospects.
Empyrean will be the operator and own 100% of the exploration rights for the block, 29/11, which is the Pearl River Mouth Basin, offshore China, around 200km from Hong Kong. A work programme required for the first 24 months will be funded from cash resources.
In broker news, analysts at Goldman Sachs reckon Tullow Oil plc (LON:TLW) is ‘operationally sound’ but the share is ‘expensive’ and as such they rate the Africa focused E&P as a 'sell'.
“We see some near-term risk to the production figures from the TEN field, until additional wells can be drilled post 2017,” analyst Duncan Milligan said in a note.
“We view the stock as pricing in closer to US$70/bl than our long-term assumption of US$60 per barrel.”
Meanwhile, Highlands Natural Resources Plc (LON:HNR) has expanded its footprint in Colorado, with a new farm-in deal that adds to the company’s East Denver oil and gas venture.
It allows drilling on three additional sections, each of which spans 640 acres.
The company highlighted that the deal means that it will be able to drill "extended lateral" horizontal wells in the Niobrara Shale, with lateral lengths of 9,000 feet.
The deal envisages Highlands drilling six extended horizontal well, with the first programme starting before September 2017, and would see the company drill the second well around 60 days after the first. After that the remainder of the wells would be drilled three months apart at most.
To China and Green Dragon Gas Ltd (LON:GDG) has agreed an extension to a US$50mln convertible bond, setting a new maturity date of December 31 2020.
Under the new terms, the bond carries a 10% coupon and it is convertible into equity at a price of US$2.83 per share, which is about 25% above Green Dragon’s current price.
Green Dragon chairman Randeep Grewal said: “We are very pleased with the continued support from GIC who has been a very supportive shareholder and bond holder since 2013.
Nostra Terra Oil & Gas Ltd (LON:NTOG) expects oil lifting costs at its recently acquired Pine Mills oil field in Texas to be reduced quickly.
Current lifting costs at Pine Mills are below $30 a barrel, but Nostra Terra believes it can reduce these significantly.
A visit to the site has identified significant savings across the operations, while workover targets should deliver incremental increases in production.
An updated reserves report is also being prepared, while hedging a portion of Pine Mills production will raise funds for further development.
Oilex Ltd (LON:OEX) revealed this week it has made an offer for the 55% stake in the Cambay field that it doesn’t already own.
The India -focused oil and gas junior’s 45% stake in Cambay is its primary asset, and state-backed partner Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation Limited (GSPC) is selling its interest in the project through a competitive process.
Whilst Oilex has submitted an offer for the 55% it also noted in a short stock market statement that it has a pre-emption right which would give it a further opportunity to pick up the asset should a third-party out-bid the company.
Elsewhere, Prospex Oil and Gas Plc (LON:PXOG) welcomes a new partner in its Boleslaw project, just days after pivotal drilling began.
The Boleslaw-1 well, on the Kolo Licence in Poland, was spudded on December 10. It is targeting gas resources in what is deemed to be an active petroleum system.
Prospex has a 49% stake in the operator, Hutton Poland.
Australian group Grand Gulf Energy has acquired a 20.4% interest in Hutton Poland for A$600,000 including its share of drilling costs for the Boleslaw well.
Lansdowne Oil & Gas Plc (LON:LOGP) has received a further £300,000 through the issue of equity, and in order to make its share of the final payment to Transocean following a Supreme Court ruling earlier this year.
To raise the funds, the Ireland focused oil company triggered an existing option under a facility with its major shareholder, Brandon Hill Capital. As a result some 30mln new shares have been issued.
Elsewhere, 88 Energy Ltd (LON:88E) told investors it has further expanded its footprint in Alaska’s North Slope through a bidding round.
It comes as the explorer is preparing a drill programme that will see the Icewine-2 kick off in the first quarter of 2017.
Alongside partner Burgundy Xploration it was named highest bidder on a package of 142,560 acres in the Central North Slope, with the AIM quoted exploration group receiving a 77% interest in the property.
At the same time Burgundy is being awarded 279,360 acres, and 88 Energy has a right to take up 30% of that acreage.
It means 88 Energy now has 400,000 net acres in the region (the gross joint venture acreage amounts to 690,000 acres).