Union Jack Oil PLC (LON:UJO) shares dropped 39.39% to 0.10p after the oil and gas company confirmed that local authorities refused planning permission for the development of the Wressle oil field in North Lincolnshire.
Egdon Resources, the operator of the field in Wressle with a 25% stake, announced that North Lincolnshire County Council's planning committee has today turned down planning consent for licences PEDL180 and PEDL182.
Union Jack holds a 15% interest in both licences.
Mark Abbott, managing director of Egdon Resources, said: "We are very disappointed by the decision of the Committee that goes against the positive recommendation of their Planning Officer which was determined after an extensive and thorough review of our proposals.
Shares in Edgon Resources fell 7.69% to 750p.
Europa Oil and Gas Holdings plc (LON:EOG), which has a 30% working interest in Wressle, also saw its share price slip 11.76% to 5.625p following the announcement.
Tristel shares climb as it buys stake in Mobile ODT
Tristel Plc (LON:TSTL) shares rose as the manufacturer of infection prevention products announced that it has made a US$750,000 investment in Israeli company, Mobile ODT.
Tristel has bought a 3.27% stake in Mobile ODT, which has developed a smartphone-based medical device to make diagnostics available at the point-of-care.
MODT has raised a total US$10.7mln in funding. Tristel said it will have a seat on the MODT board of directors.
MODT’s smartphone-based medical device, EVA System, allows healthcare providers to examine patients for indications of cervical cancer using a colposcopy. The product was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration last year.
11.36am: SQS Software Quality Systems rallies as it expects second half revenue growth
SQS Software Quality Systems (LON:SQS) shares rose 12.43% to 497.50p after saying it expects second half revenue in 2017 to be ahead of the first half on the back of business wins.
In a trading update for the six months ended 30 June, the provider of quality assurance services for digital business processes said revenues are anticipated to be €160.4mln, flat on the previous six months but down from the €160.5mln posted in the year-ago period.
The decline is due to absorbing the effects of a €7.0mln loss of a banking client.
But in the second half of 2017, revenue is forecast to be “slightly” above the first with a number of known business wins starting later in the year.
“The company currently has a stronger pipeline than in 2016 and is well placed to benefit from a range of emerging growth opportunities in what is a very exciting market,” it said.
In the first half of 2017, adjusted underlying earnings (EBIT) are expected to rise 4.8% year-on-year to €12.0mln, reversing a downward trend the second half of 2016, as EBIT margins increased to 7.5% from 6.9%.
Harvest Minerals shares rise on positive agronomic results
Harvest Minerals Limited (LON:HMI) shares climbed 27.94% to 10.875p after announcing “excellent” agronomic results from its Arapua fertiliser project in Brazil.
Multiple soil incubation tests showed that its KPfértil product had a positive agronomic efficiency, increasing the potassium, phosphate, silicate, calcium and magnesium in the pH of the soil and correcting the soil acidity. Recently harvested rice crop showed that larger, healthier plants developed when KPfértil was applied.
Nyota Minerals slides as shareholders reject share consolidation and fundraising plans
Nyota Minerals Ltd (LON:NYO) was under the cosh after saying that its shareholders have rejected its share consolidation and fundraising plans at its annual general meeting.
Shares declined 16.67% to 0.0375p.
The company had in May said would seek approval for plans to place a further 187.8mln shares to raise £37,552 following a £56,328 fundraising. It also sought approval to issue 91.4 million share warrants and a 400-to-1 share consolidation.
While shareholders did not approve these proposals, they did approve the group’s de-listing from the Australian Stock Exchange, as well as the conversion of a £200,000 loan from Bigdish Ventures Ltd to shares at the same price as the planned share issue.
Altona Energy shares edge lower
Altona Energy plc (LON:ANR) shares edged down 11.76% to 0.375p after saying that Tri-Star has indicated it will not consider a commercial deal with its South Australian joint venture, Arckaringa Coal Chemical.
Following several weeks of negotiations, Tri-Star said it will not relinquish is petroleum exploration licence application 604 and signalled that it will not agree a commercial deal. The commercial deal would have granted access to certain areas covered by the licence application to commence test work for its proposed underground coal gasification project.
The South Australian Government has now intervened in the matter on request from the JV.
09.11am: Sound Energy plunges as warns it may plug and abandon well
Sound Energy PLC (LON: SOU) shares fell 39.61% to 46.50p after saying it may plug and abandon its Badile onshore exploration well in Italy.
The company drilled the well to a total 4472m measured depth and has assessed the gas volumes as sub-commercial, meaning it is not expected to be developed and placed on production within a reasonable time frame.
Sound Energy will run a limited set of logs and if sub-commercial volumes are confirmed, it will be followed by operations to plug and abandon the well.
“The likely sub-commercial volumes at Badile are of course a disappointment,” said chief executive James Parsons.
“Our focus now returns to our more material Eastern Moroccan position, where the seismic acquisition has begun and we are positioning for further drilling in the fourth quarter of this year."
Nu-Oil & Gas shares jump as it starts first phase of Canada project
Nu-Oil & Gas plc (LON:NUOG) gained as it announced that operations on onshore petroleum lease PL2002-01(A) in western Newfoundland, Canada, started after receiving government approval for the first phase of the work programme.
The first phase involves a wireline operation to clean up the PAP#1-ST#3 well and mill out a physical obstruction that is believed to have been restricting flow. The well will then be flowed for between 15 and 30 days to allow for analysis and evaluation of the resulting production.
PVF Energy Services is providing the financing for the project and in turn Nu-Oil will share net revenue from production of the lease on a 50/50 basis after paying back costs.
Shares jumped 30.56% to 0.47p.
Frontera Resources on the front foot as it cuts debt
Frontera Resources Corporation (LON:FRR) shares edged up 10.53% to 0.21p after the oil and gas company eliminated debt through the conversion of management debt into equity.
Directors Steve Nicandros and Zaza Mamulaishvili converted into equity about US$26mln in loans they had provided to the company to support operational and working capital requirements.
The conversion was at a fixed price of 1p per share, marking a significant premium to the current market price.
Following the conversion, Frontera has issued 2,013,239,300 new ordinary shares, representing 18.01% of the enlarged share capital.
Trakm8 shares decline as full year profit plunges
Trakm8 Holdings PLC (LON:TRAK) shares dropped 5.63% to 100.50p after the telematics and data provider reported a 77% drop in full year pre-tax profit to £0.9mln, reflecting delayed contract wins and investments.
Chairman John Watkins said investments it made in preparation for growth resulted in a significant increase in costs while contracts that were expected to be secured were won too late in the year to benefit revenues. Revenue rose 4.0% to £26.8mln in the year to 31 March 2017.
“This resulted in disappointing results for the year when compared to our original expectations,” Watkins said. “However, this investment in new products provides a strong pipeline of opportunities for the future.”
Proactive news headlines...
Tidal power specialist Atlantis Resources PLC (LON:ARL) has met the its minimum subscription amount of £2mln through its bond launched with renewable–focused peer-to-peer lending platform Abundance Investment.
Strong demand has seen £2.6 mln, more than 52% of the maximum amount, subscribed to in the first week since launch. Subscriptions will continue up to a maximum of £5 mln.
The countdown is on for Jersey Oil and Gas PLC’s (LON:JOG) high impact summer exploration programme in the North Sea. In a statement, Jersey has confirmed that the Transocean Spitsbergen rig has been mobilised for a three well programme under contract with Statoil.
Genetic biomarkers supplied by Horizon Discovery Group PLC’s (LON:HZD) were used as the reference standard in a recent US pre-market approval application for a colorectal cancer diagnostic tool, it said today.
Plastics Capital Plc (LON:PLA) reported strong growth in revenues in its latest full year helped by a Brexit tailwind. Revenues rose 29.5% to £65.8mln, while underlying profits were 7% higher at £4.35mln.
Trevor Brown, a director of Flying Brands Ltd (LON:FBDU), has elected to convert £56,000 of his convertible loan notes into 5.86mln Flying Brands shares. The notes, which were issued in March 2015, were converted at 1.1p a share.
Quartix Holdings plc (LON:QTX) is on the right route to achieving full-year expectations. New installations of tracking systems grew by 44% year-on-year to 14,300 vehicles.
Tethyan Resources PLC (LON:TETH) has completed a four-hole drilling programme on the Rudnitza copper porphyry prospect on the Suva Ruda project in Serbia. The core samples are now undergoing analysis at ALS Laboratories in Bor, Serbia, with results expected in August,
Amur Minerals Corporation (LON:AMC) has appointed a corporate advisor to assist in securing financing for the development of its Kun-Manie nickel and copper project in Russia.Medea Capital Partners Ltd. will advise Amur on its financing options for the project, including the debt market, off-take agreements and strategic equity partners.
Ferrum Crescent Limited (LON:FCR) has disposed of its Moonlight iron ore project in South Africa for a nominal A$1,000. Instead the focus will be on zinc assets in Spain, where exploration is underway.
Anglesey Mining plc (LON:AYM) will release results from an updated scoping study at Parys Mountain later this month. The studies are expected to show reduced operating costs and increased output at the copper-zinc project
Agronomic tests at the Arapua project of Harvest Minerals Limited (LON:HMI) have demonstrated the fertiliser product to be a highly effective nutrient and soil reconditioner
Trevor Brown, a director of Flying Brands Ltd (LON:FBDU) has elected to convert £56,000 of his convertible loan notes into 5.86mln Flying Brands shares.