Altona Energy PLC (LON:ANR) said resolutions to remove Zhang Qinfu and Ma Chi as directors of the company were not passed at today’s general meeting.
The result has not gone down too well in the City as the shares are off by almost a third.
Zhang Qinfu used to be executive chairman of the company but was supplanted by Tim Jones as non-executive chairman in late November. Zhang Qinfu remained on the board as an executive director.
The meeting was called for by Leon Hogan, Nicholas Lyth and Robert Hales, who, in aggregate, hold about 15% of the issued share capital of the company.
Seeing as Lyth is chief executive of the company and Hales a non-executive director, the board is clearly divided.
Hogan holds around 13.8% of the company.
The company has been assessing the use of a pyrolysis technology to convert waste to electricity at a potential joint venture in Spain also the potential use of this technology with its own coal assets in South Australia.
It was even considering changing its name to Sustainable Energy Group but knocked that idea on the head.
Judging by a statement read out at the general meeting by a representative of Zhang Qinfu, there is a difference in opinion over what the company’s priority should be.
"Altona is an energy resource company with abundant coal resources in Australia. Our initial focus should be to investigate the feasibility of product extraction for this coal resource. That is our advantage,” Zhang Qinfu’s statement said.
“The focus of the company's development should be on coal mining and Underground Coal Gasification, and I believe that is the company's future. If the directors make wrong decisions about the company's development direction, it is unlikely that we will ever recover our lost value,” the statement said.
$ANR - Altona Energy PLC Result of General Meeting https://t.co/AOKHTWxxZs
— Adam Thornton (@Adamthornton121) January 14, 2019
2.30pm: Tri-Star laid low by engineering glitches at gold processing facility in Oman
Tri-Star Resources PLC (LON:TSTR), the mining and minerals processing company, was the top faller Monday after an operational update.
The shares plummeted by more than a third as it revealed “some engineering glitches” have arisen during the commissioning of the antimony-gold processing facility in Oman, in which it has a 40% stake.
While work to date demonstrates that the process is fundamentally working well, certain engineering issues having been encountered for which remediation requirements are understood and in process, the company said.
As a result of the delays, the owner of the plant, Strategic & Precious Metals Processing (SPMP), will need further funding for additional capital expenditure and for working capital.
Tri-Star said the funding could come from local Omani or international banks; from other funding providers or from SPMP’s shareholders.
As an interim measure, SPMP has requested an additional US$10.5mln from its shareholders and discussions are ongoing between SPMP and its shareholders as to how this finance may best be provided.
1.30pm: White knight for Gulf Marine Services?
Seafox International is standing in the market offering to buy at least 47mln shares of Gulf Marine Services PLC (LON:GMS) at 18p a pop.
It has charged Numis Securities with a “fill or kill” order, which basically means that no shares will be purchased unless the company can acquire at least 47 million of them, which would represent 13.45% of the issued share capital of Gulf Marine Services (GMS).
Seeing as the mid-market closing price of GMS on Friday was 17p, this has provided a boost to GMS’s share price, which is now up to 18.3p.
The provider of offshore jack-up units had hoped to build a 25% stake in GMS, a provider of advanced self-propelled self-elevating support vessels (SESVs) to the energy industry, by acquiring the shares directly from existing shareholders but has now knocked that plan on the head, preferring instead to acquire the shares in the market.
GMS recently presented innovative plug & abandonment solutions at a conference hosted by PACE in Aberdeen. The cantilever system fitted to GMS Evolution significantly increases efficiency, enhances safety & reduces the cost of decommissioning fields: https://t.co/xWlaVxytYL pic.twitter.com/7eOECwjUmz
— Gulf Marine Services (@gmsuae) December 10, 2018
Following completion of this purchase, Seafox confirms it will not purchase any shares (other than from GMS itself) above 18 pence per share for a period of 60 days.
Seafox said it had been seeking new investment opportunities to deepen its capabilities globally and decided cash-strapped GMS would be a good company to invest in.
GMS recently revealed that some contracts had been subject to delay and that it expected to breach its banking covenants as a result.
Seafox said that if it does build up a major shareholding in GMS it would seek representation on the board.
12.30pm: MC Mining completes vital acquisition
MC Mining Limited (LON:MCM): worst rapper’s name ever, maybe, but a decent share to be holding on Monday.
The stock was up 11.8% at 57p after the company said the previously announced transaction to acquire the Lukin and Salaita properties had now gone through.
The acquisition was regarded as being vital for the company’s Makhado hard coking and thermal coal project in South Africa.
"The acquisition of Lukin and Salaita completes the suite of surface rights required for our flagship Makhado Project and the initial tranche of the purchase price was settled using internal cash flows,” declared David Brown. MC Mining’s chief executive officer.
“The transaction will facilitate the commencement of the final geotechnical drilling and related studies required for the siting of the mine's infrastructure. In parallel, we continue to progress off-take negotiations for the balance of the Makhado coking and thermal coal as well as discussions with potential funders,” Brown said.
11.30am: Highlands Natural Resources on a high as eight wells come online
Highlands Natural Resources PLC (LON:HNR) said eight new wells at the East Denver project are now online as production wells.
The news helped propel the shares 3.2p higher to 13.5p, making the stock the third-best performer in London on Monday morning. The shares ended 2018 at 10.6p.
READ Highlands Natural Resources says all eight new East Denver wells are now online
More importantly, HNR’s 7.5% share of revenue from the wells should fully cover all of the company’s overheads.
10.45am: Revolution lowers the bar; Goals Soccer Centres pays the penalty
“I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday” could well be the theme song for Revolutions Bars Group PLC (LON:RBG).
Unfortunately, Christmas comes but once a year and although the bars operator received a good Yuletide boost it came a bit later than it normally does.
As a result, the company warned investors that profits in the current fiscal year (which runs to the end of May) will be around 20% below what it achieved in 2018.
But if you are sticking to #DryJan our January Cocktail Specials are only a lil' bit boozy, but still loadsa fun! ???????????????? pic.twitter.com/qb3Wx871ZR
— Revolution Bars (@RevolutionBars) January 10, 2019
“Revolution Bars has been a favourite among many retail investors for several years with individuals attracted to its upmarket proposition and that fact it was previously a takeover target for Slug and Lettuce-owner Stonegate Pub Company with a 203p per share offer in August 2017,” observed Russ Mould, the investment director at AJ Bell.
“Unfortunately clinging on to past ‘achievements’ would have been the wrong strategy to pursue, judging by yet another profit warning from the business.
“Falling sales and rising costs, together with a cautious outlook, has forced the company to downgrade earnings expectations, and thus the shares have slumped to an all-time low.
“Some investors may wonder if this renewed share price weakness will attract another bid for the company. If it does, you can bet that it won’t be at the same level as before.
“A suitor, if there is one at all, may question why the business has been struggling for several years and whether its proposition is actually right or not for the current market environment,” Mould concluded.
Another leisure company dealing a kick in the orchestras* to its shareholders was Goals Soccer Centres PLC (LON:GOAL), the operator of (as the name almost implies) outdoor football centres.
The company has warned on profits after the growth in business at newly opened clubs in the US was not as rapid as hoped while margins on ancillary activities – sales of half-time oranges and the post-match cup of Bovril, etc. - were squeezed.
Shares in Revolution tumbled 18.7% to 99p while Goals Soccer slumped 16% to 60.5p.
What a disaster of a share Goals Soccer Centres has turned into. Material director buying in 2014 above 200p proved misguided. Latest warning leaves balance sheet looking vulnerable
One of my best shares in 2012, I kept a small holding in the ensuing years before moving on
— James Flavin (@jamesflavin) January 14, 2019
* Rhyming slang (orchestra stalls)
9.15am: Photonstar LED brighter on hopes of appointing Nomad, Horizonte expands after award of construction licence at Araguaia
As names go, Martin Lampshire is a great one for a non-executive director of PhotonStar LED Group PLC (LON:PSL), the intelligent lighting solutions provider.
Lampshire is a corporate broking veteran who has assisted many companies in their fund-raising efforts. He provides consultancy services to Peterhouse Capital Limited who act as the group's joint broker.
It would be nice to think that the announcement of his appointment was responsible for the company’s shares surging by more than a third this morning but a more likely explanation is that the rise was due to the company revealing a reasonable level of confidence it would have a new nominated advisor (Nomad) in place by the end of the month.
2018 was a dark year for the company with the company taking the tough decision to place its loss-making fixed lighting subsidiary into liquidation.
About three weeks before the company bit the bullet and cast adrift the biggest part of its business it was informed by Northland Capital Partners that it would cease to be Photonstar’s Nomad on 1 February.
In order for its shares to be traded on AIM, a company must have a Nomad at all times, so news that the company is in discussions with a potential new nominated advisor is a welcome development.
Photonstar warned there is no guarantee that it will appoint a new hand-holder by the end of this month but it sounds as if the wheels are in motion.
The real deadline the company is working towards is 1 March; if it has not found a new nomad by then its listing on AIM would be cancelled.
Photonstar was the top riser in early deals, followed by Horizonte Minerals Plc (LON:HZM), which was up 14.5% following the award of a construction licence for the development of its Araguaia ferronickel project in Pará State, Brazil.
Horizonte now has the permits required to construct the Araguaia rotary kiln electric furnace, processing plant and associated infrastructure.
It means Araguaia is now fully permitted to commence construction.
Other Proactive news headlines:
Highlands Natural Resources Plc (LON:HNR) has told investors that all eight new wells at the East Denver project are now online as production wells. The company owns a 7.5% interest in East Denver and it expects it will now receive robust revenue streams from the wells throughout 2019.
Ariana Resources PLC (LON:AAU) produced 27,110 ounces of gold during the year to December 2018, exceeding initial full year production guidance of 20,000 ounces. Gold production for the fourth quarter was 7,517 ounces.
SDX Energy Inc (LON:SDX) (CVE:SDX) has revealed a positive start to 2019 with the SRM-3 well, at the South Ramadan project in Egypt, unearthing oil pay in multiple reservoir zones. SRM-3 was drilled down to a depth of 15,635 feet. It encountered 75 feet of net conventional oil pay in its primary target, the Matulla reservoir, also 20 feet in the Brown Limestone formation and 15 feet in the Sudr section.
Digital marketing services company Be Heard Group PLC (LON:BHRD) saw a marked improvement in underlying profitability in the second half of 2018.
Radiation detection solutions specialist Kromek Group PLC (LON:KMK) is on track to achieve revenue growth and in-line underlying earnings (EBITDA) over the full year.
ITM Power PLC (LON:ITM) has secured the first sales of its hydrogen production systems in Australia. Four of the AIM company’s 250-kilowatt (kW) electrolyser units totalling 1-megawatt (MW) have been sold to three different Aussie customers.
Coinsilium Group Limited (AQSE:COIN) has hailed “record levels of institutional investment” in blockchain companies over the last 12 months as it issued a strategic business update.
Plexus Holdings PLC (LON:POS) has revealed a deal with Russia-focused partner Gusar which is expected to inject new impetus to the roll-out of the POS-GRIP jack-up rig systems. AIM-quoted Plexus will buy-back 4.95mln of its shares currently held by Gusar for £2.5mln of cash, with the transaction priced at 50.5p per share.
Caledonia Mining Corporation PLC (LON:CMCL) produced 14,952 ounces of gold during the quarter ended December 31, 2018, a seven per cent increase over the previous quarter. Total gold production for the year to December 31, 2018 was approximately 54,512 ounces.
Obtala Limited (LON:OBT), the Africa-focused forestry and timber group, saw a sharp quarter-on-quarter increase in revenue in the fourth quarter of 2018 and expects this trend to accelerate in 2019.
ADES International Holding Ltd. (LON:ADES), a leading oil & gas drilling and production services provider in the Middle East and North Africa, announced that it has successfully exercised the one-year extension option for its existing contract for Admarine II. The group said that the contract extension of Admarine II, which is currently contracted and operating in the Gulf of Suez, comes into effect upon expiry of its existing contract during January 2019.
Tekcapital PLC’s (LON:TEK) portfolio firm Guident has appointed Daniel Grossman as a director. The UK IP investment firm said Grossman had previously served as chief executive of commuter shuttle service Chariot and vice-president of ZipCar as well as chief operating officer of General Motors’ mobility division, Maven. BP August
Seeing Machines Limited (LON:SEE), the advanced computer vision technology company that designs AI-powered operator monitoring systems to improve transport safety, noted that General Motors has been named the winner of the Autoblog 2019 Technology of the Year award for its Cadillac Super Cruise system which incorporates the group’s FOVIO driver monitoring technology to enhance safety, through direct measurement and enforcement of driver attentiveness to the roadway.