Zoltav Resources Inc (LON: ZOL), the Russia-focused oil and gas exploration and production company, was 19% higher at 41p after its half-year report.
The company noted that the production decline from the existing well stock on the west Bortovoy fields was steeper in the first half of 2019 than in preceding periods, contributing to a slide in revenues and a loss for the period of 170mln rubles, versus a profit the year before of 101mln rubles.
On the plus side, the development programme aimed at reversing the production decline from the West Bortovoy fields continued to advance throughout the reporting period.
2.30pm: Vast Resources unearths £1.8mln from investors
Vast Resources PLC (LON:VAST) has raised £1.80mln through a share subscription at 0.2p a share, sending the shares 7% higher to 0.305p.
The company also revealed that it expects to sign binding documentation for a finance facility of US$13.5mln (net) later this week.
Chief executive officer Andrew Prelea told Proactive that the company is now fully financed through to production at its flagship projects in Zimbabwe and Romania.
1.30pm: Power Metal relates good news from down on the old farms
Power Metal Resources PLC (LON:POW) shot up 20% to 0.45p after confirming the existence of nickel sulphide targets at its Molopo Farms Complex project.
The Molopo Farms project in Botswana consists of licences covering an area of 2,725 square kilometres that are considered prospective for nickel, copper and platinum group metals and is 100% owned by Kalahari Key.
"I am delighted that our shareholders have exposure to the Kalahari Key opportunity and, potentially in the near term, to the upside potential that comes with drilling for massive nickel sulphides,” said executive director of Power Metal, Paul Johnson.
12.30pm: Greggs' key takeaway? Slowing growth.
Greggs PLC (LON:GRG) is a takeaway food retailer and the key takeaway from this morning’s trading update was slowing growth.
The Geordie fast-food chain reported total revenues in the 13 weeks to 28 September of 12.4% with like-for-like sales up 7.4%.
This was down slightly from the 14.7% jump in sales in the first half, when LFL sales were up 10.5% but remains impressive in the face of subdued updates from the wider sector.
Nevertheless, the shares were not selling like hotcakes on Tuesday afternoon and were down 11% at 1,856p.
11.30am: Lansdowne loses patience
Lansdowne Oil & Gas PLC (LON:LOGP) lost a fifth of its value after the Barryroe farm-out transaction hit a major snag.
The North Celtic Sea focused oil and gas company has lost patience with China's APEC, which was supposed to stump up US$9mln in the form of a loan to the Barryroe partners but hasn’t.
After extending the deadline on several occasions, Lansdowne has cut the cord with APEC and says it is now free to initiate commercial discussions with third parties on the Barryroe asset.
Shares in Lansdowne were down 20% at 0.8p; its UK-listed partner, Providence Resources PLC (LON:PVR), shed 17% at 3.9p.
10.30am: Sofa, so not-so-good
Shares in ScS Group PLC (LON:SCS) fell out of bed this morning as the sofa seller revealed a sharp fall in like-for-like order intake.
The past two months recorded a 7.6% year-on-year plunge, a sharp fall considering in the preceding 52 weeks, the financial year closed on 27 July with a 4.2% increase driven by online and core in-store furniture offerings.
The home furnishing retailer said the poor comparative performance was due to record temperatures over the August bank holiday weekend as well as political turmoil, which may affect consumer sentiment, cause increased costs due to exchange rate fluctuations and border delays affecting lead times.
9.30am: (Crimson) Tide turns for mobile data solutions provider
Mobile data solutions provider Crimson Tide PLC (LON:TIDE) was the top riser early doors, soaring 20% to 2.7p on the back of a contract win.
The contracted revenue, from an unnamed UK retailer, is for a minimum of £1.4mln over three years.
Crimson Tide’s mpro5 platform will now be used in nearly 4,000 retail locations across the UK and Ireland alone, with international expansion potential, the company said.
Investors tapped into Ferguson PLC (LON:FERG), sending the shares 3.0% higher to 6,122p in early deals after the plumbers' merchant topped expectations with its results.
For the year to the end of July 2019, Ferguson notched up revenue of US$22.01bn, up 6.1% from US$20.75bn the year before and slightly ahead of market expectations of US$21.87bn.
Ongoing trading profit of US$1.6bn was slightly ahead of expectations, which were for a profit of US$1.57bn, and up from US$1.49bn the previous year.
Proactive news headlines
Next Fifteen Communications Group PLC (LON:NFC) is to acquire US health consultancy and communications agency Health Unlimited in a US$27.7mln deal.
Amryt Pharma PLC’s (LON:AMYT) drug for a rare and serious skin condition has been given fast-track status by the US regulator.
H&T GROUP PLC (LON:HAT) has snapped up 113 pledge books from bust rival Albemarle & Bond (A&B) for £8mln in cash, guaranteeing its customers can retrieve their goods.
IQ-AI Ltd (LON:IQAI) is in discussions with CT equipment suppliers and kidney sector specialists about how best to launch its Stonechecker technology into the US.
Shanta Gold Ltd (LON:SHG) has returned positive surface exploration drilling results from its ongoing exploration programmes within its existing mining licences at the New Luika gold mine in south western Tanzania.
Clean energy specialist Aggregated Micro Power Holdings PLC (LON:AMPH) has increased the targets for its Urban Reserve grid-balancing business.
Tower Resources PLC (LON:TRP) continues to work on an extension to a bridge loan facility and has confirmed that the majority of the facility’s lenders have agreed.
C4X Discovery Holdings plc (LON:C4XD) said it is “very confident” of delivering deals in the near future. In a business update it said it is in licensing discussions with potential partners for two of its early-stage drugs, while collaborations with two life sciences groups are making progress.
Providence Resources PLC (LON:PVR) has evidently lost patience with its proposed farm-out partner’s non-payment of an agreed loan advance.
Premier African Minerals Ltd (LON:PREM) closed out the period with US$1.2mln cash in the bank.
Arc Minerals Ltd (LON:ARCM) closed out the financial year to 31 March 2019 with just over £1.2mln in the bank. It was a period of considerable change and progress for the company as it increased its’ interest in Zamsort Limited from 14% to 66%, giving it control of a significant copper opportunity in Zambia.
Anglo Asian Mining PLC (LON:AAU) has entertained a delegation from the British Embassy in Azerbaijan at its Gedabek gold, copper and silver mine.