If 2020 on AIM was the year of Covid-diagnostic companies, 2021 was a great year for commodity plays.
That being said, the best performer on AIM’s junior market was Quantum Blockchain Technologies PLC (AIM:QBT), which rose by an astonishing 975% during the year, with much of that gain coming from two rapid spurts.
The first came in February, when the company, still known at that time as Clear Leisure, completed the restructuring of its debt and did two capital raises in quick succession to raise funds to substantially increase the computing power in its cryptocurrencies data centre.
The second surge came in October after the company filed its first patent application for its ‘ASIC UltraBoost’ technology used in Bitcoin mining.
Quantum said that ASIC UltraBoost optimises Bitcoin mining by eliminating redundant computation in a key part of the algorithm, resulting in faster and more efficient mining. The plan is to use the technology in the company’s proprietary implementations of the algorithm.
So much for Bitcoin mining, what about the mining that involves picks and shovels?
Premier African Minerals Ltd (AIM:PREM) was the best of the AIM mining bunch with a 222% increase, spurred by the company receiving the formal grant of an exclusive prospecting order covering its Zulu Lithium and Tantalum claims in Zimbabwe.
Xtract Resources PLC (LSE:XTR), which tripled in price, was AIM’s gold mining champion on the back of its rewarding Bushranger project drilling programme, which sent the shares as high as 8.5p. They’ve since come off to 5.25p but few shareholders are complaining and the shares have actually had a good second half of the year.
If mining plays grabbed a bit of the spotlight, hydrocarbon plays were definitely stage centre, especially Zephyr Energy PLC, Petroneft Resources PLC (AIM:PTR, OTC:PNFTF) and 88 Energy Ltd (AIM:88E, ASX:88E, OTC:EEENF).
Zephyr Energy PLC blew 723% higher after it became a producer through the acquisition of an interest in the Bakken Formation in North Dakota, US.
Investors paid just 2p per share in Zephyr’s £10mln share placing back in March; the shares now trade at around 7p.
Petroneft Resources PLC (AIM:PTR, OTC:PNFTF) gave Zephyr a good run for its money but the share price, which started the year at 0.7p and hit 4.61p in July, flagged in the final quarter ot around 3p.
Nevertheless, the oil & gas exploration and production company, operating in the Tomsk Oblast, Russian Federation, notched up a 385% gain as it upped its stake in licence 67, which contains two oil fields, Ledovoye and Cheremshanskoye. In 2016 Rhyder Scott calculated proved + probable reserves for the Ledovoye field of 14mln barrels and proved + probable + possible reserves of 17.4 mln barrels.
88 Energy rose 210% on the year to 1.42p but shareholders will be forgiven for wishing they had sold out at 4p back in April when excitement over its Merlin-1 well in Alaska was at its peak.
The share price was a volatile performer in March and April, to say the least, but settled down in the second half of the year.
The 10 best performers on AIM in 2021
Ticker · Company · % change
QBT · Quantum Blockchain Technologies PLC (AIM:QBT) · 975
ZPHR · Zephyr Energy PLC · 723
PTR · Petroneft Resources PLC (AIM:PTR, OTC:PNFTF) · 385
ASTO · AssetCo PLC (AIM:ASTO) · 314
BOOM · AudioBoom Group PLC · 296
AFN · ADVFN (AIM:AFN) PLC · 284
PREM · Premier African Minerals Ltd (AIM:PREM) · 222
CYAN · CyanConnode Holdings PLC (AIM:CYAN) · 221
88E · 88 Energy Ltd (AIM:88E, ASX:88E, OTC:EEENF) · 209
TGL · TransGlobe Energy Corp · 197
Unforeseen problems beset renewable energy companies
If the energy companies dominated AIM’s list of big risers they also featured prominently among the big losers.
Challenger Energy Group PLC (AIM:CEG) lost 97% of its value and ended the year completing a balance sheet restructuring that it estimates will reduce its debts by around 85% by the end of the first quarter next year.
The renewable energy play was beset by technical difficulties during the year at its Ashland (NYSE:ASH) facility in Maine, USA.
Sector peer Simec Atlantis Energy Ltd (SAE) plunged 91% to 1.95p as its Uskmouth power station project in Wales was delayed following a referral to the Welsh government.
Uskmouth is built and permitted to burn coal and SAE is seeking a variation to this permit “to switch to a sustainable fuel source with significantly lower carbon emissions”.
Discussions with the independent body Natural Resources Wales (NRW) to convert Uskmouth from coal power to running on fuel pellets derived from non-recyclable waste had been going on for a year and NRW had previously indicated that it was minded to award the variation to the existing permit, SAE said.
However, SAE was subsequently notified that NRW has been directed to refer the application to the Welsh government, following a reported internal legal review.
“This further delay is a blow to South Wales and this vital green energy project at a time when the country is facing an energy crisis with intermittent renewables and a dependency on imported gas causing unsustainable price rises for homes and industries across the UK,” SAE said in a statement back in October.
Caught napping by Napster
Finally, there is an entire generation – possibly two – of music lovers for whom the name Napster means nothing and the same could be said soon of investors, as AIM is set to bid farewell to Napster Group PLC (AIM:NAPS, OTC:EVVRF), the music streaming company that is going private.
The de-listing is expected to commence as soon as the proposed disposal of Rhapsody, the major subsidiary of the group which contains almost all Napster’s assets and liabilities, to NM Inc for US$45.6mln is completed.
The 10 worst performers on AIM in 2021
Ticker · Company · % change
CEG · Challenger Energy Group PLC (AIM:CEG) · -97.5
NAPS · Napster Group PLC (AIM:NAPS, OTC:EVVRF) · -91.9
SAE · Simec Atlantis Energy Ltd · -90.9
AEG · Active Energy Group PLC (LSE:AEG) · -86.6
VAST · Vast Resources PLC (AIM:VAST) · -85.4
RBD · Reabold Resources (AIM:RBD) PLC · -84.1
NCCL · Ncondezi Energy Ltd (AIM:NCCL) · -83.2
ADME · ADM Energy PLC (AIM:ADME, ETR:P4JC) · -79.4
ACT · Actual Experience PLC (AIM:ACT) · -77.9
CTEA · Catenae Innovation PLC (AIM:CTEA) · -77