Oilman Jim

88 Energy (88E) announced an operations update reporting good progress on the Project Peregrine farm-out with a deal on schedule for year-end close.   Permitting and planning for a two well program at Project Peregrine is on track for 1Q 2021 spud.   The quarterly report issued later in the week disclosed cash of A$4,681,000 (£2,535,000) as of 30 September 2020 and clearly 88E will need more.   A placing is a virtual certainty, but after that we may well see another 100% run as happened following the fundraising last year. Bahamas Petroleum Company (BPC) announced a convertible note funding update.   As suspected, it remains far from certain.   The initial exploration well was of course “fully funded per the established criteria” the previous week when it came to paying out salaries and bonuses to directors, but now an element of doubt is creeping in.   Caution is the watchword here. Providence Resources (PVR) and Lansdowne Oil & Gas (LOGP) announce...

Aminex (AEX) announced receipt of approval from the Tanzanian Government for the transfer of a 50% interest in, and operatorship of, the Ruvuma PSA to ARA Petroleum.   As regular readers know, I said this was more likely than not to happen.   ARA certainly believed it to be the case, since they advanced $5 million to AEX over the past 12 months.   The Aminex share price has more than trebled.   It’s good news too for Solo Oil (SOLO) , who hold a 25% interest in Ruyuma, which they are aiming to sell.   AEX retains a 25% carried interest. Pantheon Resources (PANR) announced upgraded management resource estimates for Kuparuk.   This an oil bearing formation at the Talitha project and PANR itself estimates this horizon to contain 1.4 billion barrels of oil in place and a prospective recoverable resource of 341 million barrels of oil as “a most likely case.”   Some are dubious and question this company’s near quarter of a billion pounds market capitalisat...

Union Jack Oil (UJO) and Reabold Resources (RBD) announced commencement of drilling of the West Newton B-1 well.   Completion is expected to take six to ten weeks.   The steam has very much gone out of the UJO share price since it fell by nearly half from 0.31p before the 0.16p placing (I was talking in the private blog about de-risking in the high 0.2s/low 0.3s).   RBD also is weak.   Romanian operations appear to have failed and investor confidence has ebbed away.   Regular readers know that I’ve warned about Reabold many times and at much higher prices than today.   If you want to gamble (and that’s all it is) on the outcome of the drill, Union Jack probably is the better bet.   RBD owns a greater percentage, but UJO has the audience needed. Predator Oil & Gas (PRD) announced an operational update.   Reassuringly, it confirms that Morocco is the “greatest potential risk/reward prize in the Company's portfolio and is an absolute priority ...

As expected, UK Oil & Gas (UKOG) announced its placing.   £2.2 million at 0.16p “funding initial Turkey operations.”   How well this sits with its stated aim of “increased energy security for this country” is a matter for the company’s shareholders, most of whom bought in precisely because of that objective.   It’s not really that clever a move.   Of course, it might never happen and as they state further down the RNS, “in the unexpected event that the PA and JOA are not entered into, the company will deploy the proceeds of the placing for working capital” (i.e. directors' salaries). Bahamas Petroleum Company (BPC) announced a £9.5 million placing at 2p.   Unfortunately, the eight figure balance required to fund the Perseverance #1 drill will have to come from convertible loan note financing, which is usually the kiss of death for a company’s share price.   Most likely there will be trading opportunities along the way, but holding for the well result ...

Union Jack Oil (UJO) and Reabold Resources (RBD) announced the West Newton B-1 rig mobilisation.   Equipment will be rigged - up over a period of one to two weeks prior to drilling operations commencing, which are then expected to take six to ten weeks to complete.   UJO is now trading at 0.1575p, below the recent 0.16p placing price, and as readers of the private blog know, I was talking about de-risking when it was in the high 0.2s/low 0.3s. 88 Energy (88E) announced that advanced seismic attribute work has identified several similarities between the key prospects at Project Peregrine (the Alaska acreage it recently acquired with the XCD Energy acquisition) and existing discovered fields nearby.   The fluid factor at the Merlin and Harrier Prospects is analogous to that at the large Willow oil field north of 88E’s lease position.   It says that farm-out discussions at Peregrine are progressing well, on track for Q1 2021 drilling.   88E has been a regular e...

Union Jack Oil (UJO) announced a placing and subscription to raise £7 million at 0.16p.   At half the share price a few weeks ago, it would have been hugely profitable for all those connected to the company who knew about it and were able to short in advance.   For private investors, the issue now is how much was sold short by insiders and covered in the placing and how much was actually taken by new money  If   mainly the former, the price should start moving back up; if mainly the latter, then there's a lot to shares to churn first.   If this placing took you by surprise or shocked you, I’d suggest the Special Trading Course, which shows you how to spot all this beforehand.   The link for that is https://www.oilnewslondon.com/course Deltic Energy (DELT) , which Independent Oil & Gas (IOG) is interested in acquiring, announced further details of its new North Sea licences.   These, they say, “are a key part of the Company's exploration focussed ...

Starting with the positive news, 88 Energy (88E) announced the final petrophysical interpretation for Charlie-1, which it says substantially upgrades net hydrocarbon pay in the well.   A data room for the next Project Icewine farm-out is to be opened in the near term and the company also is looking to agree farm-outs on both the Peregrine and Yukon acreage with a view to drilling next year.   88E returned a nice, easy 100% profit on the run up to its last drill (an opportunity which I flagged up several times in the blog) and once farm-outs and financing are done, it has the potential to be another good one. Independent Oil & Gas (IOG) announced a possible all-share offer for Deltic Energy (DELT) .   They look like a potential good fit and an offer from IOG certainly has a much greater chance of success than the one from Reabold Resources (RBD) , who was firmly shown the door.   Unsurprisingly so, given the overall poor quality of its assets, which again w...