Island raises €12m drilling fund

ISLAND Oil and Gas has raised over €12 million to fund a planned drilling programme off the Kinsale coast.

The company, which is quoted on London's Alternative Investment Market (AIM), said a range of institutional and private investors had stumped up £8.3m (€12.3m) in return for new shares. Some investors have also agreed to provide a further e6m early next year if certain conditions are met.

Island chief executive Paul Griffiths said the fundraising round was a major vote of confidence in the company's prospects. The firm will use the money to drill two wells at the Kinsale and nearby Seven Heads fields and also has plans to drill in the Donegal Basin to the north-west of the country.