Persian Gold reports 11% fall in first-half losses

PERSIAN GOLD — one of the Dublin-based exploration companies chaired by businessman John Teeling, has reported an 11% year-on-year drop in first- half losses as it prepares to overhaul its operational framework.

The AIM-listed company — which, as its current name suggests, is focused on mining for gold and precious metals in Iran — is soon set to approach shareholders for approval to widen its operational scope and change its name to Clontarf Energy.

Clontarf will merge the interests of Persian Gold with Hydrocarbon Exploration, a company formed recently to oversee the assets left over from the sale of another Teeling company — Pan Andean Resources — to Canadian firm Petrominerales.

The Canadian company bought Pan Andean’s assets in Peru and Colombia earlier this year, leaving the company’s US (Gulf of Mexico) and Bolivia interests to Hydrocarbon.

Mr Teeling said yesterday that management would approach shareholders in the coming months seeking approval for the transformation into Clontarf Energy and the formation of a company with gold exploration opportunities in Iran and early stage lithium opportunities in Bolivia, along with oil and gas exploration and production capacity.

“Bolivia has political uncertainty and legacy issues relating to title, but there are opportunities in gas and lithium,” he said.

“We’re not ignoring our Iranian investments. Five years work and millions of dollars have gone into our two projects, Chah-e-Zard and Dalli, both of which have potential.

“We’re working with the Iranian authorities to obtain discovery certificates, without which we cannot proceed.”

Persian Gold yesterday published its financial figures for the first half of 2010. These showed a pre-tax loss of £143,000 (€171,000) down from a loss of £161,000 for the same period last year, and a 3p drop in first-half losses per share to 19p. Its operating losses fell from £160,000 to £142,000.