Petrel ‘well-financed to progress with activities’

Petrel Resources has said that it has over $4m (€3.1m) in cash reserves, making it well-financed to progress with its current activities in Iraq, Ghana and offshore Ireland.

The Dublin-headquartered/AIM-listed oil and gas exploration company, which is chaired by John Teeling, recently said it has embarked on a new start in Iraq by appointing a new management team to work with the local authorities.

“The board is committed to our activities in Iraq and Ghana offers significant upside to the company,” Mr Teeling said yesterday.

Regarding Ireland, where Petrel is hoping to attract developmental partners, he added: “The Irish offshore, where Petrel began in the early 1980s, has once again become an attractive target. We have a strong expert team, we have good ground and we hope to interest multinational parties to explore with us. The mix of projects — all high risk — offers significant potential.”

Petrel also yesterday published its first-half financial results — showing a marginal year-on-year increase in losses. The company’s pre-tax loss for the first six months of 2012, amounted to €257,000; up from the €200,000 for the same period last year. Losses per share were up, year-on-year, from 26c to 34c.

Regarding Ireland, the company has said it hopes to develop targets off the west coast that will attract large partners, before launching an early seismic campaign ahead of exploration wells.