No change to farm-out discussions

Providence Resources has reiterated that it is in discussions with major oil companies from Europe, Asia and North America regarding a farm-out at its Barryroe oil field in the Celtic Sea, adding that there has been “no material change” to the outlook it presented last month.

The statement from the Dublin-headquartered exploration firm was published in response to a Sunday newspaper article, which suggested farm-out negotiations may not be progressing to plan and Barryroe’s development is set to be postponed, due to the company potentially having to drill a fresh appraisal well and tap the market for another €30m or so to get it done. The story sent Providence’s share price plummeting by over 8% yesterday.

In its response, Providence said its plans regarding Barryroe had not changed and that it, nor its broker, Davy Stockbrokers, had commented to the media regarding the speculation.