Tullow Oil shares plummet on back of $300m bond plan

Tullow Oil shares tumbled by nearly 12% yesterday on the back of the Irish-founded exploration firm announcing plans to launch a five-year convertible bond aimed at raising $300m (€270m) to help fund the further development of its assets in western and eastern Africa.

The bonds will carry an annual interest rate of over 6.6% and buyers will be able to convert them into shares based on a conversion price of $3.52, which was announced yesterday.

Tullow closed in London at 213.71p, down 11.18%, having earlier slumped by over 15%.