Petroceltic announces £27.5m share placing

Oil and gas exploration company Petroceltic today announced that it has successfully raised £27.5m (€30.7m) through a conditional placing with existing and new shareholders.

Oil and gas exploration company Petroceltic today announced that it has successfully raised £27.5m (€30.7m) through a share placing with existing and new shareholders.

The company, which is mainly focussed on North Africa and the wider Mediterranean region, said the proceeds would be used to support its drilling programme in Algeria and to accelerate its ongoing appraisal and drilling activities in Italy in 2010 and 2011.

Separately, the company also announced its results for the 12-month period ended December 31, 2008, posting losses of $3.7m (€2.77m), up from $2.5m (€1.9m) the previous year, which it attributed to higher administrative expenses ahead of planned drilling, and changes in exchange rates.

Revenues, however, jumped by 75% to $962,000 (€722,000) due to higher gas prices, up from $549,000 (€412,000) in 2007.

The company said a drilling programme for up to seven wells in Algeria is on schedule and would begin in May 2009.