Agcert shares increase following sharp drop

AGCERT shares jumped 12% yesterday after the greenhouse gas emissions specialist issued an upbeat trading statement.

But the Dublin company, which floated on London’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM) earlier this year, said its search for a new chief executive was still ongoing.

The previous chief executive, Alan Tank, quit in September when the company’s share price collapsed by almost 50% after it said revenue targets would not be met.

The share price bounced up yesterday after the company reported progress on the number of farms equipped with its systems for capturing gases. But it remains 35% below its September price.

Almost 60 farms were completed between September 10 and the end of October, the company said. This brought the total to 131 and left the company on track to meet its target of 170 by the end of the year.

Agcert also said it had cut the time needed to complete the installation of machines to less than 12 weeks, down from the 16 to 20 week periods that were typical earlier in the year.

“I am extremely pleased with the progress made during the last several weeks,” said interim chief executive Bill Haskell.

“We have increased our farm completion rate and shortened the average completion time. We are continuing the search for a new CEO and we will advise further when it is appropriate to do so.”

The company is currently under the control of a committee of four executives, including Paul D’Alton, the former chief financial officer of Bank of Ireland and Waterford Wedgwood.

But the company remained cautious about its full-year prospects.

“Although the directors are encouraged by the company’s progress, they are not yet in a position to revise their previous guidance on the timeframe for achieving the company’s inventory and sales targets for 2005 and 2006, and expect to provide a full update by year end.”