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FAROE PETROLEUM PLC (FPM.LN), an independent oil company, said
Wednesday it has been offered seven new prospective exploration
licenses on the Norwegian continental shelf under the 2011
Norwegian license round.
The company has been awarded two licenses in the Halten terrace
area of the Norwegian Sea, two licenses in the Egersund basin, also
in the Norwegian North Sea, and three licenses in the northern
North Sea.
At 1200 GMT, shares -0.75 pence, or 0.45%, at 165.2 pence.
VALIANT PETROLEUM PLC (VPP.LN), an oil explorer and producer,
said it has secured a 50% interest in a block on the Norwegian
continental shelf, its first operating work in Norway, following
entry into the country less than six months ago.
The company will operate license PL 617, Block 2/9, awarded as
part of the 2011 licensing round.
Shares -4.75 pence, or 1.1%, at 430.2 pence.
NCONDEZI COAL CO. LTD. (NCCL.LN), a coal explorer, said
Wednesday it has signed a new agreement with Rio Tinto PLC (RIO.LN)
to further study greenfield port and rail options and related
infrastructure, as part of its strategy to export coal from its
Ncondezi Project in Tete in Mozambique by 2015.
This new study is a continuation of a jointly funded
infrastructure study, completed in the fourth quarter of 2011, that
identified a preferred port and rail solution--the Integrated
Transport Development, or ITD Project--in Mozambique around 500
kilometers from Tete.
Shares +12.0 pence, or 24.5%, at 61 pence.
APR ENERGY PLC (APR.LN), a supplier of temporary power
generators, said full-year 2011 revenue would be 65% higher than
the previous year and that high demand for its products--especially
in developing markets--make it well placed to deliver further
strong revenue growth in 2012.
The company said adjusted earnings before interest, taxes,
depreciation and amortization for the year to Dec. 31. would be in
line with expectations, without saying what those expectations
were.
Shares +7 pence, or 0.7%, at 1,045.0 pence.
MARIANA RESOURCES LTD. (MARL.LN), a precious metals miner, said
it has signed an option to buy a gold and silver project in
southern Argentina, adjacent to its own Picadero project, from
private company Winki SA.
The minimum amount Mariana could have to pay for 100% ownership
of the 9,124 hectare El Aguila project, located in the Deseado
Massif, is $4.14 million over five years.
Shares +0.13 pence, or 1.3%, at 10.0 pence.
WEATHERLY INTERNATIONAL PLC (WTI.LN), a copper miner, said its
fiscal second-quarter copper concentrate production rose 14% from
the previous quarter as ore grades and recovery rates improved for
a fourth consecutive quarter.
However, Weatherly noted that production was hampered by
equipment downtime and conveyor breakdowns at its Otjihase mine
that resulted in costs rising to $5,373 per ton of copper in the
quarter, and to a year-to-date figure of $4,955 per ton.
Shares -0.38 pence, or 6.0%, at 5.9 pence.
REDEFINE INTERNATIONAL PLC (RDI.LN), a property investor, said
recent trading had been stable, with weakness in its U.K. retail
portfolio offset by strong performances by the company's European
and hotel-based assets.
The firm, which listed in the U.K. in August after a reverse
merger with Wichford PLC worth GBP209 million, said it was
considering a number of acquisitions in the European retail sector
and had recently conducted positive talks with a number of German
banks regarding financing.
Shares +0.1 pence, or 0.3%, at 37.4 pence.
FTSE Small-Cap +0.4%
AIM +0.01%
-By Peter Evans and Iain Packham, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 (0)
20 7842 9296; uksmallcaps@dowjones.com