Thursday 15 January 2015

Volatile Afren

Wow - embattled oil explorer Afren has leapt 33pc to close at 28.7p!

The massive move higher comes after the stock plunged 30pc on Monday following news the company had overstated its oil reserves at licences in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Here is a link to a Financial Times piece on Monday's news: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b2b55bb0-9a79-11e4-8426-00144feabdc0.html#axzz3OmV9TqK0

Well, as you can imagine today's 32pc leap in the share price has triggered all sorts of speculation about an actual solid takeover offer emerging for Afren.

The company has already been approached by rival Nigerian explorer Seplat but reliable sources inform me that France-listed group Maurel & Prom, which has significant operations across Africa, and a Chinese bidder have also shown an interest in buying Afren.

Heritage Oil, though, is no longer said to be interested in purchasing the business. So, I guess it's anybody's guess where this one ends up - or down.

(I tried to reach Maurel & Prom but the public relations advisers listed on the company's website claimed to me they no longer work for the business and nobody at the French company answered the phone when contacted.)

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