Edenville Energy plunges as it raises funds to pay off Lind Partners

Edenville Energy PLC (LON:EDL) announced it has placed 3.6mln shares at 25p a pop, sending the shares plunging 39% to 35.5p.

The company raised £900,000 from the placing of shares, with its three largest shareholder groups contributing £250,000 of that.

The company will use the funds to pay off its debt to Lind Partners.

10.05am: Babcock battered

Babcock International Group PLC (LON:BAB) sank by 18% to 215.9p after reporting more weakness in its civil aviation business due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

In an update for the first nine months of its current financial year ending March 31, 2021, the aerospace and defence firm reported that underlying operating profit was £202mln, down 34% year-on-year, while revenues in the period fell 3% to £3.4bn.

Babcock said profits had suffered a “negative impact” from civil nuclear insourcing, COVID-19 and civil aviation, adding that order intake in the year-to-date was £3.1bn and that its order book as of December 31 was £16.8bn compared to £17.6bn at the end of March last year.

9.10am: Leeds Group higher after it returns to profit

Leeds Group PLC (LON:LDSG), up 27% at 23.5p, was the top riser in London on Friday morning after it published its half-year report.

The fabric importer and distributor said sales in the six months to the end of November had been higher than expected.

Revenue rose to £19.96mln from £18.60mln a year earlier while profit before tax turned positive at £735,000 versus a loss of £880,000 in the corresponding period of 2019.

Oracle Power PLC (LON:ORCP) rose 8.7% to 0.625p after it said work is underway to assess the potential gasification of coal at Oracle’s Thar Block VI project in Pakistan.

Its consortium partner, China National Coal Development Company (CNCDC) has commenced preliminary feasibility work relating to the gasification project.

The natural resources and power project developer said CNCDC will guide the feasibility study workstreams for the project, which includes market analyses, type of product and scale, process technology evaluation, public engineering of auxiliary facilities required, investment estimation and financial evaluations.

Proactive news headlines:

Oracle Power PLC (LON:ORCP) said its consortium partner, China National Coal Development Company (CNCDC) has commenced preliminary feasibility work relating to the potential gasification of coal at Oracle’s Thar Block VI project in Pakistan. The natural resources and power project developer said CNCDC will guide the feasibility study workstreams for the project, which includes market analyses, type of product and scale, process technology evaluation, public engineering of auxiliary facilities required, investment estimation and financial evaluations.

Alpha Growth PLC (LON:ALGW) (OTCQB: ALPGF), the financial services specialist in the growing Senior Life Settlement (SLS) asset class, has announced year-end results for its BlackOak Alpha Growth Fund. On a net basis, the fund produced a 2020 calendar year return of 10.63% and a 13.71% total return since inception in September 2019. Alpha Growth said it continues to actively market to registered investment advisors in the US and to look at supplementing the direct outreach with virtual events in the US that showcase the fund.

Frontier IP Group PLC (LON:FIPP) said it has appointed Darren Winter, a former senior sales director with more than 30 years’ City experience, as its director of corporate relationships. The intellectual property commercialisation specialist said Winter, whose previous experience includes sales director roles at HSBC and as head of capital markets, sales for Collins Stewart Wealth Management, has been appointed to support the firm’s portfolio companies with their fundraising requirements.

ReNeuron PLC (LON:RENE) said it has completed dosing of the first group of three people in its phase IIa extension study of its human retinal progenitor cell therapy for degenerative eye disease. This part of the trial will assess the responses of nine sufferers of retinitis pigmentosa – but at higher doses than the first ten subjects already treated. Data will be presented later this year. ReNeuron said there would be a review of the short-term safety data from this first cohort before the next group is dosed.

Alien Metals Ltd (LON:UFO) said it has kicked off an airborne magnetic survey over the Elizabeth Hill Project in Western Australia. The explorer highlighted that the survey will help tie together all the existing prospects and historical data, to assist in the prioritisation of the target inventory. It noted that the project area now spans the original Mining Licence M47/342, hosting the Elizabeth Hill Silver Mine and associated prospects, as well as exploration permit ELA47/4422 – alternatively known as Munni Munni North project – which has been conditionally acquired by the company.

Kodal Minerals PLC (LON:KOD) said good progress is being made on the funding agreement that will finance the exploration programme at the Fatou Gold Project. Due diligence is nearing completion and documentation is in progress but due to delays over the Christmas period, an extension of two weeks has been granted to the investors for completion of the final contract. A review of the project is continuing and a drilling programme is being finalised with initial diamond drilling and reverse circulation (RC) drilling planned for the Fatou Main and Fininko prospects.

W Resources PLC (LON:WRES) has updated investors on a grant from the Junta de Extremadura government in Spain as well as an extension to its loan facility with Banco Santander. The AIM-listed tungsten, tin and gold miner said following a number of meetings toward the end of December between its senior management and representatives of the Extremadura government, it has been assured that the approved €5.3mln (£4.7mln) grant is being processed for payment, although actual payment is not expected to be made until later in the first half of 2021. Meanwhile, the firm said it has finalised a six-month extension to the €5mln (£4.4mln) loan facility with Santander, saying that as the initial term of the loan was the earlier of February 18, 2021, or the receipt of the proceeds of the grant funds, it was prudent to seek the extension.

Clipper Logistics PLC (LON:CLG) said a company ultimately controlled by its executive chairman Steve Parkin has sold 11mln shares in the firm at 565p each. The sale was undertaken by Parker, who founded Clipper, as part of an estate planning exercise and to improve the number of Clipper shares available in the market, i.e. improve liquidity. The share sale raised roughly £62.2mln for Carlton Court Investments and reduced the company’s stake in Clipper to about 13.9%. The 14.13mln shares held by Carlton Court are subject to a 180-day lockdown restriction.

Shield Therapeutics PLC (LON:STX) chief executive Tim Watts hailed 2020 as a “positive year” for the company – a period in which European sales volumes of its breakthrough iron deficiency drug Feraccru grew by 70% year-on-year. He added that discussions with potential US out-licensing partners continued, but added that preparations were also being made for a “Shield-led” launch of the product, which is called Accrufer in the States. “In the US, our knowledge of the iron deficiency market and the great opportunity for Accrufer has developed massively during the year such that we are now evaluating a Shield-led launch in the US as an alternative to out-licensing the product,” said Watts in a statement.

Mineral and Financial Investments Limited (LON:MAFL) said its net asset value (NAV) per share at the end of September 2020, was 15.77p, up 4.1% year-on-year. The company, which as its name implies invests in natural resource companies, said its financial performance was hampered by sterling’s appreciation against the US and Canadian currencies; had those foreign exchange rates remained unchanged, NAV per share would have been 16.33p, up 7.9% on a year earlier. The investment company’s “tactical portfolio” (excluding its cash holdings) increased in value by 17.1% in the year to the end of September.

InnovaDerma PLC (LON:IDP), a UK developer of beauty, personal care and life sciences products has announced that further to the announcement on January 11, 2021, it has entered into a loan agreement to provide the company with a working capital loan facility of £500,000 with M.Ward, a non-executive director of the company and substantial shareholder. Under the Loan Agreement, the loan attracts interest at 5% above LIBOR and is repayable on July 13, 2021. The group said Ward can require the loan to be repaid early in the event that the company raises in excess of £2mln through debt or equity issuance. In the event that the loan is repaid early, Ward intends to invest the principle in any associated equity issue. The company has given, as security, a debenture over all the assets of InnovaDerma PLC and provided the normal representations and warranties for this type of agreement. Given Ward’s position as a director of the company and substantial shareholder, the group’s independent directors, comprising Ross Andrews, Blake Hughes and Simon Pyper have stated that they consider the terms of the loan agreement fair and reasonable insofar as the company’s shareholders are concerned.

Mosman Oil and Gas Limited (LON:MSMN) the oil exploration, development, and production company, announced that its latest investor presentation is now available on the company’s website. Investors can view the presentation at: www.mosmanoilandgas.com