LONDON (ShareCast) - Mozambican coal producer Beacon Hill Resources has signed a strategic marketing partnership with Vitol Group, the world's largest energy trading company. Vitol will act as agent to market export coal produced by Beacon Hill's Minas Moatize mine.

Trap Oil, the independent North Sea oil & gas exploration & appraisal company, has agreed to acquire a 15% working interest in the Athena Oil Field from Dyas UK for a total cash consideration of around £34.5m. Trapoil's management currently estimates the net acquisition cost to the company will be around £26.9m, payable in three stages. Management estimate gross unaudited recoverable reserves from the core Athena development area to be around 14.3m barrels of oil, with upside in the core area and further to the north.

Magnolia Petroleum, the US-focused oil & gas exploration & production company has also had its cheque book out, acquiring a 12.5% working interest in a lease in Oklahoma covering 640 acres (80 net mineral acres) within the boundaries of the proven Mississippi formation. The company will have a 9.375% net revenue interest in the lease. "The Mississippi acreage position looks an attractive acquisition that sees Magnolia take a larger acreage position than in most previous transactions. It will be interesting to see production rates in due course. The move reflects Magnolia’s strategy of establishing cash flow from smaller minority potions, stepping up to more significant interests culminating in becoming an operator in its own right," said broker Northland Capital Partners.

Italian oil giant Eni has told Cadogan Petroleum, operator of the Pokroskvoe 1 and Pokroskvoe 2a wells in the Ukraine, that it will not be taking up its option to acquire a further 30% of the share capital of Pokroskvoe Petroleum BV, a subsidiary of Cadogan. The UK company ran into problems drilling the Pokroskvoe 2a well on withdrawal, when the running string became stuck and could not be recovered.

President Petroleum has reported that the DP-1001 well has now penetrated the top of the target reservoir some 12-15 metres higher than projected. A decision has been taken to obtain core samples, extending the anticipated drilling timetable. The samples have so far shown good oil shows and gas readings. Once the second core sample has been taken, the company will continue drilling in the reservoir until the oil water contact is identified.

Sylvania Platinum has said that the cumulative impact of unusually severe weather conditions, neighbouring mine strike action which has exceeded 2 weeks and safety related stoppages at the Sylvania dump operations and host mines will have a negative impact on the company's year-end production outlook. While these factors will have an effect on expected production figures, the company still expects to increase annual production by 22% during the 2012 financial year.

Email this article to a friend

or share it with one of these popular networks:

• DIGG
• FACEBOOK
• STUMBLEUPON
• MIXX
• YAHOO BUZZ
• DELICIOUS
• REDDIT
• NEWSVINE