New Projects and good prospects. will be the winner in 2004. IMO
25p in early 2004

StockMarketWire.com
Petroceltic has booked an H1 pretax loss of $48.5m, substantially worse than the prior year's loss of $5.0m. Revenue was $96.3m, from $103.7m. A large portion of the loss was a spike in exploration costs written off to $64.3m, from $21.8m.

Brian O'Cathain, Chief Executive of Petroceltic, commented:

"Petroceltic's production and development business has delivered a solid performance to date in 2014. The completion of our second Algerian farm-out, the recent Gas Sales Agreement and FEED contract award are important milestones towards unlocking our world class asset at Ain Tsila.

"While our exploration wells during this period did not generate commercial discoveries we have high hopes for our continuing exploration drilling programme in Kurdistan.

We successfully raised $100m via a share placing with new and existing shareholders, providing financial flexibility. We are progressing plans to step up to the official list of the London and Irish stock exchanges by the end of the year."

Highlights:
· First half working interest production of 25.2 Mboepd, 2014 full year guidance increased to 21-23 Mboepd

· Successful share placing to raise $100m

· Completion of second Algeria farm-out to Sonatrach

· Ain Tsila FEED contract awarded and Gas Sales Agreement signed in early September

· Two new exploration concessions ratified in Egypt

· Revenue of $96.3m, loss for the period of $57.4m, driven by exploration write-offs

· Kurdistan drilling operations to recommence in early October

· Step up to the official list of the London and Irish Stock Exchanges scheduled to complete by year end

StockMarketWire.com

Dragon Oil has confirmed is in detailed discussions regarding a possible offer for Petroceltic at a price of 230p per share in cash. Dragon Oil says there can be no certainty that any offer will be made or as to the terms of any offer. A further announcement will be made as appropriate.

good news for those who have been nursing thumping disappointment and losses for so long

Worth more of course!

Always the possibility of a counter bid, larger oil companies always looking to buy smaller companies with proven resources.

The best estimate that I have seen for the sp is 250p on a counter bid. Doesn't look as though anyone is prepared to pay much more than that.

or it may even all fall apart at the seams which is far from uncommon

Yes, I think PCI have to get regulatory approval from the Algerian authorities, so that may be yet another insurmountable hurdle.

If Dragon pull out...ouch....too late for newcomers.....and if I was in...I'd take profits now....always a small chance of a bigger bid, but risky....

RQ,Market is sweating over delay too!

This is rapidly turning into "War and Peace"...

No offer from Dragon,so.

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Timber as the actress said to the bishop!

i'm sorry to see that 1232 indeed came to pass ..... bad luck gals n guys

Does anyone know what the price was before the offer was made.

The Times

Admittedly, there were more pressing events in oil this week, such as the continuing deterioration in the price, the resulting collapse of the rouble and some daft idea that Royal Dutch Shell might buy BP, but events in the oil-rich Kurdish province of Iraq seem to have been overlooked.
There are four quoted UK companies there. The problem has been getting the oil to the outside world and getting paid for it. The first is well under way; the second logjam appears to have been unblocked.
There were two linked pieces of news. In November, the Kurdish regional government in Erbil, in a largely symbolic gesture, said that it would make a first payment to producers, with further regular sums to come in the new year. This was designed to reassure them, as the province’s oil industry ramps up and capacity in the pipeline into Turkey increases, that further investment would be rewarded.
This week that first payment arrived, $15 million for Gulf Keystone Petroleum for its Shaikan field and $24 million to Genel Energy for its Taq Taq and Tawke fields. Simultaneously, Erbil and Baghdad agreed on a deal to share the country’s oil revenues.
Baghdad would get the revenue from 300,000 barrels a day (bpd) from the Kirkuk field and another 250,000 bpd of Kurdish oil, all exported through the pipeline. Erbil gets a 17 per cent share of the national budget and can keep revenues from however much more it can sell. Total production from the province could hit 500,000 bpd next year.
In the background is the war between both and the Islamic State — as one commentator put it: “There is nothing like a common enemy to get people to settle their disagreements.”
Shares in Gulf Keystone and Genel jumped after the news. The two others are much smaller players. Petroceltic has interests in two blocks, but these are still at the exploration stage. Afren, better known for its African operations, has interests in two fields, including Barda Rash, but production is limited, averaging about 500 bpd in the first half of 2014.
For Gulf Keystone, the breaking of the deadlock allows it to push ahead with its Shaikan field. Production is running at about 40,000 bpd and is taken in lorries north to the town of Fishkhabur on the Turkish border. There are plans to link with the pipeline, perhaps in 2016; the oil from Shaikan is heavy crude and is likely to need some processing.
Shaikan should be producing at 100,000 bpd within a couple of years, but the field will need hefty investment. Some analysts believe that Gulf Keystone will have to raise fresh funds on the stock market. The alternative is bringing in a partner or even an outright bid.
This has been made easier by the Erbil-Baghdad agreement, because big oil companies already operating in the south of the country will be able to take a position in the Kurdish region. One might question, on glancing at the oil price, whether they are in the mood to buy assets.
DNO, the Norwegian company, is also producing in Kurdish Iraq. The biggest British player is Genel. Its cost of production is startlingly cheap, less than $2 a barrel. Genel, where Tony Hayward, the former BP boss, is chief executive, has the most to gain from recent developments. Its oil is high-grade light crude. It is producing, from the two fields, about 250,000 bpd and is owed $180 million for the oil it has exported already. The company has a market capitalisation of £1.7 billion, which would put it in the FTSE 250 index and mean that index-tracking funds would have to invest.
However, because Kurdish Iraq has not hitherto been recognised by Baghdad, the UK Listing Authority has said that the degree of political risk this raises precludes this. The outbreak of amity between Iraq and its breakaway province means this will probably happen in the new year. Genel has set three pre-conditions for a return of excess capital to shareholders. Once payments come through regularly, all three will have been achieved. That return looks likely next year . . . and one day M&A activity will return to the sector.

StockMarketWire.com
Worldview Capital Management has issued legal proceedings in the High Court against Petroceltic International Plc, in which it holds more than 27 % of the share capital.

The proceedings are in relation to Petroceltic's alleged breach of a corporate governance agreement entered into between Worldview and Petroceltic which was announced by Petroceltic on 16 June 2014.

The agreement included provision for the Board, following the appointment of new independent non-executive directors on 7 July 2014, to undertake and complete a strategic, business and operational review of the Company prior to 30 September 2014.

As part of the agreement Worldview committed to support Petroceltic's $100 million placing that required a special shareholder resolution to be passed by 75% of the shareholders.

The placing was subsequently successfully completed in reliance on this support from Worldview.

surely this company is dead meat?

180p!

more like flat-iron than fillet steak :-)