Resources round-up: Lenigas, Altona, Egdon Resources

Oil explorer Lenigas continued its recent good run after its revealed it has sold its remaining minority in the US Gulf of Mexico.

The company is receiving $1.25m for its interests in seven leases which, during 2011, earned £383,000 in revenue for the company and £204,000 in profits. The funds obtained will reduce the needs to source additional capital through the equity or debt markets and will permit Lenigas to actively accelerate the development of its Trinidad portfolio.

Altona Energy has signed up Parsons Brinckerhoff's Global Mining Business group, a division of Balfour Beatty, to oversee the Arckaringa Mine development and the design-build activities for Altona's 30,000 barrels per day clean energy coal- to-liquids project in South Australia. First on the agenda for Parsons Brinckerhoff is to assist Altona in the selection and project management of the drilling contractor to carry out a test drilling program at Arckaringa.

Egdon Resources, the exploration and production company primarily focused on the hydrocarbon-producing basins of onshore UK and France, fell into the red in the year to the end of July. Loss before tax was £2.89m versus a profit the previous year of £4.08m as the group took impairment charges of £3.15m in aggregate in respect of the Kirkleatham (£1.60m), Ceres (£0.75m) and Markwells Wood assets (£0.80m). Revenue from oil and gas production during the year was up 9.9% to £2.61m from £2.38m the year before on slightly lower production of 45,656 barrels of oil equivalent (2011: 46,919 barrels). As at 31 July 2012, the group had £3.33m of cash and cash equivalents, down from £3.69m a year earlier.