Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

AIM-listed oil and gas firms suffer shares slump

AIM-listed oil and gas firms suffer shares slump

Oil and gas companies listed on the alternative investment market (AIM) in London suffered a 15% slump in value in the first quarter of 2014, new figures show.

According to professional services firm EY, it was the largest decline for the sector in 18 months.

Barry Fraser, oil and gas transactions executive director at EY in Aberdeen, believes many junior oil and gas firms are facing a prolonged struggle to attract capital.

He added: “Companies whose attentions are focused on a single project and those lacking in scale are going to find it tough competing against those with more stable cash flows and a more balanced portfolio of assets, doubly so when investors are keeping their distance from riskier options.”

Belt tightening is also playing a part in sustaining support from investors, Mr Fraser said, adding: “A relentless focus on cost reduction is one of the methods junior oil and gas companies are employing as they look to preserve capital.

“Making sure reductions are consistent with the strategic direction of the business is essential in avoiding a drop in value.”

Two company flotations proved to be the only real source of cheers for AIM-listed oil and gas firms during the first quarter, according to EY.

The entry of Surrey-based oil explorer Hurricane Energy, which has assets west of Shetland, and Australian exploration and development company Mosman Oil and Gas provided some cheer for a market otherwise dogged by negative investor sentiment.

Mr Fraser said: “The resilience of the IPO market has been the one bright spot.”

The total funds raised by junior oil and gas companies in the period accounted for just 7% of the total raised across AIM, the lowest proportion since 2009.

EY’s Oil and Gas Eye index monitors the performance of AIM oil and gas companies on a weekly basis.