Empyrean Energy share price rockets more than 50 per cent to the top of Aim
Empyrean Energy shares soared to the top of the Aim today, on the sale of its stake in a US shale gas project for $71.5m (£50m) despite the oil price rout.
The company's shares rose as much as 76 per cent to 8.8p per share this morning, after it announced the sale of its three per cent stake in the Sugarloaf project to Carrier Energy, a US-based privately-owned oil and gas company.
Carrier will pay an initial $61.4m under the deal, and antoher $10m depending on the future direction of oil prices.
Empyrean chief executive, Tom Kelly, said: "We believe that we have reached the right time to realise the value of the Sugarloaf asset and de-risk our position against continued depressed oil prices."
The Sugarloaf project is operated by Marathon, and has about 290 wells in production.
Subject to closing, the deal is due to be completed before the end of March.