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Andrew Hore – Quoted Micro 27 November 2017
NEX EXCHANGE
Kryptonite 1 (KR1) has invested $986,000 in DOT tokens, which are related to the Polkadot Project. A total of $150m was raised to finance the development of a decentralised protocol that allows trust-free movement of tokens and data between blockchains., that will also be able to create new parachains instead of starting a new community. The project is expected to go live by the end of 2019. Kryptonite 1 has sold Melon, Omisego and FunFair tokens in order to raise just over £290,000. That is a gain of around £270,000.
Via Developments (VIA1) has agreed to sell Plymouth Grove, Manchester for £2.5m. A non-refundable deposit of £250,000 has been paid and the deal should go through by the end of November. The property was originally acquired in June 2016 for £1.625m, although there will have been additional investment in development since then. In March, Via Developments announced a previous exclusivity agreement to sell which was dependent on planning permission. There was a refundable deposit of £100,000 for that potential deal. It is unclear whether the deals are related.
Health and care properties developer Ashley House (ASH) has welcomed the increased funding for health and housing schemes announced in the Budget. News that the government will not cap rents in the supported living sector has improved sentiment. Financial closure is anticipated on two projects in the next few weeks. Management continues to seek additional finance.
Block Energy (BLOK) has published its Schedule 1 notice for its proposed move to AIM. This is expected by 7 December.
Sandal (SAND) says that trading is in line with expectations with Energie MiHome sales trebling. By the end of 2018 the energy efficiency products should be generate as much in revenues as the power connections division.
There were 300,000 shares taken up in the Hellenic Capital (HECP) open offer but £250,000 was raised because the rest of the shares were placed.
Primorus Investments (PRIM) has raised £1m at 0.2p a share, which was a small premium to the previous closing price. The cash will finance further pre-IPO investments. Turner Pope has been appointed broker.
Trading in the shares of Churchill Mining (CHL) should recommence when the figures for the year to June 2017 are published. That should be before the end of November. Pala Investments has subscribed for £500,000 of 10% convertible loan notes, which have a conversion price of 2.976p a share. Pala holds 21.3% of Churchill and full conversion of the loan notes would take the stake to 29.3%. Pala is also entitled to receive 25% of any proceeds from the claim for unlawful expropriation of the East Kutai coal project. Churchill is hopeful of overturning an unfavourable ruling on the case.
Etaireia Investments (ETIP) has issued shares valued at £21,750 at 0.09p a share in settlement of an outstanding loan from Blue Oak Assets. The deferred payment of £20,000 for the purchase of Pacha Cleator from Oliver Fattal has been satisfied by a share issue at the same price. That takes his stake to 9.96%.
Ken Riley is no longer finance director and company secretary of WMC Retail Partners (WELL) and Nigel Higgs has taken over as interim finance director.
AIM
Accrol Group Holdings (ACRL) is raising £18m at 50p a share, which should be enough to keep the toilet roll business going. A restructuring of the business is underway and health and safety procedures are being reviewed. The bank facility has been extended until 2021. The share price fell by more than two-thirds when the suspension was lifted and ended the week at 37.5p.
Immunodiagnostic Systems Holdings (IDH) published its interims at 4.30pm on Friday. That means that the share price reaction will be on Monday. There were no shares traded in the diagnostic services provider on Friday. Revenues were 4% lower at £18.7m. Growth in automated business revenues partly offset lower licensing revenues. Pre-tax profit excluding restructuring costs fell from £1.77m to £1.11m. Net cash is £28.3m. The average number of assays per instrument has increased from 3.8 to 4.3. Reg Duval stepped down as chief executive at the end of October after seven months in the job. Jaap Stuut took over the role. He talks about improving the sales team.
Sutton Harbour (SUH) has agreed a 29.5p a share bid for 70% of the shares of the harbour operator and property developer from FB Investors. That will cost £19.9m. A shareholder can accept for more than 70% of their shareholding but they could be scaled back. FB Investors is subscribing £2.75m for new shares at the same price.
Boku Inc (BOKU) had a successful first week on AIM with the share price rising from the 59p placing price to 81p. That values the developer of technology enabling payments via mobile at around £170m.
Contact centre services software provider Netcall (NET) says the integration of the MatsSoft acquisition is progressing well and trading is strong in the first four months of the financial year. The dividend will return to a normal level this year having been enhanced in the past few years. This year’s dividend is expected to be 1.2p a share.
Angle (AGL) is included in a €6.3m study to develop liquid biopsy services that is being headed by Philips. This is a four year research project.
Jon Fenton has stepped down as chief executive of Van Elle Holdings (VANL) ahead of a requisitioned general meeting on 15 December.
Amiad Water Systems (AFS) has been granted a licence by Dow Technologies to use its TEQUATIC PLUS filter. Amiad will take over the manufacturing of the product and pay Dow 3.75% of revenues generated.
First Property Group (FPO) has already invested £51m for the new Fprop Office LLP but there is more than £200m more to invest. Annualised management fees are £2.64m and full investment of the new vehicle will significantly increase that figure.
Audio equipment supplier Focusrite (TUNE) increased its full year pre-tax profit by one-third to £9.5m. There was particularly strong growth in the US.
Cambria Automobiles (CAMB) managed to edge up its pre-tax profit last year even though trading becoming tougher in the second half. The motor dealer is expected to report a lower profit of £9.5m this year but it has a strong balance sheet and it is investing heavily in new sites for upmarket brands that will not fully contribute until next year.
Premier African Minerals (PREM) raised £1m via PrimaryBid at 0.4p a share, which was double the amount it was originally asking for. The cash will be used to develop mining projects in Zimbabwe and Benin.
Professional services provider Progility (PGY) put out its full year figures late on Friday. There was still time for the share price to fall by 0.2p to 1.25p. Progility did move back into profit in the period but it was a modest one. There was a warning that progress may be held back this year by operational efficiency improvements.
TechFinancials Inc (TECH) is selling non-core businesses for $400,000 and reinvesting the cash in the development of technology to integrate blockchain-based currencies into its systems.
African Alliance is planning to invest £2.4m at 11p a share coal bed methane projects developer Tlou Energy Ltd (TLOU) conditional on a listing on the Botswana Stock Exchange before the end of the year.
Thor Mining (THR) is making a $125,000 (£95,000) payment to Pacific Gold and Royalty Corporation in settlement for the $1.5m (£1.13m) payment that would have had to have been made when the Pilot Mountain tungsten project in Nevada comes into production. Thor is still fully funded well into 2019. Metal Tiger has taken its stake in Thor to 9.77% after exercising 16 million warrants.
MAIN MARKET
Cash shell Landscape Acquisition Holdings (LAHL) raised $500m at $10 a share but the share price fell below the placing price when dealings commenced. The focus is hospitality, land-based gaming and real estate businesses in North America and Europe.
Rockpool Acquisitions (ROC) has secured a potential reverse takeover target. It is lending an initial £543,000 to Northern Ireland-based renewable energy firm Greenview Gas and this will be used to buy two companies. The deal includes an option for Rockpool to acquire Greenview paid for by a share issue.
Creightons (CRL) increased its pre-tax profit by one-fifth to £956,000, helped by an improvement in gross margin. An interim dividend of 0.15p a share is proposed.
IT services provider Triad Group (TRD) made further progress in the first half. In the six months to September 2017, revenues dipped from £14.8m to £14.2m, while pre-tax profit moved from £668,000 to £737,000. There is £2m in the bank. An interim dividend of 0.5p a share has been declared.
Andrew Hore
Quoted Micro 15 May 2017
NEX EXCHANGE
Newbury Racecourse (NYR) increased its revenues by 4% to £16.9m in 2016. Underlying trading profit was 8% ahead at £740,000 but there was also a £19.4m gain on the sale of land for housebuilding partly offset by £3.45m impairment charge. The NAV was £44.4m, which is around double the company’s market value. Net cash is £5.4m. The redevelopment of the racecourse continues with the latest phase due to be completed next year.
Good Energy Group (GOOD) has launched a corporate bond. It wants to raise £10m but could raise the subscription level to £20m. Existing bond holders can roll over some or all of their investment into the new bonds. The bonds have a coupon of 4.75% or 5% for customers.
Via Developments (VIA1) has sold all 26 apartments in Napier House in Luton. Deposits of £394,000 and £52,000 of non-refundable reservations have been received. The project should be completed in the first quarter of 2018.
AfriAg Global (AFRI) continues to seek acquisitions in the agricultural logistics sector. In 2016, revenues grew from £1.98m to £3.04m and the loss fell from £96,000 to £9,000. Directors’ fees were reduced from £108,000 to £19,000. The 40%-owned AfriAg (Pty) increased its revenues by 91% to £11.7m but its reported profit dipped from £359,000 to £104,000.
Walls & Futures REIT (WAFR) has completed its first supported housing sector investment. It has bought a grade two listed building in Stroud for £475,000. There will be further investment in improving the property over the next four months. The property will then be let on a 25 year lease to a UK care provider with rents adjusted each year by inflation.
Capital for Colleagues (CFCP) has invested a further £100,000 in space software and hardware developer Bright Ascension. The initial investment was £150,000 and Capital for Colleagues holds 250,000 A shares. The cash will be used for product development and building up the company’s sales infrastructure.
Anna Halpern-Lande, a cleantech sector expert, has joined the board of Milamber Ventures (MLVP). Two new partners have been appointed. Executive chairman Andy Hasoon has converted £50,000 of his director loan into 312,500 shares at 16p each. Two other individuals have taken shares for fees.
Coinsilium Group Ltd (COIN) has invested $75,000 (£60,000) in Coin-Dash, which is developing a social trading platform for cryptocurrency investors. Coinsilium also has an entitlement to an undisclosed number of Coindash crypto tokens.
MiLOC Group Ltd (ML.P) has raised £276,000 at 28.5p a share from four investors. NQ Minerals (NQMI) has raised a further £230,000 for working capital. Valiant Investments (VALP) has raised £22,000 at 0.1p a share, while 84.7%-owned apps developer Flamethrower has paid $25,000 for advertising revenues generating Minecraft Command website.
AIM
TyraTech Inc (TYR/TYRU) is splitting itself into two businesses so that they can each raise finance to accelerate growth. The separation should be complete by the end of the year. TyraTech used up $2.2m of cash in 2016 leaving it with $1.8m, thanks to cash management in the second half. Allenby expects cash to fall to $700,000 by the end of 2017 but in reality management would hope to have raised money for the two businesses before that time. Marketing spending is required to grow the human health business while further product development investment is required by the animal health business.
Musical instruments retailer Gear4Music (G4M) is increasing its market share in Europe. In the year to February 2017, revenues grew from £35.5m to £56.1m and pre-tax profit jumped from £600,000 to £2.7m. A new head office has been acquired for £5.3m and a German distribution centre is being opened.
Cosmetics supplier Warpaint London (W7L) has done particularly well since it joined AIM and its figures were better than expected leading to an upgrade for this year. In 2016, Warpaint made a pre-tax profit of £6.7m on revenues of £27m. A 2017 profit of £7.6m is forecast. Growth is coming from the UK and internationally with US revenues starting to build up.
RedstoneConnect (REDS) has raised £6.5m at 1.5p a share and £1.4m of this will be spent on systems integrator acquiring Anders + Kern. This will help the group to sell its OneSpace smart buildings software. A one-for-100 share consolidation is planned.
Motor dealer Vertu Motors (VTU) improved its full year pre-tax profit from £26m to £29.8m and its NAV is 62.3p a share. The share price is trading at a discount to NAV of one-fifth. Aftersales revenues continue to grow and used vehicle sales were strong. The new car market has declined but trading in March and April is in line with expectations.
Cambria Automotive (CAMB) has also performed well even though new and used vehicle volumes declined. Acquisitions helped its revenues to grow by 11% while its pre-tax profit was more than one-fifth higher at £5.6m. The full year profit forecast has been edged up to £11.2m.
The proposed energy price cap has hampered Flowgroup (FLOW) in its attempt to sell its energy business. It is still in talks but appears more likely to require to raise an additional £20m. This would be highly dilutive because it would be at 1.5p a share plus convertible securities. Losses will continue for the next couple of years and Flow is reducing its exposure to the microCHP business.
Arian Silver Corporation (AGQ) has completed initial sampling at its Mexican Salar project and this confirms the presence of lithium. Further tests are required to fully assess the mineralisation.
Savannah Resources (SAV) has lodged the Environmental Impact Assessment for the Mahab 4 copper mine development, having already done this for the Maqail South deposit. Savannah owns 65% of the company that has the licence for the block that includes Mahab 4. The approval process is expected to take three months. An economic study should be completed by July.
Active Energy (AEG) is reducing its exposure to Ukraine and dividing its operations into Advanced Biomass Solutions, which will own the CoalSwitch technology, and Timberlands International for the timber asset management operations. Supplying woodchip from Ukraine to Turkish fibreboard manufacturers is the main revenue generator but exposure to Ukraine has held back the share price. The company’s former chief operating officer may make an offer for the Ukrainian operations.
Draganfly Investments (DRG) has raised £500,000 at 0.5p a share. Pelamis Investments Ltd owns 11.26%.
MAIN MARKET
Waterman Group (WTM) has recommended a 140p a share bid from CTI Technology, which has already acquired 30%. This means that the £43m bid is mandatory. CTI is one of the largest consulting engineers in Japan.
A strong performance in South Korea has fuelled a strong performance from window components manufacturer Titon (TON). In the six months to March 2017, revenues were 29% higher at £14m, while pre-tax profit was 61% higher at £1.18m. The dividend was increased by 20% to 1.5p a share. Net cash is £2.71m.
Storage and wireless semiconductors developer CML Microsystems (CML) says full year trading was ahead of expectations. Revenues grew by one-fifth to £27.6m – organic growth is estimated to be 16%. Pre-tax profit was £4.2m – 5% higher than forecast. There was £12.4m in the bank t the end of the financial year.
World Trade Systems (WTS) has appointed John Hoskinson as a non-executive director. He has experience of mining, energy, property and services sectors. Clio Lee has stepped down from the board. Trading in WTS shares continues to be suspended.
UNQUOTED
Richard Griffiths and Blake Holdings have acquired 11.2% of former AIM-quoted investment company Sarossa for £519,500 (1p a share). This takes the concert party’s stake to 51.9% so it has to make a mandatory bid at 1p a share but that is well below the most recent asset value. At the end of 2016, the NAV was £11.3m or 2.4p a share. That included £3.73m of cash.
Andrew Hore
Quoted Micro 18 January 2016
ISDX
Blockchain technology companies investor Coinsilium Group Ltd (COIN) has made two investments since it joined ISDX. Coinsilium has invested $50,000 (paid in Bitcoin) for the equivalent of a 1% stake in RSK Labs Ltd, and co-investment partners have invested the same amount. RKS developed Rootstock, a platform that is a sidechain of the Bitcoin blockchain. This technology enables transactions that can be set up to complete autonomously when pre-set conditions are met. Rootstock should be launched in the middle of 2016. RSK raised a total of $350,000 and the company’s valuation is $5m. Coinsilium has also increased its stake in Fuzo Ltd, which has developed a SIM card technology focused on adults that do not have a bank account. A $29,000 investment has taken Coinsilium’s stake in Fuzo to 13.6% – the total investment is $300,000. The valuation after the latest investment is $3m, which values the stake at $408,000. The Coinsilium share price has fallen back from the 10p flotation price. At 8p (6.5p/9.5p) a share, Coinsilium is valued at £5.7m. There were 15 trades during last week, which makes Coinsilium one of the more regularly traded ISDX companies.
Cyber security products developer Crossword Cybersecurity (CCS) has joined up with MHA MacIntyre Hudson to co-market Crossword’s Rizikon cyber risk analysis tool to the accountant’s small and medium-sized clients. Rizikon was developed at City University and it is Crossword’s first product. At 175p (150p/200p) a share, Crossword is valued at £4.2m.
Business incubator Milamber Ventures (MLVP) has acquired a 10% stake in White Cobalt, which develops technology platforms to help businesses to be more efficient and cope with growth. Milamber issued 166,667 of its own shares at 18p each in payment for the stake. This makes Steve Stovold, who founded White Cobalt in 2011, the fifth largest shareholder in Milamber with 4.7%. Powwownow founders Paul Lees and Andrew Pearce have each bought 50,000 shares in Milamber at 18p each. This cash will be used in a joint venture between their new business Thortful and Milamber. At 13p (12p/14p) a share, Milamber is valued at £455,000.
David Grierson has joined the board of investment company Lombard Capital (LCAP). He has been working in the timber and contracting sectors for four decades. Mark Jackson and Graham Jones have both left the board. At 6p (5p/7p) a share, Lombard is valued at £136,000.
AIM
Human microbiome-based products developer OptiBiotix Health (OPTI) has signed an agreement with KSF Acquisition UK, which will finance the assessment of the benefits of OptiBiotix’s SlimBiome weight management products when it used alongside SlimFast products. SlimBiome affects appetite, metabolism and energy harvest which fits with the SlimFast meal replacement products. Kainos Capital acquired SlimFast from Unilever in July 2014 and KSF is its UK offshoot with rights to the SlimFast brand in UK, Ireland and Germany.
Curtis Banks (CBP) will become the second largest SIPP provider following the acquisition of Suffolk Life from Legal & General for £45m. The enlarged group will have 65,000 SIPPs with assets of £18bn under administration. Suffolk Life made a profit of £1.3m in 2014 and there should be synergy benefits from the combination. A placing at 320p a share has raised £27m. The deal enhances 2016 earnings from 14.9p to 15.8p.
Management Resources Solutions (MRS) plans to acquire civil construction equipment and services provider Bachmann Plant Hire Pty for up to A$13.4m and the acquisition will more than double group revenues. There is an initial payment of A$8.2m in cash and the taking on of finance debt, while the rest is dependent on performance in 2016, 2017 and 2018. Bachmann provides earthworks equipment and operators in Queensland, Australia. There is a fleet of more than 200 vehicles and revenues were A$21.7m and pre-tax profit A$2m in the year to June 2015. MRS already supplies technical and strategic services to the oil and gas, construction and resources sectors. Project management activity has offset a decline in consulting work. This deal is a reverse takeover and the shareholder meeting is on 28 January.
Financial software and consulting services provider First Derivatives (FDP) has acquired Kx consultancy QuntumKDB for up to £2.2m, with £500,000 of this depending on the achievement of targets in the first 12 months. This deal will be earnings enhancing in the first full year. Quantum made a profit of £300,000 in the year to September 2015. First Derivatives has also signed a memorandum of understanding with Utilismart, which is expected to use Kx software for smart grid applications.
Interactive gaming operator Netplay TV (NPT) has extended its agreement with ITV for three years until 2019. Jackpot 247 has been on ITV since 2010 and Netplay will combine this TV exposure with its developing mobile platforms. Talks about the purchase of Sportech’s pools business have ended and NetPlay is not involved in the bidding process.
The UK National Screening Committee (NSC) is recommending that the IONA non-invasive test developed by Premaitha Health (NIPT) should be offered by the NHS to high risk pregnant women as part of the foetal anomaly screening programme. This will reduce the need for invasive testing.
Cambria Automobiles (CAMB) is paying £10.8m for a Land Rover franchise in Welwyn Garden City – Cambria has Jaguar and Aston Martin franchises nearby. In 2015, the franchise generated a pre-tax profit of £2.5m on revenues of £54m and it will be immediately earnings enhancing. A Jaguar franchise in Exeter is being sold for £1.3m and the Aston Martin franchise on the site will be closed. These businesses generated £500,000 profit in 2015. This leaves Cambria with 44 franchises and 17 brands. Cambria says that its first half trading is well ahead of the same period last year.
Ramblers Metals & Minerals (RMM) has completed the all share acquisition of Thundermin Resources. This means that Rambler owns 100% of the Little Deer and Whales Back copper projects. These have previously been mined and still include copper mineralisation. The infrastructure at the Ming mine could be used if the mines are brought back into production.
MAIN MARKET
Standard list shell RockRose Energy (RRE), which is headed by former Igas boss Andrew Austin, floated on 13 January and the shares ended the first week at 51.5p. RockRose raised £4.4m at 50p a share, having previously raised £600,000, but the costs of the flotation were £833,000. The company is capitalised at £5m at the placing price – so the net cash covers 83% of the valuation. The focus is UK onshore and offshore oil and gas assets which are in production and have significant reserves. The cash will help to finance the costs of due diligence and acquiring suitable assets.
Cash shell Falcon Acquisitions Ltd (FAL) will join the standard list on 18 January. A placing raised £1.6m at 10p, which capitalises the company at £2.04m, and there is a secondary fundraising may raise up to £2m at a share price to be set between 10p and 30p. There was already £265,000 in the bank before the flotation so there is cash of £1.65m after costs of £220,000. The focus is acquiring businesses involved in online, mobile and video broadcasting. Any target is likely to be worth up to £30m. The board includes directors from previous standard list shell Challenger Acquisitions.
Africa-focused oil and gas company Aminex (AEX) has secured a gas sales agreement with Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation for the Kilwani North gas field, where Aminex has a 55.575% interest. Solo Oil has until the end of January to take up an option to buy an additional 6.5% stake in the field from Aminex, which would take its stake to 12.675%. A pre-determined level of production will be purchased each year and an invoice will be issued each month. The initial gas price is $3.07/mcf and there will be an annual indexation of the gas price.
Andrew Hore
Quoted Micro 30 November 2015
ISDX
Hearing and mobility products marketer and retailer DHAIS (DHAP) slipped into loss last year after operating costs rose faster than gross profit because revenues did not grow as fast as expected. In the year to June 2015, revenues grew from £9.65m to £10.6m, while a profit of £161,000 was turned into a loss of £83,000. The interim profit had been flat but there was a larger second half increase in costs. However, there was a cash inflow after capital expenditure of £133,000, which helped to pay down debt – although this is mainly an interest free loan from a hearing aid manufacturer. Hearing aid sales were 15% ahead and mobility sales were 12% higher. At 30.5p (28p/33p) a share, DHAIS is valued at £19m. In May, Spain-based GN Hearing Care acquired the 4.76% stake previously owned by Eurohearingaids.com Ltd.
The new board at Lombard Capital Group (LCAP) has written down two investments in its portfolio by £141,000. At 4.5p (4p/5p) a share, Lombard is valued at £86,400. The NAV is £99,000 or 5.19p a share and that includes £16,000 in cash. Russell Darvill and Charlotte Argyle stepped down from the board and Mark Jackson, Graham Jones and Nigel Fitzpatrick were appointed to replace them early in November.
Miton Group took up all of the 15 million shares issued at 1p each by Wheelsure Holdings (WHLP), which gives it a 9.25% stake in the rail track safety products developer. Daniel Stewart, which became Wheelsure’s corporate adviser and broker in August, handled the subscription and has been issued warrants to subscribe for 1.4 million shares at 1p each any time in the next five years. At 1.125p (1p/1.25p) a share, Wheelsure is valued at £1.8m.
Titania Internet Ventures (TITP) has raised £25,200 from an issue of convertible unsecured loan notes maturing in November 2020. There is no interest income. The conversion price is 0.56p a share compared with the current market price of 2.5p (2p/3p) a share, which values the current share capital of the investment company at £44,000. The holder of the loan notes will not be allowed to have a stake of 30% or more in Titania on conversion. Titania is being run on a care and maintenance basis. Alexander David Securities has replaced SVS as corporate adviser.
Trading in the shares of Gowin New Energy Group Ltd (GWIN) has been suspended “due to a change in circumstances with its operating subsidiaries in China”. The suspension price is 0.55p (0.4p/0.7p) a share, which values the LED lighting products supplier at £2.5m.
AIM
Playtech has pulled out of its bid for Plus500 (PLUS) because of its failure to gain regulatory approval in an appropriate time scale. An interim dividend of $0.2121 a share has been announced – the plan is it to pay 60% of retained profit in dividend – and a share buy back programme of up to $20m will be put in place. Plus500 says that it had cash of $95m at the end of June 2015 and more has been generated since then. The dividend will cost $24.4m. Plus500 has had problems with regulators but it states that it “is not subject to restrictions imposed by any of its regulators”. Overall profit will be lower in 2015. Two non-executive directors have been buying shares but JP Morgan Chase has reduced its stake to 6.8%.
Motor dealer Cambria Automobiles (CAMB) reported slightly better than expected results, even after recent upgrades, and this has led to upgrades for 2015-16 and 2016-17. Underlying pre-tax profit improved from £5.4m to £7.7m in the year to August 2015. Cambria sold more new cars and made more profit on each of them. Used car and servicing revenues also increased. The dividend increased from 0.6p a share to 0.75p a share. Net cash was £1m and there is a £37m, five year bank facility that can be used for acquisitions. N+1 Singer has upgraded its profit forecasts by around 5% to £9m this year and £9.3m next year.
Pure Wafer (PUR) has agreed to sell its US wafer reclaim plant for $16m (£10.5m) and it will return the cash to shareholders. Pure Wafer had already decided not to rebuild the Swansea plant so it also has cash from the insurance claim. A decision on how much will initially be distributed will be made in December. WH Ireland believes that a distribution of at least 175p a share is possible. The company will leave AIM and be liquidated.
ASX-listed Tlou Energy (TLOU) raised £1.2m at 6.5p a share and joins AIM on 30 November. There is already £1m in the bank and no debt. Tlou has a coal bed methane project in Botswana, which has contingent recoverable resources of 3.3 trillion cubic feet. The Lesedi project in south east Botswana is 100%-owned but the Botswana government has an option to take a 15% stake when the mining licence is granted. The government will have to pay its share of the previous costs if the option is taken up, which could be around £6m. Broker Brandon Hill has already written a note on Tlou (http://tlouenergy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/150721-Brandon-Hill-UK-Initiating-Coverage.pdf). First commercial gas sales could be in the second half of 2016. Botswana has a power shortage and expensive diesel generation can be replaced by gas. Tlou has been in discussions with a number of potential partners for power generation projects. The initial project would be a 10MW gas-to-power plant and then further generation plants would be developed. Tlou still has to secure government permits and approvals.
Kefi Minerals (KEFI) has raised £2.64m at 0.3p a share in order to provide cash to progress with its Ethiopian gold project at Tulu Kapi. Odey Asset Management has increased its stake to 26%. This will provide enough cash until the middle of next year. Construction of the project should start in 2016 and Kefi has managed to substantially reduce the cost of the project. Gold production could start at the end of 2017.
MAIN MARKET
Waterman (WTM) says that its revenues were 8% higher in the first few months of the financial year and cash levels are better than expected. Public sector demand for infrastructure services is growing and property-based business is spread around the UK not just in London. The professional services business wants to reach an operating margin of 6% by 2018-19. Sanlam forecasts a rise in profit from £2.7m to £3.7m in the year to June 2016 and a 40% increase in dividend to 2.8p a share.
Bluebird Merchant Ventures Ltd plans to join the standard list in early December. Bluebird is involved in trading copper concentrate from the Philippines and has an option to acquire a 50.1% stake in Red Mountain Mining Singapore, which is developing a gold project. Clive Sinclair-Poulton, who has been a director of a number of AIM resources companies, is involved in Bluebird.
ANDREW HORE