88 Energy Ltd, Harbour Energy Plc, Zephyr Energy PLC, Westmount Energy Ltd,

88 Energy Ltd (LON:88E, ASX:88E) investors are counting down to the next well results from the Merlin-1 exploration well.

This week it confirmed wireline logging operations are now underway and the hotly anticipated ‘preliminary’ results are expected over the weekend, it said.

This morning the company also confirmed the remaining conditions to its acquisition of the Umiat oil field, also in Alaska, are now complete – following cement work to plug and abandon two historic wells on the site.

88 Energy said further remedial site work will be finalised in the near-term. Umiat is located close to the Project Peregrine acreage, which contains Merlin. It was discovered in 1945 and saw eleven wells drilled by 1953.

Harbour Energy Plc (LON:HBR) – Premier Oil’s port in the storm – began trading on the London Stock Exchange.

Harbour is a combination of Premier and private-equity backed Chrysaor to create ‘the largest UK listed independent oil and gas company’. It is a producer with a portfolio comprising some 200,000 barrels oil equivalent per day from operations in the North Sea and South East Asia.

The company boasts a new management, a strong and flexible balance sheet giving it the potential for further growth.

For 2021, Harbour is guiding for 200,000 to 215,000 boepd of production with operating costs averaging less than US$15 per barrel, free cash flow breakeven is stated at US$30 to US$35 per barrel.

Zephyr Energy PLC (LON:ZPHR) completed the acquisition of non-operated working interests in producing and near-term production wells in the Bakken Formation in North Dakota, US.

The deal, first announced earlier this week, transforms the company into a producer and provides it with a source of cash flow, with first payments to Zephyr expected before the end of April. Presently, production comes from one well and in today’s statement Zephyr highlighted that completion of four wells drilled last year is expected in May.

The acquisition was supported by a £10mln equity fundraise, which included the issue of 500mln new shares to institutional investors, family offices, Zephyr board members and other investors. The new shares were priced at 2p each, marking a 2.5% discount to last Friday’s closing share price.

Westmount Energy Ltd (LON:WTE, OTCQB:WMELF) announced the final repayment against convertible unsecured loan notes, which became due on March 31 2021. The final payment amounted to £456,547.94 comprising 400,000 residual principal and £56,547.94 of accrued interest.

All loan notes issued in October 2018 have been repaid and the company is now debt-free, Westmount highlighted in a statement. The company said it had £1.3mln of cash following the repayment.

Shares in Advance Energy PLC (LON:ADV) resumed trading on Thursday as it advances a reverse takeover to acquire an interest in the Buffalo oil field in Timor-Leste, southeast Asia. It was previously suspended in December as the deal was initially announced and today the company notes the publishing of an admission document for the enlarged company.

The company is acquiring a 50% interest in Carnarvon Petroleum Timor Unipessoal Lda, a subsidiary of ASX-listed Carnarvon Petroleum, which owns 100% of the Buffalo field. At the same time, it is raising £21.84mln of new capital in a share placing.

Buffalo is host to 34.3mln barrels of contingent oil resources and under previous operators (BHP and Nexen Petroleum) it produced some 21mln barrels over a five-year period.

Touchstone Exploration Inc (LON:TXP, TSX:TXP) provided an update on exploration at the Ortoire block, onshore Trinidad and Tobago.

It completed and tested the third interval at Chinook-1 encountering 35-degree API gravity crude oil – a light crude – and said further evaluation is required to determine commerciality. Chinook-1 will be placed on pump for an extended production test to evaluate the reservoir…