UPDATE: Rockhopper Mulls Main Market Move After Fundraising

8th Jun 2010 14:42

(Adds detail on main market move and share price.) By Jason Douglas Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES LONDON (Dow Jones)--Oil and gas explorer Rockhopper Exploration PLC (RKH.LN) said Tuesday it is considering a move to the main market of the London Stock Exchange following a successful GBP48.5 million fundraising. Chairman Pierre Jungels said a move to the main market from the junior Alternative Investment Market, which it joined in 2005, would raise its profile and bring it to the attention of a broader base of investors, as well as make it easier to trade its shares. The board will consider whether a main market listing is more appropriate for the next stage of the company's growth, Jungels said. Rockhoppper Tuesday raised GBP48.5 million in a share sale to fund its exploration activities in the Falkland Islands. Rockhopper said it will use the proceeds for testing its Sea Lion discovery and drilling an exploration well at the Ernest prospect. The company said it placed 17.3 million new shares with investors at 280 pence a share, a 3.5% discount to its closing price Monday. The company's shares have more than tripled in value since the beginning of the year, driven higher by its exploration success. At 1324 GMT, shares in Rockhopper were 9.75 pence or 3.4% higher at 300 pence, outperforming a 0.7% lower Alternative Investment Market. -By Jason Douglas, Dow Jones Newswires; 44-20-7842-9272; [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 08, 2010 09:42 ET (13:42 GMT)