Xtract excited about North Sea prospects

23rd Sep 2011 16:46

Energy and mineral investor Xtract Energy saw its losses narrow dramatically in the first half of the year, but so did its cash pile.Loss before tax contracted to £1.17m from £11.73m the year before, when losses were inflated by a £9.6m hit from Xtract's share of the results of a joint venture.Cash at the end of June stood at £4.58m, down from an end-2010 figure of £8.77m. The value of net assets eased to £8.04m from £8.33m."We are very happy to have now completed the acquisition of Elko Energy Inc. and the disposal of our interest in Extrem Energy AS," said Xtract's chief executive, Peter Moir. "These transactions allow management to more effectively focus on core business areas moving forward. We are excited about our future prospects, particularly in the North Sea where we have two wells being drilled in the next quarter," Moir added.The shares fell by 0.05p to 1.25p on the day the results were announced.--jh