Australia's Pilot Energy announces A$4mn placement

Sydney-listed Pilot Energy announced on June 17 a A$4mn ($2.6mn) share placement. The placement follows the approval of the WA 31-L joint venture’s application to declare a greenhouse gas storage formation over the WA 31-L licence area in Western Australia.

“Strong investor interest was shown in the placement along with support for the company’s strategic focus on developing the Mid West Clean Energy Project (including the Cliff Head carbon storage project) in Western Australia,” Pilot said.

This capital raise will provide funding for activities associated with Pilot’s projects, including finalising the Mid West Clean Energy Project pre-FEED, preparatory work for the next phase of development, Cliff Head operations, and general working capital requirements.

Under the terms of the placement, the company will issue 181.8mn fully paid ordinary shares to investors at an issue price of A$0.022/share to raise A$4mn before costs. The issue price represents a 22% premium to the previous closing price of A$0.018/share.

The CCS project marks the first stage of the Mid West Clean Energy Project, converting the Cliff Head oil field from oil production to a CCS project. The oil field, located in shallow waters offshore Western Australia, is currently jointly operated by Pilot and Triangle. The second stage of the project involves blue hydrogen production, and the third stage focuses on producing clean ammonia for export.