The board of junior oil explorer Tangiers Petroleum (TPET) has agreed a recommended all-share takeover of Australian peer Jacka Resources (ASX: JKA), valuing Jacka at roughly A$37m (£20.5m).
Eve Howell, executive chairwoman of Tangiers, said the deal will diversify the business away from a single high-risk exploration play, while also concentrating efforts on Africa. In addition to Tangiers' minority interest in the Tarfaya licence offshore Morocco, where partner Genel Energy (GENL) plans to drill a high-impact exploration well in mid-2014, the combined group will have pro-forma cash of A$8m, a further A$22m expected to flow in from farm-in agreements, minority interests in near-term appraisal and development projects in Tunisia and Nigeria, and frontier exploration acreage in Somaliland and Tanzania.
