Ascent Resources 'unlikely' to have update on Slovenian permits within the week

Ascent Resources believes it is "unlikely" any substantive developments will occur in its ongoing spat with the government of Slovenia over its failure to grant permits within a week from now.

Since news that the country's Environmental Minister had decided to carry out an internal review of Ascent's applications, the AIM-listed oil and gas exploration firm has been unable to contact the minister.

"We hope to bring an update to shareholders once we have some clarity on the situation next week," said Ascent.

"The company has been in regular contact with our partners and with officials from the British Chamber of Commerce and the British Embassy to understand the reasons for the intervention and to assess what the likely impact will be on our permit applications"

Ascent, which has been seeking an integrated pollution prevention and control permit for its Petisovci gas project for five years now, assured investors that it shared their frustration regarding the speed of the permitting process but asked shareholders to "show restraint and refrain from directly contacting elected officials and public servants in Slovenia."

"The volume of communications received, and the occasionally aggressive tone of communications does nothing to further our cause and could be taken by some as a reason to delay the process further," added Ascent.

As of 1240 GMT, Ascent shares had edged up 0.42% to 0.48p.