Longboat Energy to change name amid south east Asia focus

Longboat Energy, an exploration and production company focused on south east Asia, updated the market on its strategy and operations on Friday, and also announced a planned name change.

The AIM-traded firm said its current strategic focus was on its operations in Malaysia, where significant progress was being made.

It said it was in the advanced stages of a farm-out process for Block 2A, with a transaction expected to be finalised in the fourth quarter.

Additionally, Longboat said it was nearing completion of negotiations on a production sharing contract for a shallow-water block offshore Sarawak, Malaysia.

That contract involved a portfolio of substantial undeveloped gas fields, and required negotiations with multiple parties, including federal and state entities.

An announcement regarding the contract was expected soon.

Reflecting its strategic shift towards Southeast Asia, the board said it had decided to rename and rebrand the company as Seascape Energy Asia.

The company’s ticker symbol on the London Stock Exchange would change to 'SEA' at the same time, with the changes set to be implemented in the coming weeks.

Longboat said its interim financial results for the period ended 30 June would be released on 19 September.

“The change in name to Seascape Energy Asia represents the transformation of Longboat into a Southeast Asian-focused E&P company,” said chief executive officer Nick Ingrassia.

“We are excited about our growing portfolio which we expect to deliver several value inflection points in the near-term.

“We look forward to working with all of our stakeholders to create value as we seek to grow the business under our new brand.”

At 1132 BST, shares in Longboat Energy were down 0.38% at 17.73p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.