Pantheon Resources delayed by unexpected oil find

Shares in Pantheon Resources climbed towards a nine-year high as it unexpectedly struck oil at the second well it has drilled at an onshore East Texas property.

During drilling operations at the AIM-listed company's VOS#1 well in Tyler County, which is owned by a 50%-owned Pantheon joint venture, an oil and gas bearing zone was encountered at a depth of roughly 12,600 feet.

This zone was separate from and independent of both the primary and secondary objectives the well was being drilled for but flowed both natural gas and oil.

As a result of actions to control this zone, the company said this will add around 14 extra days to the drilling timeline to reach the main targeted zones.

"Whilst there has been a delay to drilling operations on this well, the second in our 2015 drilling programme, the unexpected presence of hydrocarbons from this new zone is highly encouraging, albeit testing will be required to establish if it is commercially viable," said chief executive Jay Cheatham.

"We have now successfully sidetracked the well and are drilling ahead to our primary and secondary objectives."

Shares in Pantheon jumped 15% to 84p just before the close of trading on Friday.