The prospect of a potentially commercial discovery at a well named in honour of American “shock rock” pop star Alice Cooper helped push up the price of Faroe Petroleum this week – as did a bank deal that saw the North Sea explorer doubling its credit facility.
Aberdeen-headquartered Faroe – which has a spread of acreage across waters in the UK, Norwegian, Dutch and Faroe Islands’ sectors of the North Sea – increased its borrowing facility from $125m to $250m in an agreement with seven banks to support growth.
The company has a penchant for naming its prospects after veteran rock acts including Frank Zappa, T Rex, Marc Bolan and Aerosmith – as well as after a range of Scotch whisky brands.
Results from another prospect in the Norwegian sector, named Clapton, were disappointing. But Faroe’s shares, trading at a discount to estimated net asset value of 170p, are backed by a stronger balance sheet than many distressed peers.