Philex raises stake in Pitkin to 50.28%

MANILA, Philippines—Publicly listed Philex Petroleum Corp. has increased its stake in oil and gas exploration firm Pitkin Petroleum Plc to 50.28 percent from 18.46 percent.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange Monday, Philex Petroleum said the additional interest was acquired through a subscription of 10 million new ordinary shares and the purchase of the 36.4 million shares held by existing shareholders.

According to Philex Petroleum, the new and existing shares were purchased at 75 US cents a piece for a total consideration of $34.8 million (P1.4 billion). The acquisition was funded through the advances from Philex Mining Corp., which owned 64.79 percent of Philex Petroleum.

UK-registered Pitkin Petroleum has operations in the Philippines, Vietnam, Peru and the US.