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Phoenix Group, the UK consolidator of closed-life assurance funds, has received valid acceptances for 31.5m open offer shares from shareholders entitled to participate in the open offer, the company has announced. The announcement comes 19 days after the company announced details of a capital raising, comprising firm equity placings and an open offer to raise aggregate gross proceeds of 25m through the issuance of 50m Phoenix new ordinary shares at 500p per share. The 31.5m shares which received valid acceptances represent approximately 92.6% of the open offer shares offered to shareholders entitled to participate in the open offer.

Micro Focus confirmed one of its subsidiaries has acquired Orbix, Orbacus and Artix software product lines from Progress Software Corporation, following a two month delay. "Completion of the acquisition was delayed from January 21st 2013 awaiting certain contractual consents. Micro Focus now anticipates that the acquisition will contribute approximately $3m of revenue in the period from completion to April 30th 2013," it said. The $15m deal was made using cash from Micro Focus' existing banking facility, it said in a statement. Micro said for the financial year starting May 1st it continues to expect that the acquired assets will contribute to the stabilisation of the Visibroker business and deliver at least $14m in revenues. Micro Focus will manage the acquisition to deliver adjusted EBITDA margin at least in line with the group's latest reported level of 44.5%, it added. The acquisition is expected to be earnings enhancing in the current and future financial years.

In the company's current drilling programme, five wells are expected to be drilled and completed in the area of the oil field known as the "East Terrace", bringing it on stream less than two years from discovery. In addition, at least two of the company's main field wells are scheduled to be slant drilled into the T2 and T5 reservoirs, to assess the potential from these unexploited reservoirs and add additional reserves to the field. Salamander has contracted the Atwood Mako rig for a two year period up until September 2014. Salamander is an Asia-focused independent exploration and production company with licenses throughout Ibndonesia and Thailand.

One quarter of Salamander Energy's wells in the Bualuang Oil Field in the Gulf of Thailand are in production and performing ahead of pre-drill expectations, the company has disclosed. In an operational update issued by the FTSE 250-listed company on Monday, Salamander Energy reported that four of its current 16 well development drilling programmes had been completed to date and encountered between 495m and 530m of pay with excellent reservoir properties of between 27% and 33% porosities and 85% - 99% net-to-gross ratios. The company stated: "The performance to date has been excellent and individual well deliverability is ahead of pre-drill expectations. Year-to-date production for the Bualuang field has averaged 10,531 barrels of oil per day (bopd). Average daily production in 2012 was approximately 7,200 bopd and the full year production rate in 2013 is forecast to be between 11,000 and 14,000 bopd, representing a minimum of a 50% increase in production year on year."..............

One of the Chinhoyi branches was refurbished and new refrigeration and air condition units were installed at the group's flagship Borrowdale branch, while the refurbishment works at the Hwange branch were nearing completion, the update added. Meikles further reported that its plantation development on the Tanganda Tea Estates was being advanced. To date, 187 hectares of avocadoes, 457 hectares of macadamias and 125 hectares of coffee have been planted. Global tea prices have gone up in the past months which the company said "augurs well for tea revenues". Company outlook"We remain optimistic and positive about the outlook in most of our businesses.Our performance in the financial year ending March 31st 2013 is expected to show much improvement from the outturn of the previous financial year."

Group revenues increased by 16 per cent in the nine months ended December 31st compared to the prior period at Meikles, a financial update from the company has shown. The company, which operates a retail and hotel chain, said that the growth had been driven by "increased volumes and margins". Group costs showed an increase of 3.0% over the same period and Meikles described its operating profit as having showed a "significant increase" compared to the level achieved in the prior year. The group reported that TM Supermarkets upgraded its Westgate branch and rebranded it into a Pick n Pay store, bringing the number of Pick n Pay branded stores to two in the country. Increased volume and margins were reported at the refurbished branches.

Helius intends to develop at least an additional 200MW worth of biomass capacity over the next two years, and is in ongoing discussions with UK site owners. Once the Avonmouth financing is completed and the plant starts generating fees, the company will be able to make cost commitments on future plants.

Cashflow concerns Helius delivered a muted outlook statement, reiterating its commitment to its strategy of delivering projects to financial close and supplementing income by development fees from third parties in exchange for project equity. The company generated 310,000 in revenues in the past year, up from 148,000 in the period prior. An 8.8m impairment charge will apply to the current year due to September's notification by RWE Innogy, which means reverting to the original earn-out provisions of the 2008 sale-and-purchase agreement of the Stallingborough project. This has generated uncertainty around Helius' future cash flow; due to the uncertainty in relation with key assumptions used for the Stallingborough plant, Helius said it can attribute "no present value" to the estimated future cash flows. The management intends to work with RWE Innogy in an effort of securing future value from the project.

Helius Energy expects to complete the delayed financing on its 100 megawatt (MW) Avonmouth project by the end of the quarter, the group has confirmed. The biomass power company announced a 11.6m operating loss for the year to September 30th, an increase from the 757,000 loss registered in the year before. Due to the financing delay, the group is planning a conditional share issue in an effort to fund its planned development programme. "We have the expertise and flexibility to deliver the Avonmouth and Southampton projects and to adapt as required to any changes in the market," said Chairman John Seed. "We have made a lot of progress in 2012 in continuing with our development programme and we now have projects set for commercial handover, financial close and submission of application for planning all in the first half of this year." The 100MW Southampton plant is currently undergoing its consultation process, and the company expects a full application for a Development Consent Order to be submitted during the first half of the year. Helius's 7.2MW Rothes plant is now almost completed, with commercial handover expected to take place in the second quarter of this year. This plant will generate dividends for Helius as it generates electricity using distillery residues and wood fuel.

The group expects this transaction to be earnings enhancing during the year ending November 30th 2013. Seymour Pierce fell into into administration last month and is now called Tenebris Realisations.

AIM-listed financial services group WH Ireland has acquired Tenebris's private wealth management arm, formerly Seymour Pierce. The Manchester based stockbroking firm paid 25,000 to buy Seymour Pierce, one of the oldest brokers in the City of London, out of administration. The deal boosts WH Ireland's managed funds by about 15%. "The acquired assets include Tenebris's private client list and, as part of the transaction, the assets under management relating to those clients, valued at approximately 270m, will transfer to the control of WH Ireland," it said in a company statement. WH Ireland Chief Executive Officer Richard Killingbeck said he was pleased to secure this agreement with the administrators of Tenebris. "Part of our Private Client growth strategy is to seek to acquire private client teams and assets in existing WH Ireland office locations and this transaction will add considerably to our London based assets under management."

Advisors of Bumi plc and the Bakries are now arguing over the number of shares Rothschild and his cousin, Tom Daniel, can purchase. They are also questioning whether Schroders, who backs Rothchild's proposal and holds a 4.2% stake, is part of a concert party with them. Daniel's St James's Master Fund recently bought shares which is understood to have left him and Rothschild with 25.2% of the voting shares. The transaction is also enhanced by the voting restrictions on the Bakries. The pair is permitted to take their economic stake up to 29.9%. A separate inquiry by the Panel into whether the Bakries or Rothschild failed to disclose the Bakrie/Roeslani concert party is unlikely to conclude before the meeting.

Roeslani was told by the Panel in December that he was not allowed to vote his shares after being exposed as a member of a shareholder concert party with the Bakries, which limited their votes to 29.9%. The panel ruled that the Bakrie Group and Roeslani's indirectly controlled Bukit Mutiara, which together control 50.3% of the voting rights in Bumi plc, was regarded as "acting in concert". They were told to reduce those rights to less than 30% by disposing of shares. If the watchdog Panel cleared any buyers from belonging to a concert party, they would hold a key 13% interest. The Panel would need to make its ruling by Tuesday 11am. However there may be an option to postpone the extraordinary general meeting. Rothschild said the Panel has little time to challenge any ruling before the meeting. "To do that in 48 hours would be extremely contentious and I think it's highly unlikely," he said.

However, company infighting and investigation into financial wrongdoing has seen Rothschild and the Bakries unwind their interests in the company. Bakrie Group has put forth a deal to cancel its indirect 23.8% stake in exchange for Bumi plc's 10.3% holding in Asia's biggest thermal coal exporter PT Bumi Resources. Bumi Plc would also sell the remaining 18.9% interest it holds in Bumi Resources to the Bakrie Group for $278m. However, the Bakries warned they would withdraw the offer if shareholders vote for Rothschild's proposal to rid members of the board. As members of management continue to butt heads, the Takeover Panel has been under pressure to intervene to ensure all shareholders are treated equally. The debacle took another turn as it has emerged that Rosan Roeslani, a 13% shareholder, has found potential buyers for his stake.

British watchdog the Takeover Panel is being urged by investors to step in over the battle for control of troubled Indonesian coal miner Bumi plc. It comes as Bumi plc shareholders prepare to meet Thursday to vote on co-founder Nathaniel Rothschild's proposal to replace 12 of the 14 directors on the board. Bumi plc has advised shareholders against the vote, saying it goes against its plans to separate itself from the Bakrie Group and Bumi Resources. The company was formed in 2010 by Rothschild and Indonesia's influential Bakrie family. They bundled together the coal assets of Bumi Resources and PT Berau Coal Energy. Through Rothchild's investment vehicle, Vallar, they renamed it Bumi plc.

"This contract awarded to Costain by Crossrail is, we believe, further demonstration of the successful implementation of our 'Choosing Costain' strategy, in which we focus on building long term relationships with and winning repeat works from blue chip customers who are spending billions on meeting vital infrastructure needs," Chief Executive of Costain, Andrew Wyllie said. "This contract further contributes to the strength of our order book, which comprises approximately 90% repeat business."

Engineering group Costain has scored a 110m pound contract from Crossrail to construct the main works at London's Bond Street station. In a joint venture with Skanska, the two will work on the platform fit-out and mechanical and electrical services for the Western Ticket Hall in Davies Street and the Eastern Ticket Hall in Hanover Square. Work will commence this month and is expected to be completed in February 2017 ahead of Crossrail's opening in 2018. It follows on from the contract already awarded to the joint venture and the announcement in March 2011 for the initial construction of the structure of the station.

Commercial production from the Sapinhoá discovery began early in January when the FPSO Cidade de São Paulo started up with a capacity to process 120,000 barrels of oil per day and 176m standard cubic feet of gas per day. Another FPSO, the Cidade de Ilhabela, which is also known as "FPSO 4", is expected to produce from the Sapinhoá field and BG Group reported that it was on track to start production in the second half of 2014. This FPSO has a production capacity of 150,000 barrels of oil per day and 212m standard cubic feet per day of natural gas. BG Group has a 30% interest in the black, with operator Petrobras holding 45% and Repsol Sinopec Brasil S.A. 25%.

FTSE 100-listed integrated natural gas company BG Group has commenced a new extended well test in the Sapinhoá North area of its concession in offshore Brazil. The company reported that the floating production, storage and offloading vessel (FPSO), Cidade de São Vicente, was connected to the well in water depths of 2,140 metres. The FPSO is expected to operate in the area for up to six months, gathering technical information on reservoir behaviour and oil flow in the subsea lines, amongst other data. During the initial test phase, the well is expected to produce around 15,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd).

Bumi Plc would also sell the remaining 18.9% interest it holds in Bumi Resources to the Bakrie Group for $278m. However, the Bakries warned they would withdraw the offer if shareholders vote for Rothschild's proposal to rid members of the board. Roeslani's Recapital Group announced on Monday that it had sold its shares, worth just over 90m, to fund managers Avenue Luxembourg and Argyle Street Management along with Indonesia's politically wired Tanoesoedibjo family. It means about 13% of the voting rights in Bumi plc are available. Britain's regulators did not consider the buyers to be acting together with the Bakrie family or the seller so there are no restrictions on their voting power at Thursday's meeting.