European Onshore Gas Strategy & Capital Raise

Buccaneer Energy PLC

12 August 2026

 

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN, IS RESTRICTED AND IS NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN, INTO OR FROM THE UNITED STATES, CANADA, JAPAN, AUSTRALIA, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OR REGULATIONS OF THAT JURISDICTION. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT SHOULD BE READ IN ITS ENTIRETY. FURTHER DETAILS OF THE CAPITAL RAISE ARE SET OUT BELOW.

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND SHALL NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER TO SELL OR ISSUE OR THE SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO BUY, SUBSCRIBE FOR OR OTHERWISE ACQUIRE ANY NEW SHARES OF BUCCANEER ENERGY PLC.

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION AS DEFINED IN ARTICLE 7 OF THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATION NO. 596/2014 AS IT FORMS PART OF UK DOMESTIC LAW BY VIRTUE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION (WITHDRAWAL) ACT 2018, AS AMENDED ("MAR"). UPON THE PUBLICATION OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT, SUCH INSIDE INFORMATION IS NOW CONSIDERED TO BE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN.

12 August 2026

Buccaneer Energy Plc

("Buccaneer" or the "Company")

Expansion into European Onshore Gas Strategy and

Capital Raise of £460,000

Allenby Capital appointed as Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker

Buccaneer Energy (AIM: BUCE), the international oil & gas exploration and production company, is pleased to announce its expansion into European onshore gas business and a technical partnership, together with a placing, subscription and fee conversion to realise working capital for the Company totaling £425,000 (the "Capital Raise") to fund the Company's initial technical and commercial work programme in the region. 

The Capital Raise is being undertaken by way of a placing (the "Placing") and subscription (the "Subscription") for a total of 3,190,000,000 new ordinary shares of 0.01p each in the Company ("Ordinary Shares") at a price of 0.01 pence per new Ordinary Share (the "Issue Price"), together with the issue of warrants over 3,190,000,000 new Ordinary Shares ("Warrants").  Certain of the directors of the Company ("Directors") intend to take part in the Subscription, as detailed below.  In addition, certain service providers to the Company have agreed that fees due can be paid in new Ordinary Shares, with a resultant working capital benefit to the Company ("the Fee Conversion").

The Company is also pleased to announce the appointment of Allenby Capital Limited as the Company's Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker with immediate effect. 

Highlights

·      Capital Raise to realise £460,000 to fund expansion into European onshore gas alongside continued US development.

·      European technical partnership established with Orion Resources Ltd, led by internationally recognised geologist Roberto Bencini.

·      More than 300 European onshore gas opportunities screened, with an initial shortlist now being progressed.

·      Initial target portfolio of up to three low-cost entry projects, with combined potential of 250 BCF (P50), c.US$500 million NPV10 and c.US$28 million annual cash flow.

·      Texas operations continue generating strong cash flow, with approximately 135 bopd production, reserves increased by 0.4MMbbl and Fouke waterflood on track for Q4 2026.

·      Board targeting growth into mid-sized E&P company producing 5,000 boepd over the next 3 to 5 years.

·      The Capital Raise, before expenses, consists of £125,000 from the Placing, £194,000 from the Subscription and £141,000 from the Fee Conversion.

European Growth Strategy

Over the past two years, Buccaneer has transformed its Texas operations into a growing cash-generative production business through a disciplined programme of operational improvements, cost reductions and targeted acquisitions. The Board now believes the Company is well positioned to build on that platform through expansion into selected European onshore gas opportunities, while continuing to grow its US operations.

Recent changes in the European energy market, including the cessation of Russian gas flows and disruption to global LNG supply, have fundamentally reshaped the sector, driving European gas prices materially higher while elevating energy security to a strategic policy priority across much of the continent. Combined with an improving regulatory backdrop in a number of jurisdictions, the Board believes these changes have created a compelling opportunity for technically led companies to pursue conventional onshore gas developments capable of generating attractive long-term returns.

Accordingly, Buccaneer intends to utilise the majority of the Capital Raise proceeds to establish an initial European work programme focused on identifying and securing attractive conventional onshore gas opportunities. Working alongside Orion Resources Ltd ("Orion"), the Company's technical team has already reviewed more than 300 opportunities across Europe, from which an initial shortlist of projects in Italy, Czech Republic and Turkey is now being progressed. The Board is initially targeting a portfolio of up to three low-cost entry projects, with combined potential of approximately 250 BCF (P50), an estimated NPV10 value of c.US$500 million and potential annual cash flows of c.US$28 million per year, subject to further technical and commercial evaluation.

European Technical Partnership

To support this strategy, Buccaneer has entered into an agreement with Orion, which is led by internationally recognised petroleum geologist Roberto Bencini, to identify, evaluate and develop conventional onshore gas opportunities across Europe.

Mr. Bencini brings over 40 years' international experience in petroleum geology, exploration strategy, subsurface evaluation and resource development. Together with his multi-disciplinary team of experienced geoscientists, Orion will provide integrated technical expertise to help identify opportunities, optimise decision-making, reduce exploration risk, and maximise value as Buccaneer builds its European portfolio.

The European initiative has been led by Buccaneer's Non-Executive Chairman, Dr Stephen Staley, who is also a director of Orion. Dr Staley has founded and led several London-listed oil and gas companies, including Independent Resources plc, Upland Resources Ltd and Fastnet Oil & Gas Ltd. He was also a consultant to and non-executive director of Cove Energy Ltd, which discovered over 50 TCF of gas offshore of Mozambique, prior to its £1.2 billion acquisition by PTTEP in 2012. The Board believes the combination of Roberto Bencini's technical expertise, Orion's multidisciplinary capability, and Dr Staley's commercial and capital markets experience provides Buccaneer with a highly experienced team to pursue its European growth strategy.

Existing US Operations

Buccaneer's Texas operations continue to increase reserves and generate positive net cash flow at current oil prices, as outlined in the Company's operational update announced on 13 July 2026. Average net production is currently approximately 135 bopd and June 2026 is expected to have generated approximately US$200,000 positive net cash flow. The Company continues to comfortably service interest on its legacy debt obligations while reducing outstanding debt and strengthening its financial position.

Since 1 January 2026, the Company's reserves have increased by approximately 0.4 million barrels, contributing to an increase in total NPV10 by US$2.1 million to approximately US$11.7 million.

The Fouke waterflood project continues to progress, with formation of the waterflood unit underway and start-up expected during the fourth quarter of 2026. The Board believes the waterflood has the potential to double primary recovery volumes which, if successful, would increase the total remaining recoverable Fouke volumes to over 500,000 barrels (gross) and generate additional positive net cash flows.

In addition, the Board intends to apply some of the net proceeds of the Capital Raise towards expanding its Organic Oil Recovery programme field-wide at Pine Mills. Following the success of its pilot project which added 15 bopd, the Board believes that expanding the programme field-wide at Pine Mills has the potential to increase production by 20% to 30% (25-45 bopd net) and therefore bring additional positive net cash flows.

The Board continues to target growth into a mid-sized E&P company producing approximately 5,000 boepd in the next three to five years.

Paul Welch, Chief Executive Officer of Buccaneer Energy, commented:

"This marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for Buccaneer. The financial benefits of the Capital Raise will allow us to pursue opportunities in the European gas market that we believe have the potential to deliver significant returns.

Recent changes in the European energy market have created a compelling backdrop for conventional onshore gas development. Higher gas prices, a renewed focus on energy security and a more supportive regulatory environment in a number of jurisdictions have reopened opportunities that, until recently, had been largely inaccessible.

The team at Orion, led by Roberto Bencini, has spent many years identifying and evaluating opportunities across Europe and brings decades of regional geological expertise and technical capability. Having already screened more than 200 opportunities, this work has already established a strong technical pipeline from which the Board believes it can build a high-quality European portfolio.

Together, Orion's technical expertise, Roberto Bencini's regional knowledge and Steve Staley's extensive experience in the international oil and gas sector provide Buccaneer with a highly experienced team to identify, evaluate and develop high-quality European opportunities capable of materially increasing the scale of the Company.

We believe this combination of a cash-generative US production business and a disciplined, technically-led European growth strategy provides Buccaneer with an exciting opportunity to create significant long-term value for shareholders, and I look forward to updating the market on our progress."

Details of the Placing, Subscription and Fee Conversion

The Placing, Subscription and Fee Conversion will comprise the issue of 4,600,000,000 new Ordinary Shares ("Capital Raise Shares") at the Issue Price to conditionally realise £460,000 before expenses for the Company, together with 3,190,000,000 Warrants. The Capital Raise will comprise £125,000 from the Placing of 1,250,000,000 new Ordinary Shares (the "Placing Shares"), £194,000 from the Subscription to 1,940,000,000 new Ordinary Shares (the "Subscription Shares") and £141,000 from the Fee Conversion into 1,410,000,000 new Ordinary Shares (the "Fee Conversion Shares"), all at the Issue Price. When issued, the Capital Raise Shares will represent approximately 19.9 per cent. of the enlarged share capital of the Company and will rank pari passu with the existing Ordinary Shares.

Steve Staley, Chairman, Paul Welch, CEO and Jim Newman, Non-executive Director each intend to subscribe for £5,000, £5,750 and £5,750 respectively, in the Subscription, which will result in the issue of a total of 165,000,000 new Ordinary Shares.  The Subscription is expected to complete at the same time as the Placing and Fee Conversion.

Certain service providers to the Company have agreed that fees due can be paid in new Ordinary Shares and accordingly, on Admission, 1,410,000,000 new Ordinary Shares will be issued for this purpose at the Issue Price.

The Issue Price is equal to the mid-market closing price of Ordinary Shares as at 11 August 2026, being the latest practicable date prior to the publication of this announcement.

The issue and allotment of the Capital Raise Shares is conditional, inter alia, upon the Capital Raise Shares being admitted to trading on AIM on or before 8.00 a.m. on 18 August 2026 (or such later date as Allenby Capital and the Company may agree being not later than 8.00 a.m. on 31 August 2026). Application will be made to London Stock Exchange plc for the Capital Raise Shares to be admitted to trading on AIM at 8.00 a.m. on or around 18 August 2026 ("Admission").

The Company and Allenby Capital have entered into a placing agreement pursuant to which Allenby Capital has, subject to certain conditions, procured subscribers for the Placing Shares at the Issue Price (the "Placing Agreement"). The Placing Agreement contains provisions entitling Allenby Capital to terminate the Placing (and the arrangements associated with it), at any time prior to Admission in certain circumstances, including in the event of a material breach of the warranties given in the Placing Agreement, the failure of the Company to comply with its obligations under the Placing Agreement, or the occurrence of a material adverse change affecting the condition or business or prospects of the Company. If this right is exercised, the Placing and Admission will not proceed and any monies that have been received in respect of the Placing will be returned to the applicants without interest and Admission will not occur. The Company has agreed to pay Allenby Capital a placing commission and all other costs and expenses of, or in connection with, the Capital Raise and Admission. The Placing and Subscription are not being underwritten by Allenby Capital or any other person.

Details of the Warrants

Subject to Admission of the Capital Raise Shares, each participant in the Placing and Subscription will receive one warrant for every Capital Raise Share subscribed.  Accordingly, in aggregate, Warrants over 3,190,000,000 new Ordinary Shares are expected to be issued. The Warrants will be assignable and exercisable at a price of 0.0125 pence per new Ordinary Share for a period of two years from Admission, but will not be listed or quoted on any stock exchange.

The Warrants are subject to an accelerated exercise provision during the period of 90 days after Admission ("The Accelerated Exercise Period"), during which, if the price per Ordinary Share reaches or otherwise exceeds 0.02 pence (on a 5-day VWAP basis) for a 15-day period, a Warrant holder shall be required (but not obligated) to exercise their Warrants (in whole or in part) otherwise their Warrants will lapse.   If only part of the Warrants are exercised, any unexercised part of the Warrants will lapse on expiry of the Accelerated Exercise Period. The price payable per Ordinary Share upon the exercise of any Warrants during the Accelerated Exercise Period will be 0.02 pence.

Substantial shareholder participation

Premier Miton Group PLC ("Premier Miton"), a substantial shareholder of the Company for the purpose of the AIM Rules for Companies, has subscribed for 85,000,000,000 Placing Shares at the Issue Price. Accordingly, on Admission, Premier Miton will hold 4,059,907,275 Ordinary Shares which will represent approximately 17.5 per cent. of the enlarged issued share capital on Admission.

Total voting rights

The Company currently has 18,565,532,000 Ordinary Shares in issue and on Admission, the Company will have  23,165,532,000 ordinary shares of 0.01p each in issue, each with one voting right. There are no shares held in treasury. Therefore, upon Admission, the Company's total number of ordinary shares in issue and voting rights will be 23,165,532,000   and this figure may be used by shareholders from Admission as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, the Company under the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.

For further information, contact:

Buccaneer Energy plc Paul Welch, CEO	Email:	[e-mail]
Allenby Capital Limited (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker) Jeremy Porter / Alex Brearley	Tel:	[phone]
SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP (Joint Broker) Stuart Gledhill / Richard Hail / Adam Cowl	Tel:	[phone]
Celicourt Communications (PR/IR) Mark Antelme / Charles Denley-Myerson	Tel: Email:	[phone] [e-mail]

Qualified Person's Statement

In accordance with the "AIM Rules - Note for Mining and Oil and Gas Companies", the information contained within the announcement has been reviewed and signed off by Paul Welch, Chief Executive Officer and Director, who has over 40 years of international oil and gas industry experience and is a Member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE).

Glossary:

BCF:	Billion Cubic Feet
Barrels of oil equivalent:	Barrels of oil equivalent. Volume derived by dividing the estimate of the volume of natural gas in billion cubic feet by six in order to convert it to an equivalent in million barrels of oil and, where relevant, adding this to an estimate of the volume of oil in millions of barrels
Bopd:	Barrels of oil per day
Boepd:	Barrels of oil equivalent per day
NPV10:	Estimated net present value using a discount rate of 10%
Prospective Resources:	Quantities of petroleum that are estimated to exist originally in naturally occurring reservoirs, as of a given date.  Crude oil in-place, natural gas in-place, and natural bitumen in-place are defined in the same manner
P50 resource:	Reflects a volume estimate that, assuming the accumulation is developed, there is a 50% probability that the quantities actually recovered will equal or exceed the estimate.  This is therefore a median or best case estimate of resource

IMPORTANT NOTICES

Notice to Distributors

UK Product Governance Requirements

Solely for the purposes of the product governance requirements contained within chapter 3 of the FCA Handbook Product Intervention and Product Governance Sourcebook (the "UK Product Governance Requirements") and disclaiming all and any liability, whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, which any "manufacturer" (for the purposes of the UK Product Governance Requirements) may otherwise have with respect thereto, the Placing Shares have been subject to a product approval process, which has determined that the Placing Shares are: (i) compatible with an end target market of retail investors and investors who meet the criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties, each as defined in chapter 3 of the FCA Handbook Conduct of Business Sourcebook ("COBS"); and (ii) eligible for distribution through all permitted distribution channels (the "UK Target Market Assessment"). Notwithstanding the UK Target Market Assessment, distributors should note that: the price of the Placing Shares may decline and investors could lose all or part of their investment; the Placing Shares offer no guaranteed income and no capital protection; and an investment in Placing Shares is compatible only with investors who do not need a guaranteed income or capital protection, who (either alone or in conjunction with an appropriate financial or other adviser) are capable of evaluating the merits and risks of such an investment and who have sufficient resources to be able to bear any losses that may result therefrom. The UK Target Market Assessment is without prejudice to the requirements of any contractual, legal or regulatory selling restrictions in relation to the Placing. Furthermore, it is noted that, notwithstanding the UK Target Market Assessment, the Bookrunners will only procure investors who meet the criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties.

For the avoidance of doubt, the UK Target Market Assessment does not constitute: (a) an assessment of suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of chapters 9A or 10A respectively of the COBS; or (b) a recommendation to any investor or group of investors to invest in, or purchase, or take any other action whatsoever with respect to Placing Shares. Each distributor is responsible for undertaking its own target market assessment in respect of the shares and determining appropriate distribution channels.

EU Product Governance Requirements

Solely for the purposes of the product governance requirements contained within: (a) EU Directive 2014/65/EU on markets in financial instruments, as amended and as this is applied in the United Kingdom ("MiFID II"); (b) Articles 9 and 10 of Commission Delegated Directive (EU) 2017/593 supplementing MiFID II and Regulation (EU) No 600/2014 of the European Parliament, as they form part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, as amended; and (c) local implementing measures (together, the "MiFID II Product Governance Requirements"), and disclaiming all and any liability, whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, which any "manufacturer" (for the purposes of the MiFID II Product Governance Requirements) may otherwise have with respect thereto, the Ordinary Shares have been subject to a product approval process, which has determined that such securities are: (i) compatible with an end target market of retail investors who do not need a guaranteed income or capital protection and investors who meet the criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties, each as defined in MiFID II; and (ii) eligible for distribution through all distribution channels as are permitted by MiFID II (the "Target Market Assessment"). The Ordinary Shares are not appropriate for a target market of investors whose objectives include no capital loss.  Notwithstanding the Target Market Assessment, distributors should note that: the price of the Ordinary Shares may decline and investors could lose all or part of their investment; the Ordinary Shares offer no guaranteed income and no capital protection; and an investment in the Ordinary Shares is compatible only with investors who do not need a guaranteed income or capital projection, who (either alone or in conjunction with an appropriate financial or other adviser) are capable of evaluating the merits and risks of such an investment and who have sufficient resources to be able to bear any losses that may result therefrom. The Target Market Assessment is without prejudice to the requirements of any contractual, legal or regulatory selling restrictions in relation to the Placing. Furthermore, it is noted that, notwithstanding the Target Market Assessment, Allenby Capital and Singer Capital Markets will only procure investors who meet the criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties. For the avoidance of doubt, the Target Market Assessment does not constitute: (a) an assessment of suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of MiFID II; or (b) a recommendation to any investor or group of investors to invest in, or purchase, or take any other action whatsoever with respect to the Ordinary Shares. Each distributor is responsible for undertaking its own target market assessment in respect of the shares and determining appropriate distribution channels.

Forward Looking Statements

This announcement includes statements that are, or may be deemed to be, "forward-looking statements". These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the terms "believes", "estimates", "plans", "anticipates", "targets", "aims", "continues", "expects", "intends", "hopes", "may", "will", "would", "could" or "should" or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements include matters that are not facts. They appear in a number of places throughout this announcement and include statements regarding the Directors' beliefs or current expectations. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to future events and circumstances. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this announcement.

Notice to overseas persons

This announcement does not constitute, or form part of, a prospectus or admission document relating to the Company, nor does it constitute or contain any invitation or offer to any person, or any public offer, to subscribe for, purchase or otherwise acquire any shares in the Company or advise persons to do so in any jurisdiction, nor shall it, or any part of it form the basis of or be relied on in connection with any contract or as an inducement to enter into any contract or commitment with the Company.

This announcement is not for release, publication or distribution, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, in or into Australia, Canada, Japan or the Republic of South Africa or any jurisdiction into which the publication or distribution would be unlawful. This announcement is for information purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell or issue or the solicitation of an offer to buy or acquire shares in the capital of the Company in  Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of South Africa or any jurisdiction in which such offer or solicitation would be unlawful or require preparation of any prospectus or other offer documentation or would be unlawful prior to registration, exemption from registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction.  Persons into whose possession this announcement comes are required by the Company to inform themselves about, and to observe, such restrictions.

This announcement is not for publication or distribution, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States of America.  This announcement is not an offer of securities for sale into the United States.  The securities referred to herein have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States, except pursuant to an applicable exemption from registration.  No public offering of securities is being made in the United States.

General

Neither the content of the Company's website (or any other website) nor the content of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website (or any other website) or any previous announcement made by the Company is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.

Allenby Capital, which is authorised and regulated by the FCA in the United Kingdom, is acting as Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker to the Company in connection with the Placing. Allenby Capital will not be responsible to any person other than the Company for providing the protections afforded to clients of Allenby Capital or for providing advice to any other person in connection with the Placing. Allenby Capital has not authorised the contents of, or any part of, this announcement, no representation or warranty, express or implied, is made by Allenby Capital in respect of such contents, and no liability whatsoever is accepted by Allenby Capital for the accuracy of any information or opinions contained in this announcement or for the omission of any material information, save that nothing shall limit the liability of Allenby Capital for its own fraud.

 

END