A drilling technology company headquartered and listed in London has appointed administrators.
Enteq Technologies plc had concluded a formal sale process and said on Wednesday morning that it would run out of cash runway in mid-May. It added that it no longer considered that suitable funding could realistically be raised and had requested a suspension in trading in its shares.
“The board has continued to seek advice on its appropriate next steps, and regrettably has concluded that, after detailed consideration of the company’s current financial situation, it will not be able to meet its liabilities as they fall due and is therefore required to take the necessary steps to seek to preserve value for creditors,” it stated.
“The board has consequently resolved to appoint managing directors from Alvarez & Marsal Europe LLP as administrators to the company. It is anticipated that the administrators will be appointed during the course of today (Wednesday) or tomorrow.”
The company had a cash balance of $600,000 as of Friday.
Enteq has developed directional drilling technology SABER (Steer-At-Bit Enteq Rotary Tool) which it says makes it easier and cheaper to drill wells in regions such as the Middle East and Africa, which are often remote and demanding environments.
“The SABER equipment will currently remain in Houston and has been prepared, with further engineering enhancement for further active test drilling operations,” the firm stated as recently as Friday, when it concluded the formal sale process.
“The customer in Australia, who have undertaken the testing to date, remains engaged and interested in the potential of this technology for their operations and will be ready to run the equipment again when the rig schedule and availability of SABER equipment permits.
“The board continues to believe in the potential of the SABER technology as a disruptive solution in a significant market and will be supportive of any funding strategy to realise the potential.”