(Sharecast News) - Caspian Sunrise announced on Thursday that the parties involved in the proposed $88m sale of its shallow MJF and South Yelemes structures at its flagship BNG asset were progressing towards finalising a formal sale and purchase agreement, with completion targeted by the end of the year.

The AIM-traded firm said the MJF structure, the primary shallow structure in the BNG Contract area, had been a key contributor to its oil production since 2016, while South Yelemes, awarded its own export licence in 2021, had produced oil from legacy Soviet-era wells enhanced through horizontal drilling.

It said the conditional sale to Absolute Resources, initially agreed in May for $83m, saw its purchase price increase to $88m through further negotiation, with Caspian Sunrise shareholders approving the disposal by a 99.95% majority in September.

Caspian Sunrise said it had received initial payments totaling $14m, marking progress towards completing the transaction.

At 1132 GMT, shares in Caspian Sunrise were down 2.34% at 3.13p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.