Exploration and development vehicle ShaMaran Petroleum (SNM:TSXV) recently announced a private placement that could raise as much as C$50 million and provided an update on the Pulkhana wells in Iraq. Canadian brokerage firm Canaccord Genuity responded to this announcement by reducing its target share price for the company to C$1.15 from C$1.45 and reiterating its SPECULATIVE BUY rating.

Vancouver-based ShaMaran's latest activity update on the Pulkhana PSC indicates that a test of the Pulkhana-8 re-entry well provided results as high as 3,530 barrels in a day and an average rate of 2,650 barrels per day of 31.6° API oil. The 1956 Pulkhana-5 discovery well provided test results of 2,950 barrels per day from two horizons.

The exploration and development vehicle announced its plans to conduct a non-brokered, private placement of as many as 125 million shares at a price of C$0.40 each. ShaMaran Petroleum closed at C$0.40 on October 28 and hit a 52-week high/low of C$1.43 and C$0.29, respectively.