There was a time when Victoria Oil & Gas was a favourite among private investors. Its shares peaked at 262p in 2006 when it reported that independent estimates had put reserves in its gasfields in western Siberia at 500 billion cu ft. Months later, they collapsed when it cut the estimate because two wells under the tundra had proved to be dry. Private investors were among those counting the cost especially ruefully.

Yesterday, they may have been looking at Victoria once again. Its shares rose 0.51p to 4.73p amid strong volume, making a 26 per cent gain after news came on Friday that a passive seismic survey had shown a new potential discovery in West Medveshye, its Siberian licence area. Extraction is a long way off, but it was a factor driving the shares up, alongside talk of imminent good news on the start of drilling at its recently acquired Cameroon gasfield under the city of Douala, where industrial customers have been lined up.

Addax Petroleum, which has oil in Kurdistan, rose 220p to £22.33 after reports that one of China’s state-owned oil companies was considering a bid. EcoSecurities, a carbon trader, rose a further 18p to 77½p as it rebuffed a 75p-a-share outline bid offer from EDF Trading. Camco International, another carbon trader, closed 1¼p up at 22p, while Trading Emissions end the day 1¼p up at 101¼p.

BPP Holdings rose 51p to 618p as the training group agreed a 620p-a-share takeover from Apollo.

E2V Technologies, the maker of high-tech sensors for space, defence and medical applications, fell 15p to 73p as it gave warning of falling demand and its auditor said that there was uncertainty over it meeting its debt covenant.

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