CITY WHISPERS: Algy Cluff spies new challenge in African gold… aged 82

Retirement is even further away for North Sea oil pioneer Algy Cluff, who he hopes sets up what he hopes will be a major pan-African gold company.

Cluff African Resources is already in talks to buy into a project in Ghana.

If this goes ahead, the group could produce the yellow metal within a year.

It is also seeking mining permits in Tanzania, Zimbabwe and other countries.

The 82-year-old – who was at the forefront of the North Sea oil boom as part of the group that discovered the Buchan field in 1974 – has run a string of companies on the continent.

His ties go beyond work – as his time in the Grenadier Guards took him to Cameroon in the 1960s.

‘I’m quite a restless animal. I know Africa well and have learned a lot there,” he told Whispers.

“I think gold is going through a bit of a rough patch right now, but it’s something that in my opinion should represent 5 percent of everyone’s wealth.”

Putin’s plan could incite BP

BP could be feeling the heat again after reports that Vladimir Putin is making plans to escape to South America if there is a serious threat of being overthrown.

The plan is said to be codenamed “Noah’s Ark.”

What link does this have with the energy giant?

The person reportedly overseeing the plan is none other than Igor Sechin, the boss of state oil giant Rosneft… in which BP still owns a nearly 20 percent stake.

It insists it is still seeking its own escape route from the Russian investment.

More problems for Argo Blockchain

Things went from terrible to worse for Argo Blockchain shares after the Bitcoin miner accidentally published an alarming update on its website.

This “test page,” as the company put it, suggested that it was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US.

Trading was suspended from Friday, December 9 through Tuesday, and an announcement on the exchange hardly reassured investors.

It said it was struggling to find money or risk going under “within the next month”.

The stock halved in value and failed to make any progress at the end of trading last week.

The company, which was worth £1bn less than two years ago, now has a paltry market capitalization of £12m, and its shares are down 97 per cent in 2022.

Muted Christmas for the fair

It’s been a quiet Christmas season in the stock market, with no sign of the usual Santa Rally, where stock prices typically rise out of nothing but good holiday cheer.

Company updates will be sparse in the coming weeks, but there could be a few more confrontations at annual meetings to inject some drama.

Investors in Israel-based tech group BATM Advanced Communications have been urged by proxy advisor Pirc to rail against its pay report.

Pirc has also objected to payment from South American copper miner Solgold, a favorite of the retail shareholder. Note the possible uprisings on Wednesday and Thursday