Prospex Energy returns to profit in H1 2026, citing stronger output from Italian gas and Spanish power assets
AIM-quoted Prospex Energy swung to a profit of $174,822 in the first half of 2026, reversing a loss of $238,634 from the same period a year earlier. The figures come from unaudited interim results covering the six months ended June 30, 2026. For a small-cap energy investor with producing assets in Italy and Spain — plus a growing exploration portfolio in Poland — that’s a meaningful turnaround.
Company swings to profit in first half of 2026
The headline is a profit of $174,822, but context matters. That number includes a $833,145 unrealized gain on financial assets at fair value — a revaluation of Prospex’s investment holdings based on European gas forward prices and exchange rates as of June 30, 2026. Strip out that non-cash item and the underlying picture is tighter.
Even so, it’s a clear improvement on the unrealized loss of $43,347 posted in the same period last year. Net Asset Value — shareholder equity — rose by $481,663 to $30,877,058 at period end. Cash improved dramatically, climbing to $695,152 from just $51,589 at year-end 2025. The CLN issuance, which closed in March, brought in $1.82 million in cash receipts during the period and was the primary driver of that improvement.
The Podere Maiar-1 well produced 504.3 million cubic feet (MMcf) gross during the half, with 186.5 million cubic feet (MMcf) net to Prospex’s 37% interest.
Rising revenues from Italian gas and Spanish electricity drive improvement
The Selva Malvezzi field in Italy’s Po Valley remains Prospex’s most significant cash-generating asset. The Podere Maiar-1 well produced 504.3 million cubic feet (MMcf) gross during the half, with 186.5 million cubic feet (MMcf) net to Prospex’s 37% interest. Sold at an average realized price of $0.52 per scm, that translated into $2.75 million in net revenue — a solid return from a single well. Spain was messier.
El Romeral, the gas and power plant, had been offline and only resumed electricity generation in January after a rental transformer was installed, with a permanent replacement still being manufactured. From that shaky restart, operations scaled up steadily — from roughly four hours of daily generation to 16 hours — as well management improved.
High European wholesale electricity prices helped throughout. Post-period, the permanent transformer was installed, cutting operating costs by allowing the rental unit to be returned. The milestone that’ll matter most to investors came in July: Tarba Energia, the El Romeral operator, reached cash self-sufficiency, meaning it no longer needs funding from Prospex to cover operations. That removes a recurring call on the balance sheet.
Administrative costs rose due to management transition and debt-raise expenses
The profit arrived despite a meaningful jump in costs. Administrative expenses rose by $331,716 to $1,167,532, up from $835,815 in H1 2025 — a 40% increase that needs unpacking. Prospex attributes $259,284 of the rise to non-recurring items: $117,994 from management change costs following the CEO transition, $91,630 from the CLN debt-raise process, and the remaining $49,660 from foreign exchange losses and timing differences.
Both the management change and the debt raise were completed within the reporting period, and the company is clear these are one-time in nature. Tom Reynolds took over as CEO on February 1, replacing Mark Routh, who departed at the end of April. Simon Ashby-Rudd joined as Non-Executive Director in May. Reynolds moved quickly — conducting a strategic review and presenting initial findings at the AGM in June. The CLN issuance itself exceeded expectations, raising approximately $2.65 million against a $2.12 million target launched in late 2025.
Development pipeline advances across Italy, Spain, and Poland
In Italy, operator Po Valley Energy filed an Environmental Impact Assessment with Italy’s Ministry of Environment and Energy Security in June. The EIA covers plans to drill, develop, and commission four new wells within the Selva Malvezzi concession. Post-period, it was declared admissible, triggering a 60-day public observation window — procedural, but meaningful in Italy’s regulatory process.
Commercial momentum continued too: a new 12-month gas supply agreement with Hera Trading was signed starting October 1, 2026, and record gas sales revenue followed in August. At El Romeral, Prospex announced a collaboration with the IMMAGE scientific drilling project, a Land-2-Sea research initiative focused on Miocene Mediterranean-Atlantic geology. IMMAGE will contribute up to US$1.5 million toward coring and logging in a subset of planned wells.
Prospex gains geological data and research visibility at no additional cost — an unusual arrangement, but potentially a valuable one. Poland is the most speculative part of the portfolio. The wholly owned subsidiary PXEN Tatra was awarded both the San and Dunajec exploration licenses, with Dunajec being the more immediately tangible: it contains the Mniszow oil discovery, an undeveloped Jurassic-age find. In September 2026, Prospex published a detailed development plan and economics for Mniszow, making the presentation publicly available via its website.
What the first half of 2026 adds up to
Prospex enters the second half of 2026 with a profitable first half behind it, a stronger cash position, and a cleaner cost base now that the one-time management and financing expenses have cleared. Both producing assets are generating revenue, with El Romeral now operationally self-funding. The Italian expansion plan has cleared an early regulatory hurdle, and the Polish licenses add exploration optionality that didn’t exist a year ago. What happens next depends on gas and electricity prices holding, regulatory processes moving at pace, and Reynolds delivering on the strategic review he presented in June.
Kelly is an experienced writer with 15 years of experience exploring the big stories that shape our world, from tech breakthroughs and space exploration to climate, energy, and the fascinating quirks of science. She has a talent for turning complex ideas into sharp, memorable insights that stay with readers long after they’ve finished reading.
