Afren to return staffing levels to normal at Barda Rash

Oil and gas explorer Afren failed to cheer investors with the news it has begun returning staffing levels to normal at the Barda Rash field.

In a statement released on Thursday, the group said that the security situation in the border region of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq had improved and as such it was intending to resume drilling and production activities as soon as possible.

It currently anticipates that operations will be fully resumed by the end of October.

The group began withdrawing staff members from the region in early August amid security concerns.

Afren previously said the suspension of operations was not expected to have a significant impact on its cash-flow.

The group's share price has suffered in recent weeks after it was forced to suspend several directors after uncovering evidence of unauthorised payments. It late on Tuesday released a statement saying its ongoing independent review had found no further evidence of such activities.