Basic Petroleum sets stock offering

Philippine-based Basic Petroleum Corp., which explores for and produces crude oil in Palawan, hopes to raise Php2.0-2.5 billion (US$43.7 million-54.6 million) from an additional offering of shares by December. Basic plans to spend Php1.8 billion (US$39.3 million) on a proposed bioethanol plant in Zamboanga del Norte province that would produce 200,000 liters of ethanol a day. The plant is estimated to be operational within two years. (July 14, 2007)