White Nile, the Aim-listed oil and gas group founded by former England cricketer Phil Edmonds, is on the verge of signing an exploration agreement in southern Ethiopia, according to a report yesterday.

Shares in the company rose 5½p, or 14 per cent, to 45½p on a report based on an interview with Abiy Hunegnaw, director of the petroleum department at the Ethiopian Mines and Energy Ministry.