INDEPENDENT Oil & Gas has agreed to buy a half share in a North Sea gas find for up to £5 million and said management team members have swapped a further £232,000 salary for options to buy shares in the company.

The London-based firm is acquiring the 50 per cent of the Blythe find it does not already own from Alpha Petroleum Resources for an initial £1.5 million with a further $5m (£3.5m) payable at first gas.

Chief executive Mark Routh said the transaction allowed the firm to add 17.2 billion cubic feet reserves at a “very low cost” $2.31 per barrel oil equivalent.

Independent underlined its appetite for North Sea acquisitions last month when the company secured around £14m loan funding from London-based financiers.

It said there were opportunities to acquire assets at attractive valuations amid the downturn triggered by the crude price slump.

The company noted it was in advanced discussions to acquire the remaining 50 per cent of Blythe.

Aim-listed Independent has faced challenges in the past year.

In August Independent said a firm it expected to provide investment that would help fund the development of the Skipper find off Shetland had apparently lost interest.

The unnamed firm decided not to proceed with the planned investment following the renewed fall in the oil price in the summer.

Independent said yesterday that directors and management team members had agreed to accept a further £232,000 salary in the form of shares in the company. This will reduce the firm 's cash outgoings.

Mr Routh swapped £69,300 salary due between 1 September and 29 February for options to acquire 888,494 shares for 1p each. The salary sacrifice was based on a reference price for shares in the firm of 7.8p.

Independent did not disclose Mr Routh’s salary .

Participants were granted options to buy 2,744,053 shares in total in exchange for salary in the latest round.

Team members sacrificed £174,000 salary and fees in the six months to 31 August for options to buy shares in the firm.

Shares in Independent Oil & Gas closed down 0.5p at 15.5p.