Recently-listed pharmaceutical research specialist AGI Therapeutics said yesterday that it had made a pretax loss of €5.2 million in 2005.

The company said that it spent €4.37 million on research and development during the year, close to double the €2.3 million it invested the previous year.

As it has yet to begin selling products, it had no turnover for the year.

Total operating losses for the year were €4.6 million. Finance revenue of €100,000 partly offset the total cost of financing operations of €700,000.

This left it with pretax losses for the year of €5.2 million. Losses brought forward from 2004 came to €3.1 million, which left it with accumulated losses of €8.3 million.

During the year, cash decreased by €3.86 million, leaving it with closing balances of €2.9 million.

The balance sheet shows that total assets were €4.5 million at the end of 2005, compared with €8.4 million a year earlier.

The company also provided for €7.9 million in debt, which relates to the issue of 500,000 preference shares that it issued in 2004. The preference shares can be redeemed in 2008, but holders have the right to convert the debt into equity.

In February, AGI listed on Dublin's IEX market for developing companies and on the London equivalent, the Alternative Investment Market (AIM).

The company is developing a number of treatments for gastro-intestinal illnesses such as chronic indigestion and irritable bowel syndrome. It was founded in 2003 and raised €9.5 million in initial funding in 2004.