(MENAFN- ProactiveInvestors - UK) Not many junior companies manage to straddle the oil and gas and the mining space so effectively as Regency Mines PLC (LON:RGM).
At Mambare in Papua New Guinea the company is sitting on a huge nickel laterite resource that could one day turn into a company maker.
The latest numbers for Mambare show 162.5 mln tonnes of ore grading 0.94% nickel and 0.09% cobalt for 1.53 mln tonnes of nickel contained.
This considerable holding is contained on a single exploration license not too far from the famous Wowo Gap where the Australians stopped the Japanese advance back in 1942.
There are other nickel explorers in the area too so there's also the prospect of infrastructure development on a wider scale in due course.
But for the time being with nickel prices somewhat depressed of late Regency has been focussing on work on the processing of Mambare ore which is being done under the auspices of joint venture partner Direct Nickel Limited (ASX:DIR) in which it also holds a 6.78% stake.
Elsewhere in the mining portfolio Regency also holds three gold exploration tenements in Western Australia and Queensland a multi-element project in Greenland known to contain niobium tantalum zirconium and rare earth elements and a 4% carried interest in the Fraser West nickel project owned by RAM Resources Limited (ASX:RAM).
On the whole though the mining side has been relatively quiet of late as the bear market has dampened down investor enthusiasm for activity.
On the oil side though Regency has been generating more news. Most recently its re-entry into the Horse Hill onshore development near Gatwick in the UK has sparked real interest.
Having traded into and out of Horse Hill Regency now owns a 5% direct interest. Recent tests at the Horse Hill-1 well have shown that the oil discovered there is 37 degree API and light and sweet.
The oil flowed at an average rate of 168 barrels per day over a continuous nine hour period a result Regency chairman Andrew Bell described as being 'above expectations.'
The bringing of oil into the portfolio is all about cashflow says Bell. He's talking as a seasoned resources sector investor and company director and knows that in order for Regency to grow and prosper it cannot keep diluting shareholders with discounted equity fundings.
To that end the company has also lately added a US end to its oil operation. 'The plan is to find ultra-low-cost oil assets in the US to provide cash flow' says Bell.
It's working in cooperation with American Resources Inc to find and develop opportunities in the Southern United States. Meanwhile in West Virginia Regency has an exploration and investment agreement with Carter Oil & Gas to obtain a 25% working interest in the West Virginia Shallow Oil Project.
The plan here is to use old data to drill and develop offset wells using open hole notch fracking on previously worked fields which are thought still to contain oil. Early signs on this are very good and it may well be that Regency's transition towards becoming a cash generative company is now just around the corner.
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