Alba Mineral Resources plc (LON:ALBA) has highlighted the strength of its portfolio of exploration projects in the wake of the recent disappointment at Brockham oil project.
The AIM company has a 5% stake in Brockham, but on Friday, operator Angus Energy PLC (LON:ANGS) revealed the BR-X4Z borehole was “extremely unlikely” to flow at commercial levels.
Alba’s executive chairman George Frangeskides did not have time to digest and comment on the news before it was made available to investors.
READ: Alba’s Brockham partner mulls exit as well analysis disappoints
Having now assessed the information, he admits his disappointment, although he is quick to point out that Brockham represents “a very small part” of Alba’s asset and investment portfolio – about 4.1% of overall net asset value, to be precise.
“We continue to advance our mining assets apace, as witnessed most recently by the JORC-compliant resource released last month for our Thule Black Sands heavy mineral sands project in Greenland, and our discovery of multiple gold anomalies across the length of the Dolgellau Gold Belt in Wales, which forms part of our Clogau Gold Project,” George Frangeskides said.
“And on the oil and gas front, while the oil at Brockham appears to be reluctant to flow, meanwhile at Horse Hill, which is just a few miles down the road and in which oil field Alba has a much greater stake, the oil continues to flow steadily, and has done so ever since the flow-testing programme commenced some 12 months ago.”
He added: “That is testament, as ever, to the risk-reward nature of the exploration business, but also testament, in my view, to Alba's strategy of accumulating a diversified portfolio of assets and investments such that we are far from reliant upon the success of one single project.”
Alba shares were down 4% to 0.19p in early deals on Monday.