O’Reilly invests €3m in Providence

TONY O’REILLY is investing €3 million in Providence Resources as part of the exploration firm’s flotation on London’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM).

Mr O’Reilly has been involved in the company for some time and the funds will be used for Providence’s drilling programmes in Ireland and abroad.

The company’s chairman Brian Hillery said the company “is in an exciting phase of its development.”

“Not only do we have a near-term drilling programme on the Aje Prospect in Nigeria but we also have significant exploration and appraisal opportunities in Ireland (in the Celtic Sea, St George’s Channel and the Porcupine Basin) as well as in the UK (the Singleton onshore oil field plus three North Sea licences).”

Providence, which is listed on the Irish market, said the flotation of Providence on AIM will boost its profile with British investors.

“A higher profile will additionally raise awareness of Providence and its activities among potential new investors and should improve the terms on which the company can raise capital,” it said.

Mr O’Reilly has been an investor in the company since it was spun out of Arcon - his other exploration company.

Separately yesterday, Minco, the mining company backed by John Teeling, said it was talking to banks to fund its Laguna Zacatecana silver project in Mexico, which is scheduled to start production in 2006.

Minco has discussed the sale of shares and issuing debt to fund the €16.2m cost of building the project, Minco chief executive Matthew Dorman said yesterday in London.

Minco is completing a final study on Laguna Zacatecana, upon which prospective banks will base investment decisions.

“We had a very strong reaction,” Mr Dorman said.

Minco plans to extract 2.4 million ounces of silver a year from mining waste on a lake bed.