In mid 2003 Umbono began investing in natural resources, at a venture capital stage of investment, with minimal starting capital of US$2m. Over the last 6 years the Umbono portfolio of privately owned natural resource assets has grown to more than 10 holdings valued at a cumulative $150m - $250m.

Initially Umbono focused on early stage pre-production mining assets, but the fund is currently expanding to include near cashflow or producing assets and natural resource categories such as energy, alternative energy, and land & agricultural holdings.

Umbono’s approach involves an active involvement in the management of invested assets, often including control of ventures, but typically the approach has been to partner with existing management teams.

The interactive map below illustrates some examples of target investment areas that Umbono has actively reviewed since 2003.