9th May 2007 12:30
Kazakhmys PLC09 May 2007 Kazakhmys PLC ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING Statement 9th May 2007 2006 was the first full financial year for Kazakhmys as a UK listed company,with the company producing a solid operational performance and a good set ofresults. Our overall production of copper cathode rose 5% to 405 kt, whilst production ofcopper cathode from own concentrate rose 9% to 368 kt. We also saw improvedperformances across our major by-products. The 2006 financial results showed continued improvement in profitability. Profitbefore tax increased by 156% to $2,168 million. Basic earnings per share were up132% at $2.99 and EBITDA excluding special items reached a record $2.3 billion. On the corporate governance front, we have made significant changes to thecomposition of the Board since the last annual general meeting, with theappointments of Oleg Novachuk as our new Chief Executive, and Simon Heale andPhil Aiken as new non-executive directors. We have also appointed Eduard Ogay asour new Chief Executive Officer of Kazakhmys Corporation LLC and Matthew Hird asChief Financial Officer to take over Oleg's previous role. As a result of thesechanges, we now comply with the requirements of the Combined Code to the fullestpossible extent save that Mr. Kim was not independent at the time of hisappointment and we are delighted that these changes have met with a positiveresponse from our major shareholders. At the beginning of this year, we took a first step in delivering on ourstrategy of diversification, with the acquisition of the East Akzhar petroleumfield, an exploration block in western Kazakhstan. The independent Directors areconsidering the exercise of a call option over an 18.8% economic interest in theunderlying assets of Eurasia Natural Resources group's metals and miningbusiness. Beyond these two projects, there is more we plan to do so as tofurther diversify our asset base and we continue to review other investmentopportunities in Kazakhstan and the neighbouring regions. Our safety performance has not yet reached a satisfactory level with 32fatalities last year. The Company has provided all possible support to thefamilies of the deceased. The Board, on the recommendation of the Health, Safetyand Environment Committee under the leadership of David Munro, is taking stepsthat should improve the Company's performance in this important area. In summary, since the last annual general meeting Kazakhmys has enhanced itstrading platform and corporate governance framework and demonstrated its strongcash generation ability, leaving the company well placed for future growth. The Board of directors has therefore recommended a final dividend of 25.7 UScents per share, making the total dividend for the year 38.5 US cents per ashare, a year-on-year increase of 7% on a comparable post-listing basis. At the end of the year, Mr YK Cha stood down as Chief Executive on 31 December2006. The executive management and the Board would like to express sinceregratitude to him for his contribution to the development of Kazakhmys into aFTSE 100 mining company. The group now employs over 64,000 people working hardto achieve success for Kazakhmys. The rewarding year we had last year is acreditable reflection of the efforts and commitment of all these people. Our interim results will be issued in September 2007 when we will informshareholders on performance trends in the first half of this financial year. Wesee no need to change the sentiment expressed in the chairman's statement thatthe global economic outlook for 2007 remains positive, supported by anticipatedgrowth coming from Asia, particularly India and China, with the Board expectingdemand for metal products to remain at historically high levels over the nextfew years. With regard to our production outlook for 2007, we would like to reiterate thestatement expressed in our Q1 production report issued last week, in that weexpect copper cathode production from both own and purchased concentrate to beat slightly higher levels than reported for 2006, with by-product volumes beingin line with last year's levels. In conclusion, we are confident that 2007 will be another successful year forKazakhmys. For further information please contact: Jinsoo Yang, Head of Investor RelationsSergei Stephantsov, Deputy Head of Investor RelationsKazakhmys PLC Tel:+44 20 7901 7800------------------------ Robin WalkerFinsbury Tel:+44 20 7251 3801------------------------ - ends - Notes to Editors The principal business of Kazakhmys plc ("the Group") is the mining, processing,smelting, refining of copper and copper products, including copper cathode andcopper rod. The Group's operations are vertically integrated. Kazakhmys operates19 open pit and underground mines and two smelting and refining complexes in theRepublic of Kazakhstan. Kazakhmys also owns significant rail infrastructure inKazakhstan and MKM, a copper products fabrication company in Germany. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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