4th Feb 2008 07:01
Lonrho PLC04 February 2008 4th February 2008 LONRHO PLC ("Lonrho" or the "Company") LONRHO AQUIRES RIGHTS TO AQUAMINE NATURAL SPRING WATER AND ANNOUNCES DEVELOPMENT OF A SUBSTANTIAL SOUTH AFRICAN WATER COMPANY Lonrho plc (AIM: LONR) today announces that it will establish a new watercompany in South Africa to meet the growing demand for premium quality, glassbottled water in Johannesburg. The new company, Lonrho Springs SA Pty Ltd (Lonrho Springs ) has acquired theexisting water use rights from the Aquamine ( Propriety ) Limited. The water issourced from a natural spring in the UNESCO nature reserve, The Cradle of HumanKind in Gauteng Province, South Africa. Aquamine has been producing small amounts of premium bottled water from itsnatural spring for the Gauteng and Johannesburg market since 1988. The Aquaminebrand has established a strong reputation for being an exceptional, quality,water and has had excellent reviews in competitive taste comparisons withinternational waters, winning a place in the top three natural spring watersglobally. Lonrho Springs is a wholly owned subsidiary of Lonrho Springs BVI, the LonrhoPlc holding company for its water interests, which is operating and developingwater bottling projects in Africa. Lonrho Springs will acquire the exclusive rights to the Aquamine brand, thewater source and a lease on the land.for a payment of approximately £ 70,000. The project will cost US$ 5.3 million and take twelve months to complete. LonrhoSprings BVI will invest US$ 2.0 million over the twelve month period, with thebalance of the funding coming via project finance from South African banks.Lonrho Springs will build a new international standard processing unit and stateof the art water bottling plant to produce up to 800,000 litres per month. Mr Gunnar Shillings, the founder of Aquamine, will remain with the company. The quality of the Aquamine natural spring water is such that the company willfocus its distribution on restaurants and COS (consume on site ) customers suchas high net worth individuals, corporate accounts and hotels. The product willbe distributed in environmentally friendly, returnable glass bottles. The Gauteng / Johannesburg market is responsible for over 50% of South Africa'sbottled water consumption, and it is believed that the quality of the watercombined with Aquamine's presence and reputation in the market since 1988 are astrong basis on which the company can take a significant share in this premiummarket in the region. David Lenigas, Executive Chairman of Lonrho stated: "This water is one of the finest available anywhere, with a perfect balance ofph and minerals. It is sourced from a natural spring in the UNESCO worldheritage site the 'Cradle of Humankind' which is a protected and beautifulenvironment. The water is bottled in eco-friendly recyclable glass bottles. Aquamine will bea significant addition to the rapidly expanding Lonrho Springs water businessand the quality of this natural spring water will ensure that it will become theflagship water of the Lonrho range." ENQUIRIESLonrho Plc +44 (0)20 7016 5105David Lenigas, Executive Chairman +44 (0)7881 825 378Geoffrey White, Chief Executive Officer +44 (0)7717 307 308Emma Priestley, Executive Director +44 (0)7867 785 177 Pelham PRCharles Vivian +44 (0) 20 7743 6672 +44 (0) 7977 297903Alisdair Haythornthwaite +44 (0) 20 7743 6676 +44 (0) 7714 721379 Collins Stewart Europe : NOMAD to LonrhoHugh Field / Jonny Sloan +44 (0) 20 7523 8350 NOTES TO EDITORS About LONRHO: Lonrho Plc is an expanding conglomerate that is rapidly growing a successfulbusiness throughout Africa. The Company is listed on the London AIM stockexchange (LONR). Lonrho is strategically focused on the development of businessopportunities in infrastructure, transportation, support services and naturalresources. The Company has over 20,000 shareholders and substantialinstitutional backing to support its mandate to build a profitable business thatplays a fundamental role in the development of the African economy. Since 2006, the Company has invested in or acquired control of: • Hotel Cardoso - www.hotelcardoso.co.mz • Lonrho Mining - www.lonrhomining.com • Luba Freeport - www.lubafreeport.com • Fly540 - www.fly540.com • Norse Air - www.norseair.co.za • Swissta Holdings - www.swissta.com • SA Independent Liner Services - www.saliners.com • Bytes and Pieces • Celsys Limited - www.celsys.co.zw . Kwikbuild - www.kwikbuild.co.za This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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