$$$$$$$MAMA MIA---POST OF THE DAY$$$$$$$
IF BCIT PULLS THIS OFF,,, MEGAS I'LL WASH YOUR LIMO FOR A YEAR!!!!!!!!! HAHAAA
17 December 2007
NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN OR INTO AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN, MALAYSIA, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR THE UNITED STATES
NEW BRITAIN PALM OIL LIMITED
ADMISSION TO THE OFFICIAL LIST AND COMMENCEMENT OF DEALINGS ON THE LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE
New Britain Palm Oil Limited ("NBPOL" or the "Company") (NBPO.L), the largest palm oil producer in Australasia, with over 40,000 hectares of planted palm oil plantations, five oil mills, a refinery and a seed production and plant breeding facility, announces that its ordinary shares have been admitted to trading on the main market of the London Stock Exchange effective as of 8.00am today and dealings in its ordinary shares have commenced.
Total gross proceeds under the Placing of approximately £88.9 million.
The Placing values NBPOL at approximately £362 million.
NBPOL raised approximately £62.5 million of proceeds (gross of commissions and expenses) from the issuance of 25 million new ordinary shares in the Placing at a price of 250 pence per share.
NBPOL will use the proceeds primarily for the expansion of its facilities and infrastructure, accelerating its planting programme and for future acquisitions and general corporate purposes. The Directors believe that the Group has the ability to grow its business through the extension of its plantations and that the Group has the potential to double its entire current plantation area within seven to eight years.
Kaupthing Singer & Friedlander is the sole financial adviser, sponsor, underwriter and broker to the Company.
Nick Thompson, NBPOL’s Chief Executive Officer, commented:
“There has been a great deal of interest from investors in New Britain Palm Oil Limited which has led to a very successful IPO and another important milestone for the Company with a London Stock Exchange listing. The London listing signifies the start of the next major phase of development of NBPOL as we target the doubling of the Company's current plantation area in seven to eight years. We will also use the proceeds to expand our milling facilities and infrastructure, accelerate the planting programme for existing plantations under development and further improve our operating efficiencies, whilst at the same time maintaining our historic focus on sustainability.
We believe that our long trading history, scale, market position and long established relationships with our customers, mean we are very well positioned to capitalise on the positive trends we see in the palm oil market. Of particular importance for our business is our focus on sustainability as we believe high quality sustainability credentials are increasingly demanded by our EU customer base. The Directors believe that our historic and continuing focus on sustainability is beginning to differentiate our product, a trend we believe will continue to grow.
We look forward to the continuing success of New Britain Palm Oil Limited for the benefit of our shareholders, customers, employees and other stakeholders.”
Helgi Bergs of Kaupthing Singer & Friedlander, commented:
“Kaupthing is delighted with the very positive response that we have received from the successful marketing of New Britain Palm Oil Limited, especially given the difficult current markets. The successful marketing not only underlines the strengths of the management and business but also the excellent prospects for NBPOL.
New Britain Palm Oil Limited is the first company that Kaupthing has floated on London’s main market since the recent establishment of its UK equity capital markets operations. The successful marketing of the Company benefited from Kaupthing’s excellent reach and distribution across the UK, Nordic region and beyond. We look forward to working closely with the Company as it pursues its growth strategy."
Enquiries:
Fishburn Hedges (Financial PR Adviser)
James Benjamin
Morgan Bone
Tel: +44 (0)20 7839 4321
Mob: +44 (0)7747 113 930
Email: nbpol@fishburn-hedges.co.uk
New Britain Palm Oil Limited
Nick Thompson
Alan Chaytor
Tel: +44 (0)20 7839 4321
Kaupthing Singer & Friedlander
Helgi Bergs, Global Head of Investment Banking
Tim Cockroft, Head of UK Capital Markets
Nicholas How
Tel: +44 (0)20 3205 5000
Overview of NBPOL
NBPOL is a large scale industrial producer of palm oil in Australasia, with over 40,000 hectares of planted palm oil plantations, five oil mills, a refinery and a seed production and plant breeding facility. The Directors believe that the Group has the ability to grow its business through the extension of its plantations, with the potential to double its entire current plantation area within seven to eight years.
NBPOL is fully vertically integrated, producing its own seed (which it also sells globally) and plants, cultivating and harvesting its own land, and processing and refining palm oil. It also contracts directly with its end customers in the EU and arranges shipping of its products.
The Company has a 40 year history of growth and has been listed on the Port Moresby Stock Exchange ("POMSoX") since 1999.
NBPOL had audited consolidated revenue of approximately USD115.0m and USD133.8m in the financial years ended 31 December 2005 and 2006 respectively, and profits after tax of approximately USD19.1m and USD47.8m respectively. In the six months to 30 June 2007, NBPOL had turnover of approximately USD105.5 and profits after tax of approximately USD56.7. Compared to the same period in 2006, the first six months of 2007 returned increases of approximately 56 per cent. and 271 per cent. in turnover and profit after tax respectively.
The Company’s main palm oil operations are based in Papua New Guinea ("PNG") and the Solomon Islands. NBPOL is one of the largest private sector employers in PNG and, in 2006, its revenues made up approximately 3.3% of the country's total export value (source: CIA World Factbook).
The palm oil market is undergoing a period of rapid change with demand from the developing and urbanising Asian economies and the new biofuel industry driving a marked increase in demand for vegetable oil products, including palm oil.
The global price of palm oil has risen in response in part to this marked change in demand, and the Directors of NBPOL believe that there is the potential for these higher prices to continue. Palm oil prices over the 12 months to mid-November 2007 have shown an approximate doubling.
NBPOL has maintained a long association with its major customers, all of which are based in the EU and contract with NBPOL in US Dollars. Due to a long-standing treaty between the EU and the African, Caribbean and Pacific group of states (including Papua New Guinea), sales of palm oil products to the EU benefit from certain import duty exemptions, allowing the Company an effective premium on its regular prices to customers in the EU.
NBPOL is managed by a stable management team headed by three UK executive directors. The CEO is 47 and has been with the Company for 23 years.
NBPOL estimates its average cost of production in the financial year ended 31 December 2006 was approximately USD262/tonne of CPO. The spot price for crude palm oil as at 10 December 2007 was $930/tonne based on the CPO market price CIF Rotterdam (source: Reuters).
NBPOL has some of the world's highest yielding plantations of palm oil, and is currently achieving yields per hectare approximately 19 per cent. above the world average due, in the Directors' opinion, to the favourable natural environment in PNG, high quality genetic material and skilled management.
NBPOL has a high level of control over its entire supply chain, from the control and development of its genetic material, through planting, harvesting, processing and finally contracting with its end customers.
NBPOL has high regard for the importance of its sustainability credentials and is active in proving its performance through its certification to ISO 14001, and its close involvement and support of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (“RSPO”) – the RSPO has around 160 members, of which 12 are non-governmental organisations (including WWF and Oxfam). NBPOL’s Head of Research, Dr Simon Lord, is Vice President of the RSPO.
There are significant barriers for would be competitors to enter palm oil production, not least the long lead-in time required to set up new projects – new palm oil supply takes 3-4 years from field planting to commercial harvesting.
Palm oil is a vegetable oil found in a large cross section of consumer foods and chemical products including: processed foods, cooking oils, cosmetics and a variety of chemicals. However, a new market for palm oil has accelerated since 2002, known as the 'biofuel' sector. NBPOL believes that this sector is being driven by governments seeking alternative fuel sources, and burning vegetable oil as fuel is one such form of alternative (non-fossil fuel) energy.
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