Final Results

RNS Number : 3148U

Anglo Asian Mining PLC

23 June 2009

 



Anglo Asian Mining plc / Ticker: AAZ / Index: AIM / Sector: Mining

23 June 2009

Anglo Asian Mining plc ('Anglo Asian' or 'the Company')

Final Results 

Anglo Asian Mining plc, the AIM listed emerging gold producer, is pleased to announce its results for the year ended 31 December 2008.  

OVERVIEW

• Development of the Gedabek gold/copper mine completed in May 2009 and opened by The President of Azerbaijan 

• First gold and silver poured at the opening ceremony and first sales anticipated at the end of June 2009

• Production for the first full year expected to be approximately 70,000 ounces ('oz') of gold

• Anticipate increasing the mine life and reserve figures at Gedabek by identifying additional resources within the mine's proximity

• Focused on developing 1,962 sq km gold/copper exploration portfolio with the aim of replicating success at Gedabek and developing additional mining operations

• Strategy to build on first mover advantage in the region and consolidate already strong ground position

• Full support of the Government of Azerbaijan 

• Pre-tax loss of $4,471,434 (2007: loss of $14,683,306) due to mine development costs

• Anticipate full repayment of current debt, amounting to $34.4 million of loans from the International Bank of Azerbaijan ('IBA'), by the second quarter of 2013 

• If required by the Company, the IBA has agreed to provide an additional $1.5 million working capital facility subject to documentation, due to the delayed start of production

Anglo Asian CEO Reza Vaziri said, 'We reached a major milestone at the end of May 2009, becoming a new gold producer, having completed the construction of the Gedabek gold/copper mine and processing plant. Our next step is to reinforce our early success by extending the mine life at Gedabek and developing additional resources within the Gedabek Contract Area and our other two key Contract Areas, Gosha and Ordubad, using cash generated from the mine.  I believe that Anglo Asian has many advantages including the low-cost nature of the mine, which should enable us to pay off our debt in a relatively short timeframe, and our excellent relationship with the Government of Azerbaijan, which we hope will help us advance our leading position in the country.  Our strategy is to exploit our first-mover advantage in the region and build a mid-tier gold and base metal production company focussed on Caucasia and central Asia.'

CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT

This is a transformational period for our Company and it gives me great pleasure to report on progress as we enter the production phase of our development cycle and consolidate our position as an emerging gold producer in Caucasia and central Asia.  

We have a defined strategy in place focused on utilising our expertise and first-mover position within Azerbaijan to generate shareholder value.  We have a portfolio of assets over six Contract Areas totalling 1,962 sq km (including the Contract Areas in the Occupied Territories), at various stages of development, from production to grass roots exploration.  These are being advanced with the full support of the Government of Azerbaijan with funding primarily obtained from the IBA. 

Our aims are driven by a phased approach starting with the commencement of production at the Gedabek gold/copper mine in May 2009, which will create cash flow for further project development and the repayment of the debt which was raised to finance the construction of the mine and processing plant.  Secondly, in tandem with gold production, we anticipate increasing the mine life and reserve figures at Gedabek by identifying additional resources within the mine's proximity.  Thirdly, we plan to develop the rest of our portfolio with the aim of replicating our success at Gedabek and developing additional mining operations in Azerbaijan. Finally, we also hope to identify additional opportunities in Caucasia and central Asia to add to our existing portfolio.

Our focus during 2008 was the construction of the Gedabek gold/copper mine, which we completed in May this 2009. This entailed building infrastructure and developing an open pit mine, as well as designing and building a conventional heap leach pad and processing facility for the recovery of gold, copper and silver, more details of which are in the Chief Executives Review.  

Whilst we ran slightly behind schedule due to various factors including prolonged rain in May and June 2008, which slowed activities, and the need to re-evaluate the leach pad area due to technical and geological reasons, we were delighted to announce that the President of Azerbaijan opened the mine on 26 May 2009 and first gold and silver was poured at the ceremony.  The level of ore on the leach pad was less than we anticipated in May, however, we hope to gradually ramp this up to full capacity by the fourth quarter of 2009.  Using the Sulphidisation, Acidification, Recycling, and Thickening ('SART') process, we expect to deliver our first copper production during the third quarter of 2009.

The open pit, heap leach operation is expected to be relatively low cost when compared to other gold mining operations.  Our target is to produce in excess of 300,000 oz of gold over the current six year mine life, but we anticipate that further exploration in the proximity of the mine will increase its life. Production for the first full year is expected to be approximately 70,000 oz of gold and the current SRK published JORC compliant resource is 702,000 oz of gold, 37,500 tonnes of copper and 6,100,000 oz of silver. The combined estimate results in a gold equivalent resource of 1,081,000 oz.  Capital costs for the mine totalled $28.1 million up until 31 December 2008.  Further capital expenditure and developments costs were incurred during 2009 and costs incurred at Gedabek will continue to be capitalised up until the point that the mine achieves first commercial production, expected to be in the third quarter of 2009.  In the announcement on 10 April 2008 it was stated that capital and working capital costs were unlikely to exceed $40 million; it is possible that due to the delayed start up that this figure may be exceeded but not materially.  

Initially, our focus will remain on production at Gedabek, which will facilitate the repayment of our outstanding debt, amounting to $34.4 million of loans from IBA.  Repayment of the debt will be carried out in tandem with our payments to the Government of Azerbaijan under the Production Sharing Agreement ('PSA'), which is described below.

While we are obviously pleased to become a producing entity, we are also aware that exploration is key to our long-term future. In line with this, we believe our portfolio contains some exciting exploration tenements which need additional evaluation to confirm existing Soviet-era data.  The Tethyan belt running through Iran, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey is expected to produce additional development opportunities, particularly as this area remains underexplored compared to similar copper/gold districts around the world. Accordingly, in April 2009 the Government of Azerbaijan granted the Company an extension to continue exploration for precious and base metals until 13 April 2011 on the 300 sq km Gosha and 462 sq km Ordubad Contract Areas.  Exploration programmes are now planned for 2010 through which we aim to define additional resources and assess the production potential of these areas, funded out of cash flow from the Gedabek gold/copper mine.  

Our relationship with the Government of Azerbaijan plays an important role in our success; its support was crucial in bringing the Gedabek project into production. We look forward to continuing to work with the Government and to realising our joint ambitions of supporting the economic growth of the country.  Azerbaijan is keen to attract foreign companies.  Over 15 international oil companies are working in the country, including the likes of BP and Exxon Mobil which operate under similar production sharing agreements to ours, and the Government now wants to step up foreign investment in non-energy sectors.   With this background, we are pleased to be amongst the first international companies to commence mining operations in the country and hope that this position will stand us in good stead for future opportunities.  

With regards to our commodity focus, in the short-term our attention will primarily be on gold. We believe that our financial modelling for the Gedabek project is conservative and with a competitive margin expected on production, strong cash generation is anticipated.    The sale of both silver and copper will also contribute to our overall financial performance in the years to come.  

There were a number of changes to the Board and management during the period.  Reza Vaziri assumed the position of acting Chief Executive in October 2008, replacing Gordon Lewis who returned home to Australia to join his family. Tim Eggar stepped down from the Board in July 2008 at the same time as Richard Round stepped down from his executive duties as Finance Director to take up a position as a Non-executive Director, whilst also filling the vacancy of Chairman of the Audit Committee.  Additionally, Ross Bhappu has announced his intention to step down from the 23 July 2009, the date of our Annual General Meeting. We will be looking to strengthen the Board in the near future to accelerate the development of the business and provide additional expertise.  

On the technical management side, Farhang Hedjazi, our Chief Technical Officer, joined in July 2008. Farhang has over 23 years of experience in mining and processing, which includes several new projects in the region including providing management services to gold and base metal projects in Turkey and Iran. His strong metallurgical background has proved to be invaluable during the start up and commissioning phases of the mine.

Furthermore, on the management side, during 2008 the Company strengthened the team with the recruitment to our operating subsidiary, Azerbaijan International Mining Company, of Mehrdad Etemad as Senior Vice President and Abduljabbar Ahmadov as Vice President. Both Mehrdad and Abduljabbar bring a wealth of experience in the fields of general management and organisation, human resources management, procurement and public and government relations.  

Additionally, Andrew Herbert joined in August 2008 as Chief Financial Officer and is now based in Azerbaijan.  Andrew spent nearly three years with the TSX listed junior gold producer Avnel Gold Mining Limited, which has operations in Mali, prior to which he gained substantial international experience in other industries in Africa and Asia. We are delighted to welcome him to the team.  

Having moved into production, we now employ approximately 250 personnel including local contractors and experienced operators from surrounding countries. Maintaining excellent health, social and environmental standards is a high priority for the Company.  All employees have received technical and safety training and our track record in this respect remains exemplary.  The Company is fully committed to working with its host community and is involved with a wide range of projects, described more fully in the Chief Executives Review.   

We report a pre-tax loss of $4,471,434 (2007: loss of $14,683,306) for the year ended 31 December 2008. However, if production at Gedabek goes to plan, we expect to announce significant turnover for the year ended 31 December 2009 and future years. 

The Group continues to be faced with a number of material uncertainties that cast significant doubt over the Group's ability to continue as a going concern. These uncertainties and the Directors' considerations thereof are discussed below and in the following paragraph as well as in the Finance Review, Director's report and in Note 1 to the financial statements. 

Our cash position remains constrained in the short-term due to the delayed start of production and lower than anticipated levels of processed ore at this stage.  The current forecasts demonstrate that the existing cash resources and available debt facilities provide sufficient funding to allow Anglo Asian to get through the period to full production and to meet all of its obligations. The Board is aware that there is the risk of further delays and technical problems which give rise to uncertainty relating to going concern.  Consequently, if there are either cost overruns or delays to the production ramp up the Board will have to take steps to ensure that there is adequate funding.  The IBA has confirmed that it will provide a further $1.5 million through a working capital facility, subject to documentation, if required and Reza Vaziri (a Director and significant shareholder) has also confirmed that he would be willing to provide additional funding in such an event.  Assuming no delays or technical problems, the projected cash flows in the fourth quarter of 2009 will put the Company in a strong position to pay back the debt quickly and generate further cash.  

When I look back at 2008, I am very pleased at the progress our Company has made. Having taken the decision to move Gedabek into production, the team's energy and commitment has enabled Anglo Asian to make the transition into a producing company. We believe that there is significant potential to discover more reserves within and beyond the Gedabek Contract Area, with the Gosha and Ordubad Contract Areas being of particular interest due to their perceived prospectivity. We want to build on our first-mover advantage in the region and consolidate our already strong ground position. 

Finally, I would like to thank all those involved with the Company for their efforts and support and I look forward to updating shareholders regularly on the progress of what is now a producing entity.

Khosrow Zamani 

Non-executive Chairman

22 June 2009

CHIEF EXECUTIVE'S REPORT

Our key operations span three Contract Areas covering 1,062 sq km: Gedabek, Ordubad and Gosha. We also hold three additional Contract Areas covering 900 sq km in territories occupied by Armenia which we hope to develop when access is obtained.

Gedabek 

The Company holds mining and exploration rights for a minimum period of 15 years from 26 February 2007 in the Gedabek Contract Area, which is 55 km from Azerbaijan's second biggest city, Ganja. In addition to Gedabek, the area contains eight other prospective properties: Gyzildzhadag, Bittibulag, Maarif, Ertep, Geyer, Shekerbey, Gumlu and Aitalin.  

Our focus during 2008 has been the construction of the open pit mine at Gedabek, as well as a conventional heap leach pad and processing facility for the recovery of gold, copper and silver.  The current JORC compliant resource base stands at 15.6 million tonnes of ore grading 1.4 g/t gold, 0.24% copper and 12.2 g/t silver in the indicated and inferred categories, of which there are JORC compliant probable reserves of 311,000 oz of gold, 1,959,000 oz of silver and 17,425,000 lbs of copper. The current mine life is based on the JORC compliant probable reserves.  Importantly, the ore body remains open in several directions.  With approximately 130,000 tonnes of ore derived from historical workings at the site stockpiled at the plant, representing one and a half months of production, we were able to commence the first feed to the leach pad in March 2009 and the first gold was poured at the end of May 2009, as well as silver as a by-product of the process.  Commercial production is expected to commence in the third quarter of 2009.  

Our aim is to produce approximately 70,000 oz of gold in the 12 months to June 2010, with additional credits for the copper and silver.  This remains our target, despite levels of processed ore during May 2009 being lower than we hoped due to teething problems with the materials handling machinery. New parts for the machinery have been ordered, which are expected to alleviate these problems and enable us to ramp up production to full capacity by the end of the fourth quarter.  

The mine will initially process higher grade ore, the grade being expected to decrease over the life of the mine.  Importantly, the stripping ratio is low (1.5:1) as the ore body is fairly horizontal and shallow.  During its initial six year life, we expect to produce 310,000 oz of gold. However, with additional exploration we anticipate increasing the mining reserve, which currently stands at 7.7Mt at 1.8g/t gold, 0.29% copper and 15.91g/t silver, and potentially process additional high grade material as the geology of the deposit becomes better understood.  In the longer term we may move to an underground mining operation, utilising some of the existing infrastructure and adits, if our exploration activities demonstrate the resource to increase at depth. As it currently stands, we believe the open pit design only exploits half the total resource.  

In terms of processing, the plant consists of a heap leach pad which is used to dissolve the gold, copper and silver after the ore has been crushed in the crusher at the processing plant. Gold and some silver will be recovered conventionally to produce gold dore, after which copper will be recovered using the SART process.   The leach pad, barren leach solution ('BLS') pond and pregnant leach solution ('PLS') pond were completed in January 2009. The Adsorption, Desorption, Refinery ('ADR') and SART building and covering were completed in mid February 2009.  The installation of the remaining equipment, piping and electronics for the ADR and SART plants is near completion.  We expect copper to be produced in the near future.

The Company is planning to export its gold and approximately half its silver output to Switzerland to be processed and refined.  Under the terms of the PSA, the revenue is shared between the Company and the Government of Azerbaijan at the processing point. In the near term, the Company anticipates selling gold and silver at spot rates but will consider and evaluate hedging strategies once we are confident of stable and consistent production from the Gedabek mine.  Options for how the remaining silver and the copper will be sold are still being evaluated.

In order to accommodate the volume of ore to be leached over the projected mine life and to cater for any future extension, the Company and its consultant CQA commenced studies for the expansion of the heap leach operations at Gedabek.  Expansion of the current leach pad location is constrained by the potential for land slip in the area and the Company considers that its capacity will not be adequate for the ultimate life of mine.  Investigations of other locations in the immediate vicinity of the mine are underway.

We are using our own diesel-powered generators for power. Water supply is readily available from nearby streams. The mine is constructed to the highest environmental standards and we have a highly active community policy aimed at enfranchising the local community and assisting in their economic advancement.

We will be continuing exploration work at Maarif, one of the mining properties on the Gedabek Contract Area. This will include further drilling as well as geological and geophysical testing followed by analysis and interpretation of the results.  It is expected that we will be able to give an update of our progress by the end of 2009.

PSA

Anglo Asian has a PSA with the Government of Azerbaijan, which gives the Company exclusive rights to explore and extract all minerals from a number of Contract Areas. The PSA also provides exclusive rights to the Soviet-era data covering these Contract Areas. Under the terms of the PSA, which is modelled on Azerbaijan's internationally recognised oil industry practices, the Government is entitled to 51% of profits. One of our subsidiaries, RV Investment Group Services LLC, is entitled to recover costs (capital, operational and financing costs) up to the value of 75% of the revenue. Up until the time we have recovered all our costs, the Government of Azerbaijan effectively takes 12.75% (being 51% of the balancing 25%) of revenue. Following this, its share depends on profitability. 

Gosha 

The 300 sq km Gosha Contract Area represents exciting upside potential for the Company. We were therefore very pleased to be granted a two year extension by the Government of Azerbaijan to continue exploration in this area, together with Ordubad, for precious and base metals until 13 April 2011. 

Through our original Contract Area deal, we have access to a significant amount of data generated in the Soviet-era from these Contract Areas. Using this in tandem with additional data collected by ourselves, we have planned extensive exploration programmes through which we aim to define new resources.  

The Gosha Contract Area, situated 50 km north-west of Gedabek, contains the Gosha prospect as well as the Itkirlan and Munduglu prospects.  Previous plans envisaged that the Gosha prospect would be exploited by open pit mining.  However recent studies indicate that any development at this property is now likely to be by way of underground mining.  

During 2008, preliminary investigation work was carried out at Gosha to outline a comprehensive exploration strategy that will be carried out during 2009.  This will include further drilling work and some underground tunnelling.  It is expected that the Company will be in a position to announce an update on progress and results at Gosha by the end of 2009.

Ordubad

The 462 sq km Ordubad Contract Area in the Nakhchivan region contains numerous targets including Shakardara, Piyazbashi, Misdag, Agyurt, Shalala and Diakchay, which are all located within a 5km radius.  Exploration work will be centred primarily on the three copper prospects at Agyurt, Shalala and Diakchay, which we believe also have the potential to contain gold and molybdenum. The remaining properties in the Contract Area are Yashiling, Goyhundur, Keleki and Kotam.   As noted above, we were recently granted a two year extension to continue exploration in this area for precious and base metals until 13 April 2011.

During 2008, work undertaken at Ordubad included a limited drilling programme at Diakchay mining property.  The programme and analysis of results is ongoing.  The Company plans to make an update on the results of the drilling programme by the end of 2009.  

Occupied Territories

Access to the three Contract Areas within the Occupied Territories awaits the resolution of the dispute with Armenia.

Labour and safety

We have good relationships with our labour force. As well as employing a local management team and Azeri mining and earthworks contractors, we also employ experienced operations personnel from surrounding countries including Turkey and Iran. In order to accommodate our staff of approximately 250 we have built a permanent mine camp at Gedabek using local labourers.  

We adhere to very strict health and safety guidelines and accordingly our health and safety record remains excellent.  We recognise that safe operations depend not only on technically sound plant and equipment, but also on each employee's competence and their strict compliance with all requirements in the area of health, safety and public health regulations, and on ensuring conditions are such that the Company's operations are performed safely.  We can report that there were no major or serious accidents during 2008 and to date in 2009. 

Training, welfare and environment

The Company maintains high environmental standards. It has carried out several community development projects during the year.  In conjunction with USAID, we have provided seminars and training on beekeeping and have a pilot programme in place to give soft loans to beekeeping families to start in business.  The Company has also set up an internet café in Gedabek and provided training to local people on how to use the internet. This facility is free of charge to the local population.  In addition, Anglo Asian has provided the expertise and material to enable two villages local to the Gedabek mine to obtain fresh water, as well as repairing a bridge in one of the villages. 

The Company remains committed to the welfare of the local community and will continue to work closely with the local population to identify worthwhile development projects.

Reza Vaziri 

President and Chief Executive

23 June 2009

FINANCE REVIEW

Introduction

The Group reported a loss for 2008 of $4,471,434 (2007: loss of $14,683,306).  The operating loss resulted from administration expenses of $4,526,090 (2007: loss of $4,935,566) offset by net interest income of $54,656 (2007: $218,365). The net interest income in the period arose from the interest received on deposits. There were no impairment write downs on tangible or intangible assets in the year (2007: $6,692,218).

The administrative expenses have been incurred solely in Azerbaijan, although a portion of these relate to costs associated with maintaining a listing in London.  The London office was closed during 2007 to reduce the cost base. 

The Group has prepared its consolidated accounts for 2008 in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ('IFRS') adopted by the EU. 

As there was no operating income generated by the Group, the tax charge for the period was $nil and an additional deferred tax asset was created in the form of losses to carry forward in both the UK and Azerbaijan.  Following the pouring of first gold in May 2009 the Company now expects to generate revenue over the coming months.  The deferred tax assets are not recognised in the balance sheet.

Exploration and evaluation expenditures of $352,344 (2007: $2,035,970) were incurred and capitalised in the year.

The Group retained cash balances of $738,722 (2007: $6,810,902) at the year end.  

The Board reviews and agrees policies for managing financial risks.

During the year the Group drew down $16,084,353 (2007: $nil) to fund capital expenditure and continued operating costs and $3,251,869 (2007: $nil) in the form of letters of credit to fund further capital expenditure from its $25 million agreed credit facility with the IBA.

At 31 December 2008 the Group had undrawn credit facilities of $5,663,778 (2007: $nil) and on 20 May 2009 it agreed a further $9.4 million facility with the IBA which the Company has now fully utilised.   The IBA has confirmed that it will provide a further $1.5 million through a working capital facility subject to documentation, should this be required by the Company.

Going Concern

The Directors' assumption over the projected gold, copper and silver prices, discount rates, mine operating costs, levels of production and date of commencement of production from the Gedabek development are crucial to the Group meeting its forecast cash flows for period to 30 June 2010.  Due to the advanced nature of the development there is a significant reduction in the risk of cost overruns compared with the prior year, but should the operating costs increase significantly, production be delayed or the revenues fall short of expectations, there may be insufficient cash flows for the Group to sustain its day to day operations without seeking and relying on further financing, which may or may not be available.

For these reasons a material uncertainty exists which may cast significant doubt on the entity's ability to continue as a going concern and that it may be unable to realise its assets and discharge its liabilities in the normal course of business.

After making enquiries, the Directors have formed a judgement, which assumes at the time of approving the financial statements, that there is a reasonable expectation that the Group can access adequate resources to continue in operation and continue as a going concern for the foreseeable future.  These resources include: the anticipated revenues from the projected gold, silver and copper production at Gedabek; existing cash balances; existing debt facilities; and the Group's ability to raise further funds through either debt or equity should market prices for gold fall, production levels fall or be delayed or if operating costs increase. 

The current forecasts demonstrate that the existing cash resources and available debt provide sufficient funds to complete the construction of the mine at Gedabek and to commence production.  The Board is aware of the difficulties involved in accurately forecasting mine operating costs, the price of gold and levels of production, as well as the risk of delays in production.  If there are either cost overruns, reduced revenues or delays which result in a funding shortfall then the Board will have to take steps to ensure that there is adequate funding for the 12 month period subsequent to the date of the approval of these financial statements.  The major shareholders on the Board have confirmed that they would be willing to provide additional funding in such an event.  As detailed in note 27, the Group has obtained written confirmation from the IBA regarding an increase in funding. If required the Board also consider that further working capital facilities could be negotiated with the IBA in the future.

For these reasons the Directors continue to adopt the going concern basis of preparing the financial statements. 

Commodity price risk

Since the year end the Company has commenced production but has yet to enter commercial production.  Anglo Asian currently does not hold any financial instruments to hedge the commodity price risk on its expected future production, however anticipates that it will do so once production increases.  The Board will review this exposure and the requirement for hedging activities on an ongoing basis.

Foreign currency risk

The Group reports in US dollars and a large proportion of its business is conducted in US dollars.  It also conducts business in Australian dollars, Azerbaijan manats and UK sterling.  The Group does not currently hedge its exposure to other currencies although it will review this periodically if the volume of non US dollar transactions increases significantly. 

Liquidity/interest rate risk

During the year the Group obtained new credit facilities totalling $25 million from the IBA, with a fixed rate interest of 15%.  In addition the Group obtained letters of credit totalling $3,251,869.  The interest on each of the letters of credit was a combination of a fixed portion of 5% and a variable portion which was based on either US dollar LIBOR or Euro LIBOR, dependent on the currency of the letter of credit, and a mark-up of between 2% and 2.5%.  The Group has not used any interest rate swaps or other instruments to manage its interest rate profile during 2008 but will review this requirement on a periodic basis.

Board approval is required for all new borrowing facilities.

At the year end the Group's only interest rate exposure was on cash held in the bank. During the year it had entered into short term deposits which included overnight, weekly and monthly up to 12 months, however it held no short-term deposits as at the year end. 

Market risk

Exposure to interest rate fluctuations is minimal as the Group currently has no floating rate debt.  Interest rates on UK sterling and US dollar deposits have been volatile in the current year however the deposits held by the Group have been low during the year and so any impact is minimal.  The Group is exposed to fluctuations in commodity prices now that production has commenced.

Operational risk

There is exposure to delay in the construction programme and the resulting timing of production and sale of minerals.  Operating costs for commercial production are not yet known and remain subject to variation from those forecast by the Directors.  The Group will monitor progress on delays and costs on a regular basis.

Andrew Herbert

Chief Financial Officer

23 June 2009

Consolidated income statement

For the year ended 31 December 2008

		Year	Year
		ended	Ended
		31 December	31 December
		2008	2007
		US$	US$
Administrative expenses		(4,526,090)	(4,935,566)
Writeߛdown of capitalised intangible assets		-	(6,692,218)
Writeߛdown of assets held for sale		-	(3,273,887)
Operating loss		(4,526,090)	(14,901,671)
Finance income		54,656	218,365
Finance costs		-	-
Loss before tax		(4,471,434)	(14,683,306)
Income tax expense		-	-
Loss for the year		(4,471,434)	(14,683,306)
Loss per share
Basic (cents per share)		(4.41)	(14.80)
Diluted (cents per share)		(4.41)	(14.80)

The Group's loss relates to continuing operations in both years.

Consolidated statement of recognised income and expense

For the year ended 31 December 2008

	Year	Year
	Ended	Ended
	31 December	31 December
	2008	2007
	US$	US$
Loss for the year	(4,471,434)	(14,683,306)
Total recognised income and expense for the year	(4,471,434)	(14,683,306)

Consolidated balance sheet

As at 31 December 2008

		2008	2007
		US$	US$
Nonߛcurrent assets
Intangible assets		50,080,034	49,727,700
Property, plant and equipment		28,927,611	1,242,048
		79,007,645	50,969,748
Current assets
Trade and other receivables		2,161,494	444,514
Cash and cash equivalents		738,722	6,810,902
		2,900,216	7,255,416
Total assets		81,907,861	58,225,164
Current liabilities
Trade and other payables		(11,370,718)	(1,332,491)
		(11,370,718)	(1,332,491)
Net current (liabilities)/assets		(8,470,502)	5,922,925
Non-current liabilities
Borrowings		(17,396,890)	-
		(17,396,890)	-
Total Liabilities		(28,767,608)	(1,332,491)
Net assets		53,140,253	56,892,673
Equity
Share capital		1,851,516	1,792,015
Share premium account		30,911,013	30,387,514
Shareߛbased payment reserve		1,321,840	1,852,752
Merger reserve		46,206,390	46,206,390
Accumulated loss		(27,150,506)	(23,345,998)
Total equity		53,140,253	56,892,673

Consolidated cash flow statement

For the year ended 31 December 2008

		Year	Year
		ended	ended
		31 December	31 December
		2008	2007
		US$	US$
Net cash used in operating activities		(2,159,826)	(4,308,710)
Investing activities
Interest received		54,656	218,365
Purchase of property, plant and equipment		(20,672,394)	(421,470)
Expenditure on intangible assets		(212,900)	(2,035,970)
Net proceeds from sale of property, plant and equipment		-	7,004,585
Net cash (used in)/from investing activities		(20,830,638)	4,765,510
Financing activities
Proceeds from borrowings		16,084,353	-
Proceeds from long-term letters of credit		1,312,537	-
Interest paid		(478,606)	-
Net cash generated from financing activities		16,918,284	-
Net (decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents		(6,072,180)	456,800
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year		6,810,902	6,354,102
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year		738,722	6,810,902

Timetable and distribution of accounts

A copy of the Annual Report of Accounts is available on the Company's website at www.aamining.com and hard copies of the Annual Report and Accounts will be sent to shareholders in due course.

The Annual General Meeting will be held at 2pm on Thursday 23 July 2009 at the offices of Hammonds, 7 Devonshire Square, London EC2M 4YH.

* * ENDS * *

For further information please visit www.aamining.com or contact:

Reza Vaziri	Anglo Asian Mining plc	Tel: [phone]
Andrew Herbert	Anglo Asian Mining plc	Tel: [phone]
John Harrison	Numis Securities Limited, as Nominated Adviser	Tel: [phone]
James Black	Numis Securities Limited, as Corporate Broker	Tel: [phone]
Hugo de Salis	St Brides Media & Finance Ltd	Tel: [phone]
Felicity Edwards	St Brides Media & Finance Ltd	Tel: [phone]

 

END

 

 

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