Lonmin Plc - Update on Smelter Incident
Lonmin Plc
(`Lonmin`)
(Incorporated in England)
(Registered in the Republic of South Africa under registration number
1969/000015/10)
ISIN code: GB0031192486
Share code: LON
Issuer code: LOLMI
25 November 2004
Update on Smelter Incident
Further to the announcement made on 19th November 2004, Lonmin is now able to
give some further details on the incident at its No. 1 smelter at its operations
in South Africa.
On Thursday 18th November 2004, at approximately 17:45 (SA time), an ingress of
water occurred through the roof of the No. 1 furnace following the dislodgement
of a water cooling pipe. The latter forms part of the cooling system for the
electric power contact pads on the furnace electrodes. The water entered the
furnace via the gap between one electrode and the furnace roof for several
minutes before shutoff could be effected. The subsequent steam explosion
resulted in the destruction of the furnace roof and damage to the electrodes and
other peripherals. The incident is unrelated to the matte tap hole explosion
experienced two years ago and is minor in comparison.
We now estimate that we should be able to recover to normal operations by the
end of January 2005 at a repair cost of between $4-6 million provided further
inspection reveals no damage to those other parts of the furnace which we have
not yet been able to examine. The cost of these repairs would not be covered by
insurance. Contingency planning in place means that all long lead time materials
required for the re-building of the roof are already in stock and orders have
already been placed for the other items required to effect the necessary
repairs.
At this point in time it is thought likely that the production target for the
financial year to 30th September 2005 will still be met by a combination of the
utilisation of our own standby smelting resources and third party tolling.
There will clearly be a short-term effect in terms of the interim results on
working capital requirements and profitability and further announcements will be
made to the market when more accurate assessments are available.
End
Press enquiries: John Robinson, Lonmin Plc +44 (0)20 7201 6034
Anthony Cardew/ Olivia Gallimore, Cardew Group
+44 (0)20 7930 0777
This press release is available on www.lonmin.com
Date: 25/11/2004 09:01:31 AM
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