AGM Statement

RNS Number : 8994M

Dekeloil Public Limited

22 July 2014

 



DekelOil Public Limited / Index: AIM / Epic: DKL / Sector: Food Producers

22 July 2014

DekelOil Public Limited ('DekelOil' or 'the Company')

AGM Statement

DekelOil Public Limited, operator and 51% owner of an established vertically integrated palm oil project in Côte d'Ivoire, is holding its Annual General Meeting ('AGM') later today.  At the meeting, Youval Rasin, CEO, will make the following statement:

"Since our address to you at last year's AGM, DekelOil has successfully transformed itself into a revenue generative producer of crude palm oil ('CPO'), having delivered one of West Africa's largest mills ('the Mill') both ahead of schedule and on budget in Q1 2014.  Add to this an established world-class nursery, an impressive acreage position in the Cote d'Ivoire consisting of both planted and expansion land and contracts in place with over 5,000 smallholders to provide fruit, we have built a vertically integrated palm oil company in West Africa, a region which is increasingly attracting the attention of major palm oil developers looking to secure their future expansion in the industry.   

"Our recent Operations Update covering the first full quarter of operations at our 60 tph Mill highlighted both how well it is performing despite only recently being commissioned as well as the potential going forward.  A reported extraction rate of 23.8% was above our expectations and among the best in the industry, while production of 5,943 tonnes of CPO and 1,077 tonnes of kernels during the quarter, translated into positive EBITDA for the period.  Our predominant focus is now on increasing production throughout the year.  A second logistics hub is now operational and we will continue to implement a range of initiatives in the near term focused on delivering more fruit to the Mill for processing.  We also have 2,000 hectares of planted company estates in proximity to the Mill which will add to our production as they enter the mature phase.

"Significant progress has also been made at the corporate level during the year.  Off-take agreements have been signed with three parties, diversifying and de-risking our sales book.  Importantly, we have targeted local buyers which means transportation, insurance and marketing costs are greatly reduced.  Our financials will also be positively impacted by our full exemption from paying corporation tax for a period of 13 years as confirmed by the Government of the Côte d'Ivoire earlier in the year.  Meanwhile our move into production has increasingly attracted institutions to the shareholder register and in February 2014, we were delighted to welcome Nubuke as a shareholder and we look forward to bolstering this institutional representation further.

"Having demonstrated our ability to deliver on our strategy and objectives during our first year as a listed entity, we are confident the next 12 months will see further milestones met as we focus on increasing CPO production at our 60t/ph Mill and adding to our 2,000 hectares of planted Company estates.  West Africa is becoming a major hub for the palm oil industry and thanks to the achievements of the last twelve months DekelOil is now a vertically integrated palm oil company covering all key stages from 'seed to oil'.  The next twelve months will see us build on this platform and, combined with our ongoing evaluation of corporate opportunities and potential transactions, look to bolster our presence in the West African region and become a leading producer of CPO."   

** ENDS **

For further information please visit the Company's website www.dekeloil.com or contact:

Youval Rasin	DekelOil Public Limited	Tel: [phone]
Shai Kol
Lincoln Moore
Andrew Craig Ben Wright	Nplus1 Singer Advisory LLP	Tel: [phone]
Christian Dennis Jeremy King Elisabeth Cowell	Optiva Securities Limited St Brides Media & Finance Ltd	Tel: [phone] Tel: [phone]
Frank Buhagiar

Notes:

DekelOil Public Limited is a low cost producer of palm oil in West Africa, which it is focused on rapidly expanding.  To this end, it has a 51% interest in one of the largest oil processing mills based in Côte d'Ivoire, which has a capacity of 70,000 tons of CPO .  Feedstock for the Mill comes from 27,000 hectares of mature palm oil plantations that have been secured under long term contracts with smallholders, however it also has nearly 1,900 hectares of its own plantations.  Furthermore, it has a world-class nursery with a 1 million seedlings a year capacity. 

 

END

 

 

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