Irregularities in Belgium Subsidiary

RNS Number : 7310S

Hargreaves Services PLC

04 December 2012

 



For immediate release

4 December 2012

Hargreaves Services plc

("Hargreaves" or the "Company")

Irregularities in Belgium Subsidiary

Hargreaves Services plc (AIM: HSP), the UK's leading supplier of solid fuel and bulk materials logistics, announces that following routine investigation of anthracite stock levels and records in our Belgium subsidiary, we have identified a serious overstatement of stock values and credit notes due from major suppliers. Two people with management contracts in Belgium have been immediately suspended and KPMG have been appointed to carry out an urgent forensic investigation.

We have no reason to suppose that the implications of this event extend beyond our Belgium operation which contributed £2m of operating profit in the last financial year.

It is difficult for the Board to evaluate the potential financial impact of this event at this early stage but for conservative guidance purposes the Board does not believe that the potential impact of this balance sheet write off could exceed £15m.

The Group is due to provide a routine interim pre-close trading statement within the next two weeks. In the meantime, the Board can confirm that the remainder of the Group is trading well and in line with its expectations. The decision process at Maltby Colliery is also likely to be concluded in the short term.

For further details:

Hargreaves Services	Tel: [phone]
Gordon Banham, CEO
Iain Cockburn, Finance Director
Buchanan	Tel: [phone]
Tim Anderson / Mark Court / Fiona Henson / Sophie Cowles
N+1 Singer (Nomad & Joint Broker)	Tel: [phone]
Sandy Fraser / Nick Owen
Jefferies Hoare Govett (Joint Broker)	Tel: [phone]
Sara Hale / Harry Nicholas

 

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