Final Results

Tiger Resource Finance PLC 27 June 2007 Tiger Resource Finance plc ('Tiger' or the 'Company') FINAL RESULTS REPORT OF THE CHAIRMAN I am pleased to report further good progress for the year under review. The net asset value per share at 31 December 2006 was 4.73p compared to 4.77p at 31 December 2005. The portfolio value per share, based on cash plus investments, was 6.42p at 31 May 2007. Our commitment to quality in selecting investment opportunities has continued to generate further advances in Tiger's NAV. During the year, the Company purchased 7.9 million of its own shares for a consideration of £289,992. The total number of treasury shares held by Tiger as at 31 December 2006 is 7,900,000 representing 3.93 % of the Company's issued share capital. The period under review saw further resource sector advances with some volatility against general market support for the sector. This volatility was often the result of non-industry analysts using various approaches aimed at ' talking the sector down'. The Tiger Board believes strongly that the strength of the current resource boom reflects 20 years of under investment in the mining sector; the supply situation in most metals is now very tight and in some cases precarious. There has been a modest slowdown in South East Asia and the forecasted Indian industrial growth has not fully materialised. Nevertheless overall demand remains strong against a tight supply. Having outlined a very positive scenario, we feel that investors have become familiar with current prices and the very low prices of some 4 years ago have been forgotten. Hence any modest downward correction in metal prices may be seen as the end of the current cycle and could result in significant downward share price adjustments. Current corporate activity around mergers and acquisitions suggest that the majors are buying metal reserves since they recognize that organic generation will not occur in the time required. How will the aforementioned alter the markets? We believe the following scenarios are most likely: • Junior explorers on a selective basis will see significant gains; • Newcomers and early stage exploration companies may experience secondary financing difficulties; • New IPO's may be difficult to launch; • Mature explorers who have advanced to bankable feasibility study will attract large premiums; and • Merger and acquisition activity around the majors will remain 'frantic'. All the above suggests that individual stock selection and recognition of special situations will be more fundamental going forward, as opposed to general resource sector support. Last year, we referred to a lack of a major exploration discovery. A major discovery has not yet been made, despite continuing unprecedented expenditure on global exploration. This fact, in our opinion, underpins the sentiment that metals in general will be in short supply for a considerable time. In essence the Tiger Board's key strategy to maximise net asset backing will be to: • Participate in investments at all levels with the emphasis being on asset quality and management expertise; • Invest in higher risk/reward situations; • Realise profits where appropriate. We are confident that this approach will further enhance the Company's performance and produce good returns for shareholders. We look forward to reviewing new investment opportunities that will further enhance the Company's profitability and shareholder value. R B Rowan - Chairman 26 June 2007 TIGER RESOURCE FINANCE PLC ('Tiger') PRELIMINARY RESULTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER, 2006 PORTFOLIO REVIEW INVESTMENTS Number Cost Valuation Valuation 31/12/06 31/12/06 31/12/06 31/05/07 £ £ £ African Eagle Resources Plc 1,241,174 112,264 127,220 147,700 Ascent Resources Plc 29,093,406 534,890 2,909,341 4,638,391 Franconia Minerals Corp - TSX (Plus)* 333,333 45,432 219,814 - Franconia Minerals Corp - TSX 312,500 53,781 206,075 1,201,287 Gold Fields Ltd 10,500 32,759 100,902 97,696 Minmet Plc 873,574 241,135 87,357 89,716 Nautical Petroleum Plc 9,000,000 180,000 720,000 720,000 Pacific North West Capital Corp 566,500 107,682 95,884 146,721 Pan African Resources Plc 5,098,345 175,013 309,979 309,979 Ridge Mining Plc 100,000 178,477 51,250 139,500 River Diamonds Plc 8,144,207 125,000 61,082 98,545 Sunrise Diamonds Plc 665,000 6,650 18,288 15,628 Tertiary Minerals Plc 1,330,000 119,700 156,275 186,200 WARRANTS Ascent Resources Plc (1) 549,451 - - River Diamonds Plc (2) 13,333,333 - - - - LOAN NOTES MIT Ventures Corp Loan Note - 40,000 40,000 40,000 _______ _______ _______ 1,952,783 5,103,467 7,831,363 Warrants included in the above investment list are as follows: (1) 549,451 warrants in Ascent Resources Plc exercisable at 12p each to 22 December 2007. (2) 13,333,333 warrants in River Diamonds Plc exercisable at 1.5p each to 28 October 2008. *333,333 Franconia Minerals Corp shares held by the Company ceased trading on Plus markets at 31 December 2006 and are now listed on TSX. Consequently the valuation of £1,201,287 at 31 May 2007 is for the total holding of 645,833 shares held by the Company in Franconia Minerals Corp. African Eagle Resources plc (AIM - AFE) www.africaneagle.co.uk Tiger holds 1,241,174 shares in African Eagle Resources plc ('African Eagle'). The feasibility study at the Mkushi copper project is progressing well. Joint venture partner CGA Mining Limited has completed 3,930m of reverse circulation drilling and 1,954m of diamond drilling since taking over operations in the core area in July 2006. This on-going drill program continues to confirm the substantial width and grade of the deposit and is on track to increase its JORC- compliant copper resource. For its Miyabi project, African Eagle has been able to define a JORC-compliant resource of 520,000 ounces of gold. The company has been in discussion with a number of potential JV partners with a view to accelerating this project towards feasibility study. Tiger continues to believe that these projects have good prospects for enhancing shareholder value. Ascent Resources plc (AIM - AST) www.ascentresources.co.uk Tiger holds 27,093,406 shares in Ascent Resources plc ('Ascent') following the disposal of 2 million shares post 31 December 2006. Ascent has expanded rapidly during the last 18-month period after assembling a diverse and robust portfolio following its incorporation in 2004. The company's portfolio was rationalised during the latter half of 2006 and during the first quarter of the current year through the acquisition of interests in Slovenia, which is a cross-border continuation of Ascent's South West Hungary gas play and following profitable divestment of the company's minority interests in Romania. The operational management team was considerably strengthened during the period and Ascent is now suitably equipped with the skills and experience necessary to deliver on current and future work commitments. Tiger is very pleased with the performance of this investment since the company's admission to AIM in November 2004. Franconia Minerals Corporation (TSX - FRA) www.franconiaminerals.com Tiger sold 312,500 shares in Franconia Minerals Corporation ('Franconia') during the year for a consideration of £215,759 realising a profit of £161,978 and a return of almost 400% on original cost. Tiger currently holds a further 645,833 shares in the company. Franconia is a company focused in the exploration of Platinum Group Metals and zinc/copper in the USA. Franconia's most advanced project is the Birch Lake Platinum-Palladium-Copper-Nickel project, located in the Duluth Complex in northeastern Minnesota. The project includes two inferred PGM resources; the 100 million tonne Birch Lake resource and the 120 million tonne Maturi resource. Birch Lake and the nearby Maturi deposit are the subjects of a recent independent preliminary economic assessment to NI 43-101 standards. The preliminary economic assessment contemplates that a combined Birch Lake-Maturi operation would have, over a 26-year mine life, an average annual production of 74 million lbs of copper, 19 million lbs of nickel, 2.9 million lbs of cobalt, 68,000 ounces of palladium, 33,000 ounces of platinum and 7,300 ounces of gold. Tiger is pleased with this investment and will realise further profits when appropriate. Gold Fields Limited (JSE - GFI) www.goldfields.co.za Tiger holds 10,500 Gold Fields Limited ('Gold Fields') shares. Gold Fields is one of the world's largest unhedged pure gold producers, providing investors with maximum leverage to the gold price. The company has an annual gold production of approximately 4.1 million ounces from mines in South Africa, Ghana, Australia and Venezuela, as well as a developing mine at Cerro Corona in Peru and has ore reserves of 65 million ounces and mineral resources of 179 million ounces. Following the acquisition of both Barrick Gold Corporation and Western Areas Limited, Gold Fields now looks forward to realizing the full value of its enlarged asset base. Minmet plc (AIM - MNT) www.minmet.ie Following the recent consolidation in Minmet's share capital, Tiger currently holds 873,574 shares in Minmet plc ('Minmet'). The company has recently implemented a strategy as an incubator and promoter of a number of new and existing projects and opportunities in the oil & gas and minerals sectors. The company holds an interesting and diversified portfolio through joint ventures and strategic investments. In February 2007, the company acquired the existing Latin American oil and gas database and work in progress of Gold Old Caribbean limited, a subsidiary of Gold Oil plc and attracted Gold Oil plc as a strategic partner and investor in Minmet. Tiger believes that the recent re-structuring of the group along with the new strategy should improve the performance of this investment. Pacific North West Capital Corp (TSX - PFN) www.pfncapital.com Tiger holds 566,500 shares in Pacific North West Capital Corp ('PFN'), which is focused on PGM and base metal exploration in North America. PFN is currently exploring the River Valley Project, located near Sudbury, Ontario and joint ventured 50/50 with Anglo Platinum Limited ('Anglo Platinum'). Anglo Platinum has committed over CAN$19 million to the River Valley Project to date and may earn a 60% interest in the project by completing a feasibility study and a 65% interest by funding it through to production. Stillwater Mining recently signed a letter of intent to invest CAN$4.5 million into PFN's Alaskan exploration and reconnaissance programs including the Goodnews Bay Platinum Project. Tiger believes that this company has an interesting portfolio that should generate good shareholder value. Pan African Resources plc (AIM - PAF) www.panafricanresources.com Tiger purchased 1,765,000 Pan African Resources plc ('Pan African') shares in March 2006 for £75,013, a gold exploration company with properties in Africa increasing its holding to 5,098,333 shares. In December 2006, Pan African announced the signing of a conditional Sale of Share Agreement with Metorex Limited to acquire 74% of Barberton Mines (Proprietary) Limited, a company which owns gold producing mines. This acquisition will establish Pan African as a gold producer and provide access to industry skilled personnel. Dealings in Pan African shares have been suspended on AIM since December 2006 pending the publication of the re-admission document. Tiger believes this acquisition will deliver significant shareholder value as it will allow the company to become a gold producer and explorer and hence be well positioned for further growth. Nautical Petroleum plc (AIM - NPE) www.nauticalpetroleum.com Tiger holds 9,000,000 shares in Nautical Petroleum plc ('Nautical'). Nautical develops heavy oil assets in the UK and Europe. The company's strategy is focused on securing further heavy oil discoveries and achieving near term production on its current assets. Nautical acquired a 98.5% interest in the Bluebeard and Skipper discoveries on the East Shetland Platform in November 2006. Earlier this year, the company secured interests in 4 additional licences following the results of the UKCS 24th Seaward Licencing Round. Tiger believes that Nautical has a strong management team capable of delivering a good return on investment through its diverse and interesting portfolio. Ridge Mining plc (AIM - RDG) www.ridgemining.com Tiger holds 100,000 shares in Ridge Mining plc ('Ridge'). In 2006, Ridge signed a revised joint venture agreement to incorporate the IDC in its Sheba's Ridge project in return for funding to the feasibility study. The IDC has advanced ZAR 60 million to date and accordingly earned 26% a interest in the project. In April 2007, Ridge completed the placement of 12 million new Ordinary Shares to raise £15 million. These funds will be used to continue the development of the Blue Ridge project until funding is received from Imbani Platinum (Pty) Limited ('Imbani') and the consortium of South African banks. Funding from the latter is expected to commence in December 2007 following the expenditure of equity capital from Ridge and Imbani. Tiger sees the future performance of this investment linked to management performance and platinum price. River Diamonds plc (AIM - RVD) www.riverdiamonds.co.uk Tiger holds 8,144,207 shares in River Diamonds plc ('River Diamonds'), which has diamond exploration and prospecting projects in Brazil and Sierra Leone. River Diamonds recently announced the purchase of a 4.8% working interest in Lesotho Diamond Corporation ('LDC') for a consideration of £4 million with an option to acquire a further 2.3% stake by 20 April 2008 for an additional £2.1 million. LDC is the holding company of the 147 million tonne, 10.19 million carat Kao Diamond Project in Lesotho. River Diamonds has agreed to pay £400,000 for 1,212,121 shares in LDC and is in the process of placing additional shares to raise the balancing £3.6 million to complete the first phase of this transaction. This investment continues to disappoint but Tiger will closely follow this holding following River Diamonds acquisition of the minority stake in LDC. Sunrise Diamonds plc (AIM - SDS) www.sunrisediamonds.com Tiger holds 665,000 shares in Sunrise Diamonds plc ('Sunrise Diamonds'). In August 2006, Sunrise Diamonds entered into a joint venture giving it the right to earn a 75% interest in projects held by Nordic Diamonds Inc. in the Kuopio- Kaavi district of south central Finland where previous exploration has identified 16 kimberlites on the Nordic claims. Field-work carried-out at 4 targets in the Kaavi-Kuopio area produced excellent results and follow up work is now being planned to generate drill targets on these exciting areas. In the Kuusamo area, field-work has now been completed at 14 priority targets and samples are currently being processed for kimberlite indicator minerals. In February 2007, Sunrise Diamonds placed 27,250,000 new ordinary shares with institutional investors raising £545,000 to fund on-going exploration programmes. Tiger will continue to monitor this small investment with interest. Tertiary Minerals plc (AIM - TYM) www.tertiaryminerals.com Tiger holds 1,330,000 shares in Tertiary Minerals plc ('Tertiary Minerals'), an exploration company with interests primarily in Scandinavia and Saudi Arabia. A preliminary feasibility study is now well underway at the company's Ghurrayah rare-metal project in Saudi Arabia. Metallurgical test work, using a three tonne sample has now advanced to the stage where the initial mineral concentration scheme is largely defined. This has resulted in improvements in metal recoveries and reductions in reagent usage which should combine to reduce operating costs from previous estimates. Tertiary Minerals' shares were temporarily suspended, earlier this year, at the company's request pending resolution of issues relating to the renewal of its exploration rights over the Ghurayyah tantalum project in Saudi Arabia. INCOME STATEMENTYEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2006 2006 2005 (Restated)* £ £ Administrative expenses (493,248) (400,076) OPERATING LOSS (493,248) (400,076) Profit on sale of fixed asset investments 695,774 2,333,708 Investment income 1,174 619 Other income - 25,000 Other interest receivable & similar income (bank interest) 181,097 226,692 PROFIT ON ORDINARY ACTIVITIES BEFORE TAXATION 384,797 2,185,943 Tax on profit on ordinary activities (157,332) (656,107) PROFIT ON ORDINARY ACTIVITIES AFTER TAXATION FOR THE YEAR 227,465 1,529,836 Basic and diluted earnings per share 0.01p 0.07p * Details of the prior year restatement are shown in note 1. STATEMENT OF TOTAL RECOGNISED GAINS AND LOSSES YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2006 2006 2005 (Restated)* £ £ Profit for the year after taxation 227,465 1,529,836 Cumulative gains recognised in previous years on sales in the year (422,241) (2,034,750) Unrealised gains on fixed asset investments 581,698 2,523,551 Unrealised losses on fixed asset investments (674,960) (830,841) Total recognised gains/(losses) (288,038) 1,187,796 * Details of the prior year restatement are shown in note 1. BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2006 2006 2005 £ £ FIXED ASSETS Investments 5,103,467 5,832,391 CURRENT ASSETS Debtors 117,161 10,439 Cash at bank 4,215,479 4,456,745 4,332,640 4,467,184 CREDITORS: amounts falling due within one year (303,315) (718,871) NET CURRENT ASSETS 4,029,325 3,748,313 TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES 9,132,792 9,580,704 Represented by: CAPITAL AND RESERVES Called-up share capital 2,008,819 2,358,819 Share premium account 1,554,856 1,554,856 Capital redemption reserve 350,000 - Revaluation reserve 3,150,685 3,666,188 Profit and loss account 2,068,432 2,000,841 EQUITY SHAREHOLDERS' FUNDS 9,132,792 9,580,704 CASH FLOW STATEMENT YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2006 2006 2005 £ £ Net cash (outflow) from operating activities (384,318) (368,306) Returns on investment and servicing of finance Interest received 181,516 224,118 Other income and investment income received 1,174 25,619 182,690 249,737 Taxation Corporation tax paid (658,841) (411,577) Capital expenditure and financial investment Payments to acquire fixed asset investments (75,013) (816,540) Receipts from sale of fixed asset investments 984,208 2,708,708 Net cash inflow from capital expenditure and financial investment 909,195 1,892,168 Financing Purchase of own shares for treasury (289,992) (637,455) Net cash outflow from financing (289,992) (637,455) Increase/(decrease) in cash in the year (241,266) 724,567 Note 1. Basis of preparation The financial statements have been prepared on the historical cost basis of accounting, except for the measurement of investments at fair value. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with applicable United Kingdom Accounting Standards. All of the Company's operations are of a continuing nature Valuation of Investments Investments are now held at fair value (previously mid-market) in accordance with FRS 26. This is either the bid price or the last traded price, depending on the convention of the exchange on which the investment is quoted. The effect of this change in method on the investments held at 1 January 2005 and 2006 is not considered material. Investments are treated as available-for-sale financial assets and gains and losses are recognised through the Statement of Total Recognised Gains and Losses, except for impairment losses and foreign exchange gains and losses on monetary items denominated in a foreign currency, until the assets are derecognised, at which time the cumulative gains and losses previously recognised through the Statement of Total Recognised Gains and Losses are recognised in the Income Statement. The comparatives for the year ended 31 December 2005 have been restated in respect of this change in accounting policy. This has led to changes in the Income Statement and the Statement of Total Recognised Gains and Losses but no effect on the Balance Sheet and Cashflow Statement. The main change has been to recognise the cumulative gains on investments previously recognised through the Statement of Total Recognised Gains and Losses, in the Income Statement. The effect of this has been to increase Profit on Ordinary Activities After Taxation for the current year by £295,442 and for 2005 by £1,425,084 and increased EPS by 0.05p in 2006 and 0.02p in 2005. There is no effect on the total recognised gains and losses. The change in the basis of valuation from mid to bid is not material in the context of these financial statements. This preliminary statement is not the company's statutory accounts. The statutory accounts for the year ended 31 December 2006 have been approved by the directors and have received an audit report which was unqualified and did not contain statements under s237(2) and (3) of the Companies Act 1985. These statutory accounts have not been delivered to the Registrar of Companies and will be sent to shareholders on 28 June 2007. The statutory accounts for the year ended 31 December 2005 have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies and have received an audit report which was unqualified and did not contain statements under s237(2) and (3) of the Companies Act 1985. The Company will be posting its Annual Report, together with a Notice of AGM (' Notice') to shareholders on Thursday, 28 June, 2007. The Annual General Meeting of the Company will be held on Wednesday 1 August 2007 at 3.00 p.m. at the Drayton Suite, Jury's Kensington Hotel, 109 - 113 Queensgate, London SW7 5LR Pursuant to rule 20 of the AIM Rules, copies of both the Annual Report and the Notice will be available for inspection, for a period of at least one month from Thursday, 28 June, 2007 at www.tiger-rf.com. By order of the Board 27 June 2007 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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