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
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