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MMC Norilsk Nickel (MNOD)
MMC Norilsk Nickel: NORILSK NICKEL IS 'DISMAYED' BY BOTSWANA'S DISDAIN FOR
INVESTORS' RIGHTS
24-Jul-2018 / 11:00 MSK
Dissemination of a Regulatory Announcement, transmitted by EQS Group.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
PRESS RELEASE
July 24, 2018
Public Joint Stock Company «Mining and Metallurgical Company «NORILSK
NICKEL» (PJSC "MMC "Norilsk Nickel", the "Company")
NORILSK NICKEL IS 'DISMAYED' BY BOTSWANA'S DISDAIN FOR INVESTORS' RIGHTS
Moscow, Russia - MMC Norilsk Nickel, the world's largest refined nickel and
palladium producer, confirms that it will continue with the litigation over
the Nkomati and Tati facilities in Botswana to recover around US$277 million
debt by BCL, a state-owned enterprise, which had failed to make a payment
under the share purchase agreement and was subsequently forced by the
Botswanan Government into liquidation.
Following the recent Botswanan court's judgement that effectively attempts
to preclude Nornickel from defending its rights in the London Court of
International Arbitration, the contractually agreed forum in which disputes
are to be resolved, Nornickel maintains that it will not abandon its legal
action against the Botswanan Government and will use every avenue available
to recover the debt.
Michael Marriott, Group CEO of Norilsk Nickel Africa said:
"We applied to the Botswanan court for a permission to defend our rights in
London in 2016. For no good reason, it then took the court over 16 months to
consider this very straight-forward matter. We are now left with a deeply
unsatisfactory judgment which has denied us the ability to get on and
resolve this dispute through impartial, international arbitration, despite
our right to do so under our contract with BCL.
"Nornickel is disappointed by the Botswanan court's ruling and remains
dismayed by Botswana's authorities' disdain for investors' rights.
"We are going to use every opportunity to ensure that the Botswanan
Government is held responsible for all of the BCL liabilities, including the
liabilities to Norilsk Nickel in respect of the Nkomati and Tati
transactions for the aggregate amount of circa US$ 277mln".
Nornickel and BCL signed the share purchase agreement, which provided for
the transfer of the ownership of the Nkomati and Tati facilities to BCL, in
October 2014; in September 2016 the agreement became unconditional. BCL
subsequently failed to perform its deal completion obligations and refused
to make a payment for the shares. As a result, Norilsk served a material
breach notice on BCL, demanding payment of the circa $277 million purchase
price.
On 9 October 2016, the Government of Botswana applied to the High Court of
Botswana and BCL entities were put into liquidation; eight months later, in
June 2017, BCL entered the final stage of liquidation.
In the following months, Nornickel submitted a 'Request for Arbitration' to
the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) to determine its claims
and filed an application with the Botswana court (the "Permission
Application") seeking permission to commence and prosecute an arbitration in
the LCIA in respect of its claim. On 18 April 2018, the Permission
Application was heard by the Botswanan court and, on 21 June 2018, the
judgment precluding Nornickel from taking the case to LCIA was handed down.
Nornickel has filed a reckless trading claim against, inter alia, the
Government of Botswana, seeking to declare it responsible for the
liabilities of BCL entities.
ABOUT THE COMPANY
PJSC «MMC NORILSK NICKEL» is a diversified mining and metallurgical company,
the world's largest producer of refined nickel and palladium and a leading
producer of platinum, cobalt, copper and rhodium. The company also produces
gold, silver, iridium, selenium, ruthenium and tellurium.
The production units of «NORILSK NICKEL» Group are located at the Norilsk
Industrial District, on the Kola Peninsula and Chita region in Russia as
well as in Finland and South Africa.
PJSC «MMC «NORILSK NICKEL» shares are listed on the Moscow and on the
Saint-Petersburg Stock Exchanges. PJSC «MMC «NORILSK NICKEL» ADRs trade over
the counter in the US and on the London and Berlin Stock Exchanges.
Media Relations: Investor Relations:
Phone: +7 (495) 785 58 00 Phone: +7 (495) 786 83 20
Email: pr@nornik.ru Email: ir@nornik.ru
ISIN: US55315J1025
Category Code: MSCH
TIDM: MNOD
Sequence No.: 5778
EQS News ID: 707283
End of Announcement EQS News Service
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 24, 2018 04:00 ET (08:00 GMT)
