Petra Diamonds Ltd - Appointment of Non-Executive Directors
PR Newswire
London, June 28
| 1 July 2021 | LSE: PDL |
Petra Diamonds Limited
("Petra" or the "Company" or the "Group")
Appointment of Non-Executive Directors
Petra today announces the following Non-Executive Director appointments, effective immediately.
Deborah Gudgeon is appointed as an Independent Non-Executive Director and Chair-designate of the Audit & Risk Committee. Deborah is an Independent Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit Committee of the FTSE 100 natural resources and industrial group Evraz plc, which she joined in 2015. She has been Independent Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee of Highland Gold Mining Limited, and Independent Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit Committee of Acacia Mining plc.
Deborah qualified as an ACA at PwC (Coopers & Lybrand) before spending eight years as Finance Executive with the Africa-focused mining and trading group Lonrho plc, and then held positions with Deloitte, BDO, Gazelle Corporate Finance and Penfida Limited. She holds a BSc in Political Science and Government from the London School of Economics and Political Science and is a member of the ICAEW. Deborah will serve on Petra's Nominations, Audit & Risk, Remuneration and Investment Committees. She is a British Citizen.
Alexandra (Alex) Watson is appointed as a Non-independent Non-Executive Director, having been nominated by Franklin Templeton. Emeritus Professor of Accounting at the University of Cape Town, she is the Lead Independent Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee of Coronation Fund Managers in South Africa and is Independent Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee of Steinhoff International Holdings N.V.
Alex is a former Chair of the Accounting Practices Committee of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants and is currently Chair of the South African Financial Reporting Investigations Panel. She was a Board Member, and in 2019 was Vice-Chair of the Amsterdam-based Global Reporting Initiative and is a Board Member and member of the Audit, Finance and Investment Committees of WWF-SA. Alex holds a BCom degree from the University of Cape Town and is a qualified Chartered Accountant (SA). A South African citizen, she will serve on Petra's Social, Ethics and Diversity, and Investment Committees.
Johannes Bhatt is appointed as a Non-independent Non-Executive Director, having been nominated by Monarch Master Funding 2 (Luxembourg) S.a.r.l. Johannes is currently Managing Director of Incomet Capital GmbH, an investment company within the mining sector, and a Board Member of Zangezur Copper Molybdenum Combine, formerly part of the Cronimet Mining Group.
He was previously a Non-Executive Board member of Stemcor Global Holdings, a steel trading company, having previously been for ten years with Scholz Holding GmbH, an international metals recycling and industrial group, latterly as Chief Financial Officer. His earlier career was with Deutsche Bank AG. Johannes studied Economics at the University of Augsburg and holds an MBA from the University of Stuttgart. A German citizen, he will serve on Petra's Investment and Health, Safety and Environment Committees.
Peter Hill, Non-Executive Chairman of Petra Diamonds commented:
"I would like to welcome Deborah, Alex and Johannes to the Board of Petra; together they bring a wealth of experience, complementing those of our existing Directors, and their appointments leave the Board well placed to take the company forward".
~ Ends ~
For further information, please contact:
Petra Diamonds, London Telephone: +44 20 7494 8203
Marianna Bowes investorrelations@petradiamonds.com
Des Kilalea
Julia Stone
Notes to appointments and changes to Committee Memberships
Ms Watson's and Mr Bhatt's appointments to the Board are pursuant to and in accordance with a Nomination Agreement that has been executed between the Company, Franklin Templeton and Monarch. Further details of the Nomination Agreement are contained in the combined circular and prospectus published by the Company on 22 December 2020.
Consequent to the above appointments, Matthew Glowasky will stand down from the Nominations Committee which will now be comprised of Independent Non-executive Directors. Matthew Glowasky will also stand down from the SED Committee consequent on Alex Watson's appointment to the Committee, while Johannes Bhatt will join the HSE Committee. Bernie Pryor will join the Investment Committee.
About Petra Diamonds Limited
Petra Diamonds is a leading independent diamond mining group and a consistent supplier of gem quality rough diamonds to the international market. The Company has a diversified portfolio incorporating interests in three underground producing mines in South Africa (Finsch, Cullinan and Koffiefontein) and one open pit mine in Tanzania (Williamson).
Petra's strategy is to focus on value rather than volume production by optimising recoveries from its high-quality asset base in order to maximise their efficiency and profitability. The Group has a significant resource base of ca. 243 million carats, which supports the potential for long-life operations.
Petra strives to operate according to the highest ethical standards and will only operate in countries which are members of the Kimberley Process. The Company aims to generate tangible value for each of its stakeholders, thereby contributing to the socio-economic development of its host countries and supporting long-term sustainable operations to the benefit of its employees, partners and communities.
Petra is quoted with a premium listing on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange under the ticker 'PDL'. The Company's US$337 million loan notes due in 2026 will be listed on the Global Exchange market of the Irish Stock Exchange. For more information, visit www.petradiamonds.com.
