Centamin Egypt: Annual General Meeting Chairman's Address
November 27 2009 - 9:14AM
Marketwired
The following is the address of Sami El-Raghy, Executive Chairman
of Centamin Egypt Limited ("Centamin" or "the Company")(TSX:
CEE)(ASX: CNT)(LSE: CEY) at the Annual General Meeting held today
in London, England.
Fellow Shareholders
I would like to take this opportunity to advise that I will be
standing down as the Chairman of Centamin from 31 December 2009, to
pursue new personal endeavors and challenges. Over the last 16
years, Centamin has made the difficult transition from exploration
to development and now production. It is with great pride that I
leave Centamin in the capable hands of Josef, my son, who has
demonstrated since joining the Company in 2002 his ability to build
and manage a highly successful and fast growing gold mining
business.
The journey which Centamin embarked upon many years ago
witnessed many challenges. When I took control of Centamin in 1993,
the Company was capitalized at less than half a million dollars,
had nearly 2 million dollars in debt, had no projects and was as
good as dead.
Today, Centamin has one of the largest gold mines outside of the
majors, with ever increasing reserves and resources, highly
promising exploration prospects, and a committed and highly
efficient Egyptian staff and management team led by our Managing
Director. The Company's vision of establishing itself as a major
North African mining house is now a reality. The Company has
pioneered modern minerals exploration and development in this
region and is very well set to capitalize on and take advantage of
additional opportunities which will surely come its way. The best
is yet to come for Centamin.
Building a project of the size and scale of Sukari as well as
bringing an entirely new industry into the region will always have
its challenges. It is not just a matter of speaking the language,
you must understand and respect the culture, you must have the
credibility and standing in the community which puts you beyond
doubt and above rumours and innuendos which can be very
destructive. I am pleased to say that despite the many hurdles
which have stood in our way, we have successfully built a large and
sustainable business which will generate jobs, wealth at local and
national levels, and has harnessed the considerable skills which
Egypt has to offer in the region.
This is my last address as the Chairman of Centamin. As such,
there are many people who I should acknowledge for helping me along
the way, particularly when the times were tough. To all of them I
say thank you and I hope you gained from this experience as much as
I did. My special acknowledgement goes to some whose names are not
necessarily in the Company's annual reports or publications, but
who are fundamental to this Company's success.
-- Mike Kriewaldt, who lead the charge at Sukari, laid the foundation for
technical excellence and stayed at Sukari for three years without a real
break. His only time away from Sukari was a half day trip to Edfu every
so often for a haircut, or to Hurghada to renew his work permit. There
was serious work to be done, and he was there doing it - ore to be
delineated, staff to be trained. But when you have the strong technical
background, the ingenuity and the ambition to succeed, nothing else
counts. This spirit of determination to succeed moulded the Sukari group
into a closely knit family.
-- El-Hag Mohamed, Youssef and Esmat El-Raghy, I'm very fortunate and proud
to have my three brothers' support. The amount of work and sacrifices
these individuals have put in was, and still is, crucial for the success
of Centamin. I won't begin to try to provide you with examples of their
work and sacrifices as there are simply too many to mention. Their
forward-thinking has helped us avoid what could otherwise have been
serious issues. I extend my deepest gratitude to all three of them.
-- John Lynch, who kept our Perth office pumping 24 hours a day, seven days
a week providing all administration and technical support. He was always
there, no matter what time. What was needed to be done, was done. There
was never an excuse. "Impossible" is not a word found in John's
vocabulary.
-- Dennis Franks, whose advice and assistance were crucial for directing
our focus to the London market. He and John also aided the completion of
the 2 million tonnes per annum feasibility study, which proved beyond
doubt the viability of the project and thus the approval of the Egyptian
government of the declaration of commercial discovery which cemented our
position in Egypt.
-- Brian Speechly - His "no nonsense" approach to mining has always been
inspirational to me, not only with Centamin, but during my earlier
career with various multinational corporations. His mine designs, in my
opinion, are second to none in the profession.
-- Bob Catto, who introduced us to the London market, realized our
potential, and stood by us when times were tough.
-- Rick Cavaney, who in the early days, spent years on site mapping and
interpreting the Sukari geology. Rick authored the geological report
which formed part of our feasibility study.
-- Last, and most certainly not least, our brilliant and highly able
assistants, Marwa and Haidy in Egypt, Maureen and Heidi in Australia.
Each of these ladies is a whole team on her own.
In closing, I would like also to sincerely acknowledge the
various Egyptian Ministers, Army & Police Commands, National
Security Commands, Red Sea Governors, Head and members of the
Parliamentary Industrial & Resources Committee, Members of
Parliament and all those I have had the honor to work with to bring
this important new phase of the gold mining Industry to Egypt.
Once again, I would like to personally thank all shareholders. I
sincerely trust that you continue to give your whole hearted
support to Josef as he leads your Company to new heights.
Thank you very much
Sami El-Raghy, Chairman
27 November 2009
ABN 86 007 700 352
Contacts: Centamin Egypt Limited Josef El-Raghy + 61 (8) 9316
2640 www.centamin.com Buchanan Communications Limited Bobby Morse +
44 (0) 207 7466 5000 Buchanan Communications Limited Ben Willey +
44 (0) 207 7466 5000 Ambrian Partners Limited Richard Brown + 44
(0) 207 7634 4700 Ambrian Partners Limited Richard Greenfield + 44
(0) 207 7634 4700 Investec Investment Banking Gerard Kisbey-Green +
44 (0)207 597 4000
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