Project Financing Mandate

RNS Number:7877E
Nikanor Plc
01 October 2007


1 October 2007

                  NIKANOR ANNOUNCES PROJECT FINANCING MANDATE

Nikanor PLC is pleased to announce that it has mandated Citi and Standard
Chartered Bank to jointly structure and arrange approximately US$800 million of
project financing for the development of its KOV Project.  The project involves
rehabilitating the KOV mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo and building the
world's largest copper and cobalt refinery of its type.

Citi will act as coordinator under the mandate, with funding expected to include
financing support from export credit agencies, development financing
institutions and commercial lenders.  In due course, Nikanor expects to appoint
a core group of Lead Arrangers comprising banks who have already expressed
interest in the financing, thus ensuring the optimal financing package for the
project.  The financing is expected to close in 2008.

Commenting on this development, Jonathan Leslie, Executive Chairman of Nikanor
said:

"This announcement represents a substantial step toward the completion of the
funding of our project and we are pleased to be working with such experienced
institutions as Citi and Standard Chartered bank.  Our current cash balance of
$1 billion means that work on the project will continue uninterrupted while we
complete this final step in the funding process."


For further information, please contact:

Nikanor PLC                                              [phone]
Jonathan Leslie, Executive Chairman
Peter Sydney-Smith, Finance Director
Richard Boorman, Head of Investor Relations

Citigate Dewe Rogerson                                   [phone]
Kate Delahunty
George Cazenove

JPMorgan Cazenove                                        [phone]
Joe Seifert


Notes to Editors

Nikanor is a mining group which owns assets in the heart of the African
copperbelt in the Democratic Republic of Congo.  The group's key mine is KOV,
containing one of the world's largest high quality copper and cobalt ore bodies.
Nikanor is rehabilitating this proven and well documented brownfield site and
building a major state of the art refining plant to produce 250,000 tonnes per
year of LME A-grade copper cathode and 27,500 tonnes per year of cobalt
products.  Nikanor was admitted to the London Stock Exchange (AIM) on 17 July
2006.

Citi (Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C)), the leading global financial services company,
has some 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 100
countries, providing consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with
a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and
credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, and wealth
management. Citi's major brand names include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica,
Citi Smith Barney and Banamex. Additional information may be found at
www.citigroup.com or www.citi.com.

Standard Chartered PLC, listed on both the London Stock Exchange and the Hong
Kong Stock Exchange, ranks among the top 25 companies in the FTSE-100 by market
capitalization. The London-headquartered group has operated for over 150 years
in some of the world's most dynamic markets, leading the way in Asia, Africa and
the Middle East. Its income and the number of employees have more than doubled
over the last five years primarily as a result of organic growth and
supplemented by acquisitions. Standard Chartered aspires to be the best
international bank in its markets by being the right partner for its
stakeholders and leading by example. The group now employs over 60,000 people,
representing some 100 nationalities, in more than 1,400 branches located in over
50 countries. The group is committed to building a sustainable business over the
long-term and is trusted worldwide for upholding high standards of corporate
governance, social responsibility, environmental protection and employee
diversity.



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