Red Rock Resources plc Dividend declaration by Jupiter Mines (8905A)

TIDMRRR

RNS Number : 8905A

Red Rock Resources plc

17 September 2018

Red Rock Resources plc

("Red Rock " or the "Company")

Dividend Declaration by Jupiter Mines

17 September 2018

Further to the announcement of 18 June 2018, Red Rock Resources Plc, the natural resource development company with interests in gold and steel feed materials, announces that Jupiter Mines Limited ("Jupiter", ASX:JMS), an Australian public company in which Red Rock holds 18,524,914 shares (0.95%), has released an update which reads as follows:

"Jupiter Declares 14.5% Yielding H1 2019 Dividend

Jupiter Mines Limited ("Jupiter") is pleased to announce an interim unfranked dividend of $0.05 per share. This equates to a near 100% payout ratio post South African withholding tax and Jupiter income tax payment.

The dividend record date is 24 September 2018 and will be paid on 10 October 2018. Please refer to the Notification of Dividend/Distribution released to ASX for full details.

Tshipi has continued to deliver exceptional performance, resulting in healthy returns for Jupiter shareholders since FY2017.

 
 
                                  Unit       FY2017       FY2018           H1 2019 
 Jupiter distribution       A$ million        $71          $82               $98 
                        ---------------  ----------  -----------  ---------------- 
 Jupiter yield                     %        10.5%        12.3%            14.5% 1 
                        ---------------  ----------  -----------  ---------------- 
 

(1) Dividend yield for the half year to 31 August 2018, based on closing price of $0.345 on 14 September 2018.

Jupiter has also been added to the S&P/ASX 300 Index, effective 24 September 2018.

"Jupiter aspires to be the ASX vehicle of choice for investors looking to achieve crude steel and evolving battery material exposure. Our primary focus remains to put substantial cash into the shareholder's pocket every six months. We endeavour to deliver this by focusing on a simple growth strategy aimed at opportunistic sales expansion (Tshipi has a well-established infrastructure capable of delivering up to 5mtpa) and cost reductions at Tshipi. We will consider value-accretive options to increase our underlying stake in Tshipi as well as regional consolidation in the Kalahari basin", commented Jupiter's CEO Priyank Thapliyal.

Jupiter's Chairman, Brian Gilbertson also remarked "I am delighted that JMS has declared such a healthy first dividend and delivered upon its key IPO undertaking. This is a result of Tshipi H1 sales materially exceeding the H1 estimate for the FY2019 business plan, along with robust manganese prices and cost reductions achieved over this period. The yield on distributions made by JMS since FY2017 to date are unprecedented in the mining industry".

A copy of the Jupiter announcement may be found on the Jupiter website, www.jupitermines.com and on the ASX website www.asx.com.au/asx/shre-price-research/company/JMS

Red Rock Chairman Andrew Bell comments: "The exceptional profit performance and solid sales growth at Jupiter continues. The 14.5% dividend announced reflects only the first half of the year, but prices so far remain robust in the second half, with 37% manganese ore FOB Port Elizabeth currently priced at US$5.92 per DMTU, so there appear to be good prospects for a final dividend.

Red Rock's share of this distribution will be approximately GBP508,000, based on current exchange rates.

As the Chief Executive of Jupiter says, Jupiter intends to position itself as the vehicle of choice for investors looking to achieve crude steel and evolving battery material exposure, and we look forward to further developments as this strategy unfolds.

Jupiter's becoming a component of a key ASX Index is further welcome news that should result in this hitherto neglected stock becoming better recognised and known."

Notes:

Jupiter owns 49.9% of Tshipi é Ntle Manganese Mining (Pty) Ltd, the owner of the Tshipi Borwa manganese mine, referred to herein as Tshipi. The closing price of Jupiter on the Australian Stock Exchange on 14 September 2018 was AUD 0.345 per share.

DMTU: a Dry Metric Ton Unit is the unit of measure for manganese ore pricing. A dry metric ton unit consists of 1% of manganese contained in a ton of ore, excluding moisture.

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of EU Regulation 596/2014.

For further information, please contact:

Andrew Bell 0207 747 9990 Chairman Red Rock Resources Plc

Scott Kaintz 0207 747 9990 Director Red Rock Resources Plc

   Roland Cornish/ Rosalind Hill Abrahams 0207 628 3396        NOMAD Beaumont Cornish Limited 

Jason Robertson 0207 374 2212 Broker First Equity Limited

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September 17, 2018 02:01 ET (06:01 GMT)