The Directors present their report together with the accounts of Shield Mining Limited (“the Company”) and the consolidated entity for the year ended 30 June 2009 and the independent audit report thereon. A copy of the reports and the accounts is also available on the Company’s website at www.shieldmining.com.
DIRECTORS
The following people were the Directors of Shield Mining Ltd during the financial year and at the date of this report:
Alexander Burns – Non-executive Chairman (Independent)
David Netherway – Managing Director (Non Independent)
Schalk van der Merwe – Non-executive Director (Independent)
Robert (Bob) Cornelius – Non-executive Director (Independent)
PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES
The Company is an African-focused gold and base metals exploration and resource development company, with exploration permits in Mauritania. Further details of the Company’s activities can be found in the Exploration Report included in this report.
REvIEW OF OPERATIONS
OPERATING RESULTS
The loss from ordinary activities after income tax was $4,310,815 (30 June 2008: $2,060,886).
DIVIDENDS
No dividends were declared or paid at the time of this report.
ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION
The Company is not currently subject to significant environmental regulation in respect of its activities. The Directors have considered compliance with the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act 2007, which requires entities to report annual greenhouse gas emissions and energy use. For the first measurement period – 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009 – the Directors have assessed that the Company has no current reporting requirements, but may be required to report in the future.
DIRECTORS’ AND OFFICERS’ QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
Alexander Burns, MBA – Non-executive Chairman (age 44)
Mr Burns has over 20 years of experience in the management of private and publicly listed companies in the industrial and resource sectors in Australia, Malaysia, Japan, Russia, West Africa (Mauritania and Mali) and the Middle East. Since 27 November 1998, Mr Burns has been Managing Director of Sphere Investments Ltd. He was instrumental in taking Sphere into the iron ore sector in an innovative joint venture agreement with Société Nationale Industrielle et Minière (SNIM) in 2001 for the development of the Guelb el Aouj iron ore pellet project in Mauritania, West Africa.
Mr Burns also played a key role in expanding Sphere’s portfolio of resource projects in West Africa, including gold and base metals exploration projects in Mauritania which led to the spin-off of Shield from Sphere.
Mr Burns has been a Director of Shield Mining Limited for five years.
David Netherway, BE (Mining), CDipAF, FAusIMM(CP), FIMMM(CEng) – Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (age 56)
Mr Netherway is a mining engineer with over 30 years of experience in the mining industry. From April 2002 until the completion of its takeover by Eldorado Gold Corporation in 2005, Mr Netherway served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Toronto-listed Afcan Mining Corporation, a China-focused gold mining company which was constructing a gold mine in western China. Prior to joining Afcan, Mr Netherway held senior management positions in a number of mining companies, including Golden Shamrock Mines, Ashanti Goldfields and Semafo Inc.
Mr Netherway is a mine developer and operator who was involved in the construction and development of the Iduapriem, Siguiri, Samira Hill and Kiniero gold mines in West Africa and has mining experience in Australia, India, Nepal, Oman and Malaysia. He received a BE in Mining Engineering from the University of Melbourne in 1975 and a Certified Diploma in Accounting and Finance from the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants in the United Kingdom in 1985.
Mr Netherway is a non-executive Director of GMA Resources plc (AIM : GMA) (from 1 December 2005), KazakhGold Group Limited (LSE : KZG) (from 1 September 2005), African Aura Resources Limited (TSX-V : AAZ) (from 1 June 2006) and Altus Resource Capital Limited (AIM : ARCL) (since 1 April 2009). He was previously a non-executive Director of Equigold NL (ASX : EQI) (from 28 April 2006 to 15 June 2008) and Orezone Resources Inc. (TSX & AMEX : ORN) (from 18 July 2002 to 25 February 2009).
Mr Netherway has been a Director of Shield Mining Limited for three years.
Schalk van der Merwe, PhD – Non-executive Director (age 56)
Dr van der Merwe is a geologist with 30 years of experience in African geology and exploration in Africa. He is currently the Exploration Manager of Sphere Investments Ltd. Prior to joining Sphere in 2005, Dr van der Merwe was working as a geological consultant for various companies in Africa and South America. From 1986 to 1999, Dr van der Merwe taught Exploration Geology at the University of the Free State in South Africa. He is a member of the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professionals (SACNASP).
Dr van der Merwe does not hold any directorship in any other listed companies.
Dr van der Merwe has been a Director of Shield Mining Limited for three years.
Robert (Bob) Cornelius, B.Met E, MEng Sc, F AusIMM – Non-executive Director
(age 77)
Mr Robert (Bob) Cornelius spent 35 years with the CRA Group (now Rio Tinto Limited) prior to his retirement in 1994. During his time with CRA, Mr Cornelius spent 16 years with CRA’s iron ore division in various operating roles at the Hamersley Iron operations in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. In 1982, Mr Cornelius moved to Bougainville Copper Limited as Executive Manager of the Concentrator, before becoming Managing Director of Bougainville Copper Limited from 1987-1990. Following the closure of Bougainville operations, Mr Cornelius became President of CRA Japan and was based in Tokyo from 1991-1993, before returning to CRA’s head office in Melbourne in 1994.
Mr Cornelius is also a non-executive Director of Sphere Investments Limited.
Mr Cornelius has been a Director of Shield Mining Limited for three years.
Lexton Graefe, BEc, CPA – Chief Financial Officer, Company Secretary (age 53)
Mr Graefe has extensive management and commercial experience in the mining industry acquired over the last 25 years. Most of the last 12 years have been spent in overseas postings in developing countries. Prior to joining Shield, Mr Graefe was Managing Director of Resolute Tanzania Limited’s gold operations. He was also President Director of Rio Tinto, Indonesia and General Manager Finance for Rio Tinto in India. Before working offshore with Rio Tinto Limited, Mr Graefe held management, financial and commercial roles within Hamersley Iron Pty Limited.
He is also the current Chief Financial Officer and Company Secretary of Sphere Investments Limited.
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