Mining and Power Harworth Estates UK COAL PLC Annual Report And
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14705UKCOALCVR with throwout:Layout 1 4/4/08 11:45 Page 1 CONTENTS Highlights 1 Chairman’s Statement 2 Operating and Financial Review (OFR) — Business overview 6 — Strategy 6 UK COAL PLC — Objectives 7 Annual Report and Accounts 2007 — Mining and Power 9 — Market overview 10 — Deep mines 13 UK COAL PLC Annual Report and Accounts 2007 — Surface mines 17 — Power 20 — Harworth Estates 21 — Financial review 32 Mining and Power Harworth Estates — Key risks and uncertainties 36 — Corporate Social Responsibility 38 Board of Directors 42 Directors’ report 44 Corporate governance 48 Directors’ remuneration report 54 Independent auditors’ report 61 Consolidated income statement 63 Consolidated statement of recognised income and expense 64 Balance sheets 65 Cash flow statements 66 Notes to the financial statements 67 UK COAL PLC Harworth Park Blyth Road Harworth Doncaster South Yorkshire DN11 8DB t: +44 (0)1302 751751 f: +44 (0)1302 752420 [email protected] www.ukcoal.com 14705 04/04/2008 Proof 11 14705 04/04/2008 Proof 11 14705UKCOALCVR with throwout:Layout 1 4/4/08 11:45 Page 1 CONTENTS Highlights 1 Chairman’s Statement 2 Operating and Financial Review (OFR) — Business overview 6 — Strategy 6 UK COAL PLC — Objectives 7 Annual Report and Accounts 2007 — Mining and Power 9 — Market overview 10 — Deep mines 13 UK COAL PLC Annual Report and Accounts 2007 — Surface mines 17 — Power 20 — Harworth Estates 21 — Financial review 32 Mining and Power Harworth Estates — Key risks and uncertainties 36 — Corporate Social Responsibility 38 Board of Directors 42 Directors’ report 44 Corporate governance 48 Directors’ remuneration report 54 Independent auditors’ report 61 Consolidated income statement 63 Consolidated statement of recognised income and expense 64 Balance sheets 65 Cash flow statements 66 Notes to the financial statements 67 UK COAL PLC Harworth Park Blyth Road Harworth Doncaster South Yorkshire DN11 8DB t: +44 (0)1302 751751 f: +44 (0)1302 752420 [email protected] www.ukcoal.com 14705 04/04/2008 Proof 11 14705 04/04/2008 Proof 11 14705UKCOALCVR with throwout:Layout 1 4/4/08 11:45 Page 2 PRODUCTION FROM SURFACE MINE SITES MORE THAN DOUBLED IN 2007 TO 1.5 MILLION TONNES. OUR LOCATIONS BRITAIN’S BIGGEST PRODUCER OF COAL, UK COAL SUPPLIES AROUND 5% OF THE COUNTRY’S ENERGY NEEDS FOR ELECTRICITY GENERATION AND EMPLOYS 3,100 PEOPLE WITHIN THE GROUP. ONE OF BRITAIN’S LARGEST BROWNFIELD SITE PROPERTY DEVELOPERS, Deep Mines UK COAL OWNS A SUBSTANTIAL LAND PORTFOLIO, WHICH IT IS IN THE Operating Surface Mines PROCESS OF DEVELOPING. Principal Development Sites MINING AND POWER DEEP MINING The Group operates 4 deep mines, located in Central and Northern England. The Group has reserves and resources of over 100 million tonnes at these mines. SURFACE MINING At the end of 2007, the Group had 6 active surface mines and planning consent to mine a further site. The Group has applied for planning consents for a further 4 mines and expects to make applications for a further 6 sites during 2008. Total surface mining reserves available for planning are estimated at approximately 97 million tonnes. POWER GENERATION UK COAL has 29 MW of electrical power generation capacity, utilising waste gas from mines. It is actively pursuing the development of alternative power generation opportunities, including wind farms and has recently acquired planning consent for its first 9 MW wind farm. HARWORTH ESTATES UK COAL owns some 46,500 acres (18,818 hectares) of predominantly agricultural land. Within this, some 3,696 net acres have been identified as offering prime prospects for development into a mix of residential, business park, distribution and community developments over the medium to longer term. At 31 December 2007, the Group’s property interests, excluding the deep mine sites, had a current open market value of £411 million. We estimate, however, that, with the benefit of currently envisaged planning consents, at 2007 prices, our land portfolio would have a worth of some £935 million by 2012, and in excess of £1 billion by 2013, in each case with the potential for further development phase value uplift. 14705 04/04/2008 Proof 11 14705 04/04/2008 Proof 11 14705UKCOALCVR with throwout:Layout 1 4/4/08 11:45 Page 2 PRODUCTION FROM SURFACE MINE SITES MORE THAN DOUBLED IN 2007 TO 1.5 MILLION TONNES. OUR LOCATIONS BRITAIN’S BIGGEST PRODUCER OF COAL, UK COAL SUPPLIES AROUND 5% OF THE COUNTRY’S ENERGY NEEDS FOR ELECTRICITY GENERATION AND EMPLOYS 3,100 PEOPLE WITHIN THE GROUP. ONE OF BRITAIN’S LARGEST BROWNFIELD SITE PROPERTY DEVELOPERS, Deep Mines UK COAL OWNS A SUBSTANTIAL LAND PORTFOLIO, WHICH IT IS IN THE Operating Surface Mines PROCESS OF DEVELOPING. Principal Development Sites MINING AND POWER DEEP MINING The Group operates 4 deep mines, located in Central and Northern England. The Group has reserves and resources of over 100 million tonnes at these mines. SURFACE MINING At the end of 2007, the Group had 6 active surface mines and planning consent to mine a further site. The Group has applied for planning consents for a further 4 mines and expects to make applications for a further 6 sites during 2008. Total surface mining reserves available for planning are estimated at approximately 97 million tonnes. POWER GENERATION UK COAL has 29 MW of electrical power generation capacity, utilising waste gas from mines. It is actively pursuing the development of alternative power generation opportunities, including wind farms and has recently acquired planning consent for its first 9 MW wind farm. HARWORTH ESTATES UK COAL owns some 46,500 acres (18,818 hectares) of predominantly agricultural land. Within this, some 3,696 net acres have been identified as offering prime prospects for development into a mix of residential, business park, distribution and community developments over the medium to longer term. At 31 December 2007, the Group’s property interests, excluding the deep mine sites, had a current open market value of £411 million. We estimate, however, that, with the benefit of currently envisaged planning consents, at 2007 prices, our land portfolio would have a worth of some £935 million by 2012, and in excess of £1 billion by 2013, in each case with the potential for further development phase value uplift. 14705 04/04/2008 Proof 11 14705 04/04/2008 Proof 11 14705UKCOAL :14705UKCOAL 9/4/08 14:18 Page 1 HIGHLIGHTS 2007 2006 INCOME STATEMENT Average sales price per Gigajoule (£/GJ) 1.62 1.41 Operating profit (£m) 82.7 27.6 Profit before tax (£m) 69.0 17.6 Earnings per share (pence) 59.9 11.7 Earnings per share excluding tax (pence) 44.0 11.7 BALANCE SHEET Net assets (£m) 358.2 244.1 Net assets per share (£) 2.28 1.56 Year end gearing (%) 23 28 OPERATING PROFIT UP BY 200% 2007 £82.7m 2006 £27.6m EARNINGS PER SHARE UP BY 412% 2007 59.9 pence 2006 11.7 pence NET ASSETS UP BY 47% 2007 £358.2m 2006 £244.1m 1 14705 09/04/2008 Proof 14 14705UKCOAL :14705UKCOAL 9/4/08 14:18 Page 2 CHAIRMAN’S STATEMENT IN 2007, WE CREATED SUBSTANTIAL VALUE FOR ALL OUR STAKEHOLDERS, AND I THANK OUR EXECUTIVE TEAM FOR THEIR STRONG LEADERSHIP AND ALL OUR EMPLOYEES FOR THEIR UNFLAGGING EFFORTS AND THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS. I AM CONFIDENT THAT WE WILL BUILD FURTHER ON OUR GROWTH PLATFORM IN 2008. OVERVIEW AND OUTLOOK I said last year that UK COAL had put in place a far stronger platform for future value creation and that 2007 would see the execution of our strategy go a great deal further. I am delighted to report this has indeed been the case. We have delivered another year of substantial progress in our businesses. Pre-tax profits grew almost four-fold to £69.0 million, earnings per share increased 412% to 59.9 pence, and net assets per share increased 46% to 228.0 pence. We have shown that we have a strong growth platform, that we are effectively executing our strategy, and that we have the potential to continue delivering further substantial value this year and beyond. Regrettably I have to report on the loss of the lives of two colleagues at two separate mines during the year. Nothing can ever be said to reduce the impact of a fatality on the family, friends, colleagues and on the rescuers directly involved. My condolences, and those of each individual Board member, go out to all of those affected, and our thanks are similarly extended for the brave efforts of those involved in rescue. We are dedicated to enhancing controls and to making changes to improve safety at all of our operations. To reinforce this objective, the Board has established a Health and Safety Committee to have oversight of these matters. In mining, we have been successful in our continued negotiations with customers to move our overall sales prices closer to the world market price for coal and are progressively moving the Group’s contracts position towards a balance of contracts at floating, capped and collared, and fixed (or RPI linked) prices. This is altering the underlying economics of our mining operations and enabling us to invest in accessing more reserves in both our deep and surface mining operations. We announced that there would be a period of non-production during the early part of 2007 at Daw Mill, our largest mine, and this had a substantial impact on the first half production and profitability of our deep mining business. In the second half of the year, however, our deep mines operated profitably, despite managing face changes and, for 2008, they have the prospect of increased production at an increased overall selling price.