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KIO - Kumba Iron Ore Limited - Production and sales report for the quarter ended

Release Date: 21/04/2011 08:00
Code(s): KIO
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KIO - Kumba Iron Ore Limited - Production and sales report for the quarter ended 31 March 2011 Kumba Iron Ore Limited A member of the Anglo American plc group (Incorporated in the Republic of South Africa) (Registration number 2005/015852/06) JSE Share code: KIO ISIN: ZAE000085346 KUMBA IRON ORE LIMITED PRODUCTION AND SALES REPORT FOR THE QUARTER ENDED 31 MARCH 2011 Kumba Iron Ore Limited ("Kumba") today released its production and sales report for the quarter ended 31 March 2011. Throughout this report, production and sales volumes referred to are 100% attributable to Kumba. Overview: - 23% decrease in production to 8.8Mt (million metric tonnes) mainly due to mining constraints caused by wet pit conditions, resulting from excessive rainfall at all operations. - Total sales of 10.4Mt decreased by only 5% as the reduction in saleable production during the quarter was supplemented by sales from finished product stockpiles. - Export sales volumes of 8.6Mt decreased by 8% mainly as a result of shipments being impacted by lower production volumes. - Total domestic sales volumes of 1.3Mt increased by 10% as demand from ArcelorMittal South Africa Limited (AMSA) increased. Production summary `000 tonnes Quarter % Quarter % change ended change ended Mar Mar Mar Q11 Dec Mar Q11
2011 2010 vs 2010 vs Mar Q10 Dec Q10 Total 8 794 11 489 (23) 10 706 (18) - Sishen Mine 8 548 11 006 (22) 10 206 (16) DMS plant 5 741 7 678 (25) 6 833 (16) Jig plant 2 807 3 328 (16) 3 373 (17) - Thabazimbi 246 483 (49) 500 (51) Mine Sales summary `000 tonnes Quarter % Quarter % change ended change ended Mar Mar Mar Q11 Dec Mar Q11
2011 2010 vs 2010 vs Dec Q10 Dec Q10 Total 10 383 10 932 (5) 10 701 (3) - Sishen Mine 9 821 10 464 (6) 10 362 (5) Export sales 8 557 9 315 (8) 8 978 (5) Domestic 1 264 1 149 10 1 384 (9) sales - Thabazimbi 562 468 20 339 66 Mine Kumba`s operating performance during Q1 2011 was impacted by excessive rainfall at Sishen, Kolomela and Thabazimbi Mines. This resulted in wet pit conditions that hampered mining activities and plant throughput. With twice the annual rainfall recorded during the first two months of 2011, production at Sishen Mine of 8.5Mt declined by 2.5Mt when compared with Q1 2010. Sishen Mine`s DMS and Jig plants` production were down 1.9Mt and 0.5Mt respectively, due to the inability of the mining equipment to safely access the mining areas and wet feedstock material that caused blockages in the plants. Production at Thabazimbi Mine reached 246Kt (kilotonnes), a decrease of 237Kt, mainly as a result of the impact of the unusually heavy rainfall and the flooded Crocodile River that hampered access to the main pit. Production is planned to decrease in 2011 at Thabazimbi Mine as it nears the end of its life and AMSA`s supply is supplemented from finished product stockpiles. Volumes railed on the Sishen-Saldanha Iron Ore Export Channel, which included finished product stock at Sishen Mine, increased by 3% to 9.7Mt. The lower production from Sishen Mine during the quarter coupled with the increase in volumes railed, resulted in a net 1.7Mt decrease in the stock level at Sishen Mine to 2.7Mt. With 1.7Mt of stock at the port of Saldanha and 1.2Mt at the Qingdao port in China, Kumba has reduced its stockpile levels from 7.1Mt at the end of Q1 2010 to 5.8Mt at the end of Q1 2011. Export sales volumes from Sishen Mine reached 8.6Mt, a decrease of 0.8Mt mainly as a result of shipments being impacted by lower production volumes. South African domestic sales volumes from Sishen and Thabazimbi Mines reached 1.8Mt, an increase of 0.2Mt as demand from AMSA recovered further. The 9Mt per annum Kolomela project remains on budget and on schedule to deliver first production towards the end of the first half of 2012, ramping up to full capacity in 2013. Kumba reiterates that production is expected to remain stable in 2011 when compared with 2010 levels. Despite the decline in operational performance during Q1 2011, management has implemented focused plans to recover the shortfall in production by the end of 2011. For further information, please contact: Esha Brijmohan Investor Relations Analyst Tel: +27 (0)12 683 7257 / +27 (0) 83 488 9427 Email: Esha.brijmohan@kioltd.com Notes to editors: Kumba, a member of the Anglo American plc group, is a leading value-adding supplier of high quality iron ore to the global steel industry. Kumba produces iron ore in South Africa at Sishen Mine in the Northern Cape Province and at Thabazimbi Mine in the Limpopo Province and is currently developing a new mine, Kolomela Mine in the Northern Cape Province which will commence production towards the end of the first half of 2012 and reach full production of 9Mtpa in 2013. In 2010 Kumba exported 36.1Mt of superior iron ore to customers in a range of geographical locations around the globe including China, Japan, Korea and a number of countries in Europe and the Middle East. www.angloamericankumba.com Anglo American plc is one of the world`s largest mining companies, is headquartered in the UK and listed on the London and Johannesburg stock exchanges. Anglo American`s portfolio of mining businesses spans precious metals and minerals - in which it is a global leader in both platinum and diamonds; base metals - copper and nickel; and bulk commodities - iron ore, metallurgical coal and thermal coal. Anglo American is committed to the highest standards of safety and responsibility across all its businesses and geographies and to making a sustainable difference in the development of the communities around its operations. The company`s mining operations and extensive pipeline of growth projects are located in southern Africa, South America, Australia, North America and Asia. www.angloamerican.com Centurion 21 April 2011 Sponsor RAND MERCHANT BANK (A division of FirstRand Bank Limited) Date: 21/04/2011 08:00:01 Supplied by www.sharenet.co.za Produced by the JSE SENS Department. The SENS service is an information dissemination service administered by the JSE Limited (`JSE`). The JSE does not, whether expressly, tacitly or implicitly, represent, warrant or in any way guarantee the truth, accuracy or completeness of the information published on SENS. The JSE, their officers, employees and agents accept no liability for (or in respect of) any direct, indirect, incidental or consequential loss or damage of any kind or nature, howsoever arising, from the use of SENS or the use of, or reliance on, information disseminated through SENS.

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