Press release
St Helier, Jersey
August 24, 2009
BLACK EARTH FARMING LTD SIX MONTHS REPORT COVERING THE PERIOD JANUARY 1 - JUNE
30, 2009
Reporting period highlights
Sales volume for the period 1 January to 30 June 2009 amounted to 311,455 tons,
compared to 42,862 tons in corresponding period last year.
Total revenue and gains from continuing operations rose 82% to RUR 1,303,124
thousand (USD* 41,646 thousand) compared with RUR 714,928 thousand (USD* 22,849
thousand) same period previous year. Gain on revaluation of biological assets
and agricultural produce constituted 9.0% of total revenue, compared to 58.3% in
the same period last year. Average price received from sales of crops in six
months 2009 was 44% lower than same period last year.
Loss before income tax from continuing operations was RUR 320,354 thousand (USD*
10,238 thousand) compared to a profit of RUR 268,037 thousand (USD* 8,566
thousand) last year.
Loss from continuing operations for the period was RUR 338,490 thousand (USD*
10,818 thousand) compared to a profit of RUR 143,688 thousand (USD* 4,592
thousand) last year.
Loss for the period including discontinued operations was RUR 395,986 thousand
(USD* 12,655 thousand) compared to a profit of RUR 138,887 thousand (USD* 4,439
thousand) last year.
Basic loss per share from continuing and discontinued operations was RUR 3.18
(USD* 0.10) compared with a profit per share of RUR 1.12 (USD* 0.04) same period
last year.
Net cash from operating activities was RUR -28,968 thousand (USD* -926 thousand)
compared with RUR -980,805 thousand (USD* -31,346 thousand) same period previous
year.
As previously reported, on 14 April 2009 the Group signed the contract for the
sale of two of its subsidiaries - ZAO “Agro-Invest Kaluga” and OOO “Rus'”. As a
consequence of the divestment of the entities ZAO “Agro-Invest Kaluga” OOO
“Rus'”, they are presented as a discontinued operation in this interim report
and comparative information has been adjusted accordingly.
On 22 June 2009 the Company's shares were successfully listed on the Mid Cap
segment on NASDAQ OMX Stockholm. Costs of a non-recurring nature directly
related to the listing, amounted to RUR 27,973 thousand (USD* 894 thousand) in
the current reporting period.
The production forecast for 2009 has at this point not been changed.
The target of EBITDA breakeven for full year 2009 remains unchanged.
Significant events after the end of the reporting period
On 4 August 2009 Igor Smolkin - General Manager of the Company's Russian
operational entity - Agro-Invest, resigned and Michael Shneyderman - the Black
Earth Farming Group's Chief Financial Officer assumed the position of General
Manager of Agro-Invest until further notice.
The Company started harvesting on 14 July 2009 and as of 14 August 2009 the
Group had harvested 98 thousand hectares and has thus far collected 316.5
thousand tons of crops.
As of 15 August 2009 the Company had 180 thousand hectares held by ownership and
at current total land holdings of 323 thousand hectares, the target of a
majority of land in ownership by year end has hence already been reached.
* The USD equivalent figures are provided for information purposes only and do
not form part of the interim consolidated financial statements - refer to note 2
(c) in the complete interim report.
Six months report conference call
Date: Tuesday, 25 August 2009
Time: 16:00 CET
Hosts: Black Earth Farming CEO - Sture Gustavsson
Group CFO and AgroInvest CEO - Michael Shneyderman
IR Director - Gustav Wetterling
Dial-in details:
UK: +44(0)20 7138 0824
USA: +1 212 444 0481
Sweden: +46(0)8 5352 6440
Participant passcode: 3178764
Please call in 5 minutes before the conference starts and stay on the line (an
operator will be available to assist you)
See attached complete report.
For additional information, please contact:
Gustav Wetterling, IR Director, Black Earth Farming Ltd., tel: +44 207 117 81 00
Notes to Editor:
Black Earth Farming Ltd. is a leading farming company, publicly listed in
Stockholm and operating in Russia. It acquires, develops and farms agricultural
land assets primarily in the fertile Black Earth region in southwest Russia.
Black Earth Farming has gained a strong market position in the Kursk, Tambov,
Lipetsk, Samara, Voronezh and Ryazan areas, controlling some 323,000 hectares of
what perhaps is the world's most fertile soil.
In 2008 Black Earth Farming harvested 141,900 hectares and in 2009 it plans to
harvest over 181,000 hectares, effectively making it one of the world's largest
farming companies by planted area. The Company's main products are wheat,
barley, corn, sunflowers and rape seeds.
Corporate website: www.blackearthfarming.com