Last checked at 
6 Apr 2017 07:00
BAKER STEEL RESOURCES TRUST LIMITED
(Incorporated in Guernsey with registered number 51576 under the provisions of The Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008 as amended)
6 April 2017
31 March 2017 Unaudited NAV Statement
Net Asset Value
Baker Steel Resources Trust Limited (the "Company") announces its unaudited net asset value per share at 31 March 2017:
Net asset value per Ordinary Share: 49.2 pence
Since 28 February 2017 the NAV per share has decreased by 1.6% with the fall in the share price of Metals Exploration plc on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange, outweighing the rise in the share price of Ivanhoe Mines Limited on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
The Company had a total of 116,139,980 Ordinary Shares in issue with a further 700,000 shares held in treasury as at 31 March 2017.
Portfolio Update
The Company is fully invested with top 10 investments as follows as a percentage of NAV:
Polar Acquisition Ltd | 36.4% | |
Ivanhoe Mines Limited | 15.0% | |
Bilboes Gold Limited | 13.1% | |
Metals Exploration plc | 7.3% | |
Cemos Group plc | 7.0% | |
Black Pearl Limited Partnership | 4.9% | |
Ironstone Resources Limited | 4.4% | |
Nussir ASA | 3.3% | |
China Polymetallic Mining Limited | 2.1% | |
Gobi Coal & Energy Limited | 1.2% | |
Other Investments | 2.3% | |
Net Cash, Equivalents and Accruals | 3.0% | |
Investment Update
On 3 April 2017, the Company announced that its largest investment, Polar Acquisition Limited ("PAL"), had agreed to issue a US$4.75 million zero coupon convertible loan to clients of Sprott Inc. It is intended that the proceeds of the convertible loan will be used by PAL to buy back its own shares during April 2017. The Company intends to tender shares into the buy-back opportunity, in order to reduce the concentration of PAL in the Company's portfolio. Although the conversion price of the convertible loan is at a premium to the Company's current carrying value of PAL, this transaction has not been incorporated in the NAV as at 31 March 2017. Following completion of the PAL share buy-back and potentially a further sale transaction currently under negotiation, the carrying value of PAL will be reviewed at the end of April 2017.
During March 2017, Metals Exploration plc ("Metals Ex") announced that mining and processing operations at its Runruno Gold Project in the Philippines are ramping up more slowly than had been expected, due to a prolonged period of incessant rainfall and other factors that have restricted the effective mining of waste materials. Although this is a further disappointment for a project that seems to have had more than its fair share of problems outside its control, when the Investment Manager met the management of Metals Ex following the announcement, they seemed reasonably confident that the situation could be turned around. During the month the share price of Metals Ex fell 31%.
During March 2017, Ivanhoe Mines Limited ("Ivanhoe") announced that a new discovery hole had intersected a shallow, 3.8-kilometre extension of the Kakula Copper Discovery at the Kamoa-Kakula Project, in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This new discovery hole essentially doubles the presently-defined length of the copper-rich mineralised system at Kakula, to more than 10 kilometres. Following the slight set-back to its share price in February 2017, it increased 21% in March 2017 and has risen a total 81% in the first quarter 2017 in Sterling terms.
Further details of the Company and its investments are available on the Company's website www.bakersteelresourcestrust.com
Enquiries:
Baker Steel Resources Trust Limited +44 20 7389 8237
Francis JohnstoneTrevor Steel
Numis Securities Limited +44 20 7260 1000
David Benda (corporate)
James Glass (sales)
The Net Asset Value ("NAV") figure stated is based on unaudited estimated valuations of the underlying investments and not necessarily based on observable inputs. Such estimates are not subject to any independent verification or other due diligence and may not comply with generally accepted accounting practices or other generally accepted valuation principles. In addition, some estimated valuations are based on the latest available information which may relate to some time before the date set out above.
Accordingly, no reliance should be placed on such estimated valuations and they should only be taken as an indicative guide. Other risk factors which may be relevant to the NAV figure is set out in the Company's Prospectus dated 26 January 2015.