Last checked at 21 Jan 2013 10:17
21 January 2013
VESUVIUS EXTENDS ITS PENSIONER BUY-IN ARRANGEMENT WITH PENSION INSURANCE CORPORATION RELATING TO FURTHER TRANCHES OF ITS UK PENSION PLAN LIABILITIES
London, 21 January 2013 - Vesuvius plc ("Vesuvius" or "the Company"), a leading metal flow engineering company, today announces that the Trustee of the Cookson Group Pension Plan ("the UK Plan" which, following the recent demerger of Cookson Group plc, is the responsibility of Vesuvius ) has signed a further pension insurance buy-in agreement with Pension Insurance Corporation ("PIC"), a leading provider of pension insurance solutions to defined benefit pension funds. Under the latest agreement UK Plan members who retire in each of the next three years will have their pensions insured on agreed terms.
This transaction follows the agreement, in July 2012, of a pension insurance buy-in agreement with PIC covering the existing UK Plan pensioner liabilities which then represented some 60% of the total UK Plan liabilities. Under this latest agreement, the first tranche covering members retiring between July 2012 and December 2013, will be insured in 2014 based on December 2012 market rates. The insurance policy covers up to £30m of liabilities, with the future premium payments to be met from the existing assets of the UK Plan. The structure of this transaction is similar in scope to the buy-in policy PIC put in place with the London Stock Exchange pension scheme in 2011, under which future retirees would be insured automatically over the following five years.
Chris O'Shea, Chief Financial Officer of Vesuvius plc, said:
"De-risking the UK plan in this way, by removing the inflation, longevity and interest rate risks for the insured liabilities, will reduce still further the level of volatility to which Vesuvius is exposed in future pension funding costs through its sponsorship of the UK Plan. This latest buy-in agreement, which results in around two-thirds of the UK Plan being covered by buy-in agreements with PIC, represents a further demonstration of the Company's intention to work with its advisor, Premier, and the Trustee to de-risk the UK Plan in a managed way."
Allan Course, Chairman of the Trustee, said:
"We were very pleased with the flexibility and innovation that PIC showed in the completion of the initial pension insurance buy-in. We continue to work closely with Vesuvius to manage a gradual de-risking of the plan and the approach we developed with PIC and our advisors at Aon Hewitt enables us to achieve this. We are delighted to have locked in pricing for the first tranche of retirees. This removes volatility from the UK Plan and allows us to plan with confidence."
Jay Shah, Co-head of Business Origination at Pension Insurance Corporation, said:
"We are proud to have been able to help the Trustee secure the pensions of future retirees, a structure which has worked extremely well for other clients. We believe that by locking into pricing for 2014 today, the Trustee and Vesuvius have been forward thinking and proactive in managing its pension plan risk.
Notes to Editors:
For further information please contact:
Vesuvius plc: Chris O'Shea
+44 (0)20 7822 0000
Pension Corporation: Jeremy Apfel
+44 (0)20 7105 2140
apfel@pensioncorporation.com
Media enquiries: John Olsen, MHP Communications
+44 (0)20 3128 8100
About Vesuvius
Vesuvius is a global leader in metal flow engineering, developing, manufacturing and marketing mission-critical ceramic consumable products and systems to demanding applications, primarily in the global steel and foundry industries. Vesuvius also supplies fabricated precious metals to the jewellery industry in Europe and has significant precious metals recycling operations.
About Pension Insurance Corporation
Pension Insurance Corporation ("PIC") provides tailored pension insurance buyouts and buy-ins to the trustees and sponsors of UK defined benefit pension funds. A market leader, PIC brings safety and security to scheme members' benefits through innovative, bespoke insurance solutions, which include deferred premiums and the use of company assets as part payment. PIC concluded the first UK public sector backed pension insurance buyout and is the only insurer to have secured accruing benefits of active pension fund members. PIC has £6bn in assets and has insured more than 60,000 pension fund members. Clients include FTSE 100 companies, multinationals and the public sector. PIC is authorised and regulated by the FSA. For further information please visit www.pensioncorporation.com
Vesuvius plc, 165 Fleet Street, London EC4A 2AE
Registered in England and Wales No. 8217766