Changes in Directorate and Board Committees

20 December 2013

 Changes in Directorate and Board Committees  

Changes in Directorate

Avocet Mining PLC ("Avocet" or "the Company") announces that Noël Harwerth has communicated her intention to resign from the Board with effect from 31 December 2013, in order to avoid a potential conflict of interest with her other directorships. Noël is currently chair of the Remuneration Committee.

In addition, Robert Pilkington has advised that he will stand down from the Board at the next Annual General Meeting of shareholders, on 8 May 2014, after more than 18 years with the Avocet group.

Composition of Committees

In light of the above, the Company announces the following changes to the composition of Board committees:

- Barry Rourke will succeed Noël as Chairman of the Remuneration Committee;

- Gordon Wylie will join the Remuneration Committee;

- Russell Edey will join the Audit Committee; and

- Mike Donoghue will join the Safety, Health, Environment and Communities (SHEC) Committee.

The Company does not intend to replace either Noël or Robert, and will continue with a Board consisting of two executive directors, a non-executive chairman and three non-executive directors.

A full list of the updated membership of the Board and its committees is available at the Company's website at: http://www.avocetmining.com/governance.html 

Non-executive Directors (NEDs) Fee reduction

In response to the changed financial position and reduced market capitalisation of the Company, annual fees payable to NEDs have been revised as follows (with effect backdated from 1 March 2013): 

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NOTES TO EDITORS

Avocet Mining PLC is a gold mining and exploration company listed on the London Stock Exchange (ticker: AVM.L) and the Oslo Børs (ticker: AVM.OL). The Company's principal activities are gold mining and exploration in West Africa.

In Burkina Faso the Company owns 90% of the Inata Gold Mine. The deposit at Inata currently comprises a Mineral Resource of 4.7 million ounces. The Inata Gold Mine poured its first gold in December 2009 and produced 135,189 ounces of gold in 2012.

Other assets in Burkina Faso include eight exploration permits surrounding the Inata Gold Mine in the broader Bélahouro region. The most advanced of these projects is Souma, some 20 kilometres from the Inata Gold Mine, where there is a Mineral Resource estimate of 0.8 million ounces.

In Guinea, Avocet owns 100% of the Tri-K Project in the north east of the country. Drilling to date has outlined a Mineral Resource of 3.0 million ounces, and in October 2013 the Company announced a maiden Ore Reserve on the oxide portion of the orebody, which is suitable for heap leaching, of 0.5 million ounces. Development of a CIL processing plant to exploit the remaining 2.4 million ounces will be considered once the heap leach feasibility study has been completed.