PAL Equatorial Palm Oil Plc

 

TIDMPAL 
 
RNS Number : 6377M 
Equatorial Palm Oil plc 
27 May 2010 
 
    Equatorial Palm Oil plc / Index: AIM / Epic: PAL / Sector: Food Producers 
 
                Equatorial Palm Oil plc ('EPO' or the 'Company') 
                  Subscription agreement to raise GBP5 million 
                              Issue of New Equity 
 
Equatorial Palm Oil plc, the AIM listed Liberian focussed sustainable oil palm 
plantation developer, is pleased to announce it has signed a GBP5 million 
subscription agreement (the 'Agreement') with BioPalm Energy Ltd, a fully owned 
subsidiary of Indian conglomerate The Siva Group (the 'Investor'). The funds 
will be used for the continued development of the Company's 169,000 hectare land 
position and the acceleration of the plantation rollout programme. 
 
Under the terms of the Agreement, the Investor has agreed to subscribe through 
Mirabaud Securities LLP for 33,333,333 new ordinary shares of GBP0.01 each in 
the Company ('Placing Shares') at a price of 15 pence (the 'Placing Price') per 
Placing Share.  The Placing Price represents a premium of approximately 42.9 per 
cent. over the closing price of 10.5 pence per EPO share on 26 May 2010, being 
the last available business day prior to this announcement. Under the terms of 
the Agreement, the Investor has the right to appoint a Non-Executive Director to 
the board of the Company for so long as the Investor holds no less than 15% of 
the entire issued share capital of the Company, the appointment of whom will be 
announced in due course. 
 
EPO Chairman Michael Frayne said, "We are very pleased with the investment by 
The Siva Group, a major Indian conglomerate which has a strong understanding of 
the palm oil sector, EPO's strategy and its potential.  The subscription will 
provide additional capital for the development of our 169,000 hectare land 
position in Liberia and the acceleration of the plantation rollout programme. 
With a representative joining the Board, the relationship between the two 
parties will be strengthened and with close cooperation, we can ensure the value 
of our projects will be significantly enhanced and importantly, on a timeline 
shorter than initially envisaged." 
 
"These are exciting times for palm oil operations in West Africa and 
particularly in Liberia, where major corporations such as Sime Darby and Golden 
Agri have announced significant palm oil investment plans.  The global demand 
for palm oil continues to rise, and the need for new plantation developments 
such as ours has been identified by The Siva Group as an attractive 
opportunity." 
 
The enlarged issued share capital of the Company following the issue of the 
Placing Shares will be 114,751,670 ordinary shares.  The Placing Shares will 
represent approximately 29.1 per cent. of the enlarged issued share capital of 
the Company.  Application will be made for the Placing Shares to be admitted to 
trading on AIM and the Placing Shares are expected to commence trading on 3 June 
2010. 
 
                                  * * ENDS * * 
 
For further information please visit www.epoil.co.uk or contact: 
 
+--------------+---------------------------+-------------------+ 
| Michael      | Equatorial Palm Oil plc   | Tel: 020 7766     | 
| Frayne       |                           | 7555              | 
+--------------+---------------------------+-------------------+ 
| Pascal Keane | Shore Capital & Corporate | Tel: 020 7408     | 
|              | Limited                   | 4090              | 
+--------------+---------------------------+-------------------+ 
| Edward       | Shore Capital & Corporate | Tel: 020 7408     | 
| Mansfield    | Limited                   | 4090              | 
+--------------+---------------------------+-------------------+ 
| Peter Krens  | Mirabaud Securities LLP   | Tel: 020 7484     | 
|              |                           | 3510              | 
+--------------+---------------------------+-------------------+ 
| Hugo de      | St Brides Media & Finance | Tel: 020 7236     | 
| Salis        | Ltd                       | 1177              | 
+--------------+---------------------------+-------------------+ 
| Paul Youens  | St Brides Media & Finance | Tel: 020 7236     | 
|              | Ltd                       | 1177              | 
+--------------+---------------------------+-------------------+ 
 
Notes to editors: 
 
About Equatorial Palm Oil 
EPO's objective is to become a producer of sustainable, low-cost CPO and to this 
end it has extensive operations located near the coast in Liberia, West Africa. 
The Company's operational strategy is expected to be implemented through three 
core business activities: the rehabilitation of existing oil palm plantations; 
the development of new plantations; and the development of out-grower small 
holdings.  The Company has secured Government ratified Investment Agreements in 
Liberia for the investment, rehabilitation and participation by the Group over a 
sizeable acreage of existing oil palm plantations.  EPO's operations have 
already commenced at the Butaw Plantation and Palm Bay Plantation. 
 
About The Siva Group 
Founded in 1986 by Mr. C Sivasankaran, The Siva Group is a Chennai based US$3 
billion Indian conglomerate, with over 3,000 employees and operations in Realty, 
Telecom, Project Engineering, Shipping, Energy, Agriculture and 
e-education/software.  The Siva Group's diverse businesses are focussed on 
performance, competitiveness, value creation and customer-orientation.  While 
simultaneously strengthening its traditional base, the Group is centred on 
identifying new business opportunities including agriculture.  Given its global 
footprint, the Group is now aggressive in incorporating international expansion 
possibilities into its growth plans. 
 
This information is provided by RNS 
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange 
   END 
 
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