Queries
South
Africa
Tel:
Mobile
E-mail:
Steve Lenahan
+27 (0) 11 637 6248
+27 (0) 83 308 2200
slenahan@AngloGoldAshanti.com
Alan Fine
+27 (0) 11 637 6383
+27 (0) 83 250 0757
afine@AngloGoldAshanti.com
Shelagh Blackman
+27 (0) 11 637 6379
+27 (0) 83 308 2471
skblackman@AngloGoldAshanti.com
Ghana
John Owusu
+233 (21) 778 168
+233 (24) 322 026
john.owusu@ashantigold.com
USA
Charles Carter
Toll Free 800 417 9255
+ 1 212 750 7999
cecarter@AngloGoldAshanti.com
Australia
Andrea Maxey
+ 61 8 9425 4604
+ 61 438 001 393
amaxey@AngloGoldAshanti.com
Disclaimer
Except for historical information contained herein, there are matters discussed in this news release that are forward-looking statements. Such statements are only
predictions and actual events or results may differ materially. For discussion of important factors including, but not limited to development of the Company’s business the
economic outlook in the gold mining industry, expectations regarding gold prices and production, and other factors, which could cause actual results to differ materially
from such forward-looking statements, refer to the Company’s annual report on the Form 20-F for the year ended 31 December 2003 which is filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission on 19 March 2004.
AGA34.05
30 March 2005
ANGLOGOLD ASHANTI PUBLISHES ANNUAL REPORT FOR 2004
AngloGold Ashanti published its Annual Report for 2004 today.
In their letter to shareholders, CEO Bobby Godsell and President Sam Jonah said that the key
strategic event of 2004 had been the completion of the AngloGold Ashanti business combination.
From the outset the objective had been to combine the two companies into a “long-life, low-cost,
high-margin investment opportunity, bringing together the best that both had to offer, by way of
orebodies, capital and human resources”.
They noted that the positive relationship between the company and the South African government
was proving to be an advantage in converting mining rights in terms of the new Act. “We realise
that we are dealing with unprecedented areas of law and regulation in this process and we continue
to have constructive interactions with the Department of Minerals and Energy to deal with
uncertainties which the process reveals.”
Discussing the issue of HIV/AIDS in South Africa, they said that every AngloGold Ashanti employee
had access to several convenient and confidential voluntary counselling testing (VCT) facilities.
During 2004, some 4,000 employees had made use of these centres and around 10,000 since the
programme had begun. They reported that 706 employees were on anti-retroviral therapy. “The
improvement in their state of health and their immune systems is impressive,” they commented.
Looking ahead, Godsell and Jonah said the company faced three key challenges:
•
to manage production costs in the face of strong operating currencies, rising mining
contractor costs, higher energy prices and high transport charges;
•
to manage the hedge book against the background of what seemed to be a sustained
stronger spot gold price; and
•
to achieve gradual and steady improvement in the performance of Obuasi mine in Ghana.