Centamin PLC Announces Appointment of CEO

PERTH, AUSTRALIA / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / Centamin announces the appointment of Martin Horgan as Chief Executive Officer ("CEO") and Director of the Company, effective 6 April 2020.

Martin is a qualified mining engineer with 25-years' experience in multiple areas of the mining industry. In his career he has shown a strong strategic and operating acumen as well as demonstrating a longstanding commitment to environmental and social responsibility within mining, which is central to Centamin's decision-making and corporate strategy.

From 2009 to 2019 Martin was the Co-Founder and CEO of Toro Gold Ltd ("Toro"), where he oversaw the discovery, development and operation of the Mako Gold Mine in Senegal. Toro was acquired by LSE and ASX listed Resolute Mining in August 2019. Prior to founding Toro, Martin was Executive Director of BDI Mining, an AIM listed diamond producer, and from 2000 to 2006 he worked in mining finance at Barclays Capital in London, where his responsibilities included technical appraisal and advisory services across Africa and the Middle East. He also held consulting engineer roles with SRK Ltd and started his career as a mining engineer with Gold Fields of South Africa.

Martin will succeed interim CEO, Ross Jerrard, allowing Ross to focus on his role and responsibilities as Chief Financial Officer. The Board will work closely with Martin to ensure a smooth transition and collectively agree a plan to further strengthen the business and deliver on the opportunities for growth that lie ahead. In line with ongoing organisational restructuring the General Manager of Sukari will report directly to the CEO, with Jeremy Langford resigning from his position as Chief Operating Officer to pursue other interests. The Board would like to thank Jeremy for his contribution and commitment and wishes him well in his future endeavours.

These changes represent further steps in reshaping and strengthening the Company's leadership team, with a balance of core skills and experience best suited to deliver sustainable stakeholder returns.

Josef El-Raghy, Chairman, commented: "Appointing someone of Martin's calibre follows an intensive international search process and will enable Centamin to move forward with confidence. Martin brings not only excellent technical, commercial and financial experience but also strong operational and leadership skills which he demonstrated as CEO at Toro Gold. Combined with his deep knowledge and understanding of gold mining across Africa, we believe that he will make an invaluable contribution to the Company. On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Ross for his commitment and professionalism in taking on the role as interim CEO. Ross has provided excellent leadership, keeping Centamin focused during challenging circumstances, as we navigated an unsolicited corporate approach and the ongoing coronavirus pandemic."

Martin Horgan, CEO commented on his appointment: "I am excited to be given the opportunity to lead Centamin at this important stage in its development. The Sukari mine is a world class operation that will continue to underpin the future prospects of the Company, while at the same time pursuing the development of the growth options, as we seek to build a multi-asset gold producer. I am very much looking forward to working with the management team and the Board to deliver the full potential of the Company for all our shareholders, stakeholders and partners."

There are no further details that are required to be disclosed in respect of the appointments under LR9.6.13 of the Listing Rules of the Financial Conduct Authority.

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) 596/2014.

Enquiries

For further information, please visit the website www.centamin.com or contact:

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SOURCE: Centamin PLC