ANNUAL REPORT 2004 |
Scope of the reportAnnual Report 2004This Annual Report 2004 presents the operating and financial results for the period 1 January 2004 to 31 December 2004. They have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards and US Generally Accepted Accounting Practice. The latter only applies to the financial statements which are prepared in compliance with the New York Stock Exchange regulations. The financial statements have also been prepared in line with the South African Companies Act No. 61 of 1973 and the Listings Requirements of the JSE Securities Exchange South Africa (JSE). The guidelines of the King Report on Corporate Governance, 2002 have also been taken into account. The annual report is submitted to the JSE, as well as to the London, New York, Ghana and Australian stock exchanges and the Paris and Brussels bourses. It is also submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on a Form 6-K. For completeness and consistency in reporting, the Annual Report 2004 has been expanded to align with the annual report of Form 20-F as filed with the SEC. The most significant event of the past year was the business combination of AngloGold Limited (AngloGold) with Ashanti Goldfields Company Limited (Ashanti). The establishment of AngloGold Ashanti Limited (AngloGold Ashanti) was effective on 26 April 2004 when the former Ashanti operations were incorporated into the group. For reporting purposes, the effective reporting period for the combined operation began on 1 May 2004. The former Ashanti operations are therefore reported in this report for an eight-month period only, that is, May-December 2004. Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves are reported in line with the South African Code for Reporting of Mineral Reserves and Resources (SAMREC 2000) and the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (JORC 2004). Competent persons in terms of all these codes have prepared, reviewed and confirmed the Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves as reported in this publication. The Annual Report 2004 contains a summary of the Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves. A more detailed breakdown that includes plans is available separately in a supplementary statistics document. In addition, AngloGold Ashanti has for the second year produced a Report to Society in conjunction with the Annual Report to ensure a comprehensive understanding of all aspects of the group. The Report to Society seeks to explain and assess the economic, social and environmental responsibilities and performance obligations the company believes it has to its stakeholders, who include shareholders, employees, employee representatives and the communities in which it operates, as well as regional and national governments. Both the Annual Report 2004 and the Report to Society 2004 are available online on the company's website at www.anglogoldashanti.com, as is the supplementary document on group Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (PDF - 1.8MB). These documents are also available on CD or in a printed version, and can be requested from the contacts listed at the end of this report. Certain forward-looking statementsCertain statements contained in this document including, without limitation, those concerning the economic outlook for the gold mining industry, expectations regarding gold prices, production, cash costs and other operating results, growth prospects and outlook of AngloGold Ashanti's operations, including the completion and commencement of commercial operations of certain of AngloGold Ashanti's exploration and production projects, its liquidity and capital resources and expenditure, contain certain forward-looking statements regarding AngloGold Ashanti's operations, economic performance and financial condition. Although AngloGold Ashanti believes that the expectations and the outcome and consequence of any pending litigation proceedings reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, no assurance can be given that such expectations will prove to have been correct. Accordingly, results could differ materially from those set out in the forward-looking statements as a result of, among other factors, changes in economic and market conditions, success of business and operating initiatives, changes in the regulatory environment and other government action, fluctuations in gold prices and exchange rates, and business and operational risk management. For a discussion of such factors, refer to the risk factors as detailed in the corporate governance section of this Annual Report 2004. In addition to this publication, AngloGold Ashanti has produced an annual report on Form 20-F, which was filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on or about 30 March 2005, for the year ended 31 December 2004. Throughout this document, US dollar, dollar or $ refers to US dollars, unless otherwise stated. Scope of the report | Next >
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| Annual Report 2004 |