WMN announces change of director, provides industry update

By Ruli Setiawan

ASX-listed Western Mining Resources Limited (WMN) announced Tuesday the appointment of Rinto Muhammadsyah into its board of directors as a non-executive Director.

The company said in a statement that that Rinto will replace Gordon Lewis who is stepping down as Executive Director. Rinto has extensive commercial experience including Indonesia, the US & Europe and has worked with leading Indonesian and global companies as well as advising some of Indonesia?s high net worth individuals and family businesses, the company added.

Meanwhile, in an update of the global graphite market and the company?s existing projects, David Putnam, WMN CEO said that the company is very focused on the need to respond to the continuing softness in the global graphite market.

Whilst the long-term demand outlook remains very promising, the timing and impact of that increased demand on the natural graphite sector is less certain. Slower global growth and low oil prices are combining to dampen overall demand and as a result, prices and most importantly margins for entry level graphite projects are reduced. This makes it even more important for companies to have a strong understanding of their assets before any major capex decisions are made, he said.

?Resource definition work and analysis is ongoing for both our Tamboli and Balai Sebut projects and recent improvement in the gold price has also led to an interest from third parties in some form of cooperation around our Persada gold project. At the same time in response to the general state of the global and regional economy we are being shown an increasing number of new opportunities in the natural resources space both in Indonesia and elsewhere,? Putnam said.

?In response to this increasingly complex situation the Board and I are also intent on reducing our fixed costs to maximise the company?s flexibility. Recent Board and staff changes have significantly reduced costs and we will make additional reductions in management compensation to bring fixed costs down even further. Our aim is to send a very direct message to shareholders that we remain firmly committed to serving their interests. We believe that these measures demonstrate that commitment in the clearest possible way. The reduction in fixed costs will make sure the company can continue to focus its funds where they will have most impact.?

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak