Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements
The Business Review section of this report, comprising the Business, Markets, Financial and Operating Reviews, has been prepared in accordance with the Accounting Standards Board Reporting Statement on Operating and Financial Review (January 2006), as applicable best practice guidance for UK companies required to prepare a business review. The Chairman’s Statement, CEO’s Report and Business Review chapters, in particular the Markets chapter, include an analysis of the main trends and factors likely to affect the future development, performance and position of the business. This includes statements that are, or may be deemed to be, “forward-looking statements”. We may also make written and/oral forward-looking statements in:
- our interim reports, our summary financial statements to shareholders, our offering circulars and our prospectuses;
- our press releases and other written materials; and
- oral statements made by our officers, directors or employees to third parties, including to financial analysts.
These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the words “believes”, “estimates”, “anticipates”, “expects”, “intends”, “plans”, “goal”, “target”, “aim”, “may”, “will”, “would”, “could” or “should” or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology and include all matters that are not historical facts. They appear in a number of places throughout this Annual Report and include statements regarding our intentions, beliefs or current expectations and those of our officers, directors and employees concerning, amongst other things, our results of operations, financial condition, liquidity, prospects, growth, strategies and dividend policy and the industries in which we operate.
By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future and may be beyond our ability to control or predict. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. Our actual results of operations, financial condition, liquidity, dividend policy and the development of the industries in which we operate may differ materially from the impression created by the forward-looking statements contained in this Annual Report. Important factors that could cause these differences include, but are not limited to, general economic and business conditions, commodity price volatility, industry trends, competition, changes in government and other regulation, including in relation to the environment, health and safety and taxation, labour relations and work stoppages, changes in political and economic stability, currency fluctuations, our ability to integrate new businesses and recover our reserves or develop new reserves and changes in business strategy or development plans and other risks, including those described in the Business Review section of this Annual Report. Even if the results of operations, financial condition, liquidity and dividend policy and the development of the industries in which we operate are consistent with the forward looking statements contained in this Annual Report, those results or developments may not be indicative of our results or developments in subsequent periods.
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Other than in accordance with our legal or regulatory obligations (including under the Listing Rules and the Disclosure and Transparency Rules), we do not undertake any obligation to update or revise publicly any forward looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
The Directors’ Report in this Annual Report has been prepared for the members of the Company and its purpose is to assist shareholders to assess the Company’s strategies and the potential for those strategies to succeed and for no other purpose. The Company, its directors, employees, agents and advisers do not accept or assume responsibility for any other purpose or to any other person to whom this Annual Report is shown or into whose access it may come and any such responsibility or liability is expressly disclaimed.