about xstrata

Luis F. Campos, Xstrata Zinc, checking aluminium cathodes after zinc stripping

Since its initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange in March 2002, Xstrata has grown into a major global diversified mining and metals group, listed on the London and Swiss stock exchanges, with its headquarters in Zug, Switzerland.

The Group's operations and projects now span four continents and seven countries - Australia, South Africa, Spain, Germany, Argentina, Peru and the UK - and employ around 24,000 people globally, including contractors.

The Group's activities are structured into four global Commodity Businesses. These are:

Xstrata Alloys: the world's largest producer of ferrochrome. Xstrata Alloys operates 18 furnaces with a captive supply of most major raw material inputs, including chrome ore from eight chrome mines and a largely self-reliant reductant supply, all of which are located in South Africa. Xstrata Alloys also produces primary vanadium from an integrated production facility in South Africa.

Xstrata Coal: the world's largest export thermal coal producer and a significant producer of coking coal. Xstrata Coal has interests in 34 operating coal mines, 21 of which are located in Australia and 13 of which are located in South Africa.

Xstrata Copper: has interests in four operating mines, three in north Queensland, Australia, and one in Argentina, together with processing, smelting and refining plants. Xstrata Copper has also begun exploration and feasibility work on the Las Bambas copper project in the Cotabambas and Grau provinces, Peru.

Xstrata Zinc: has zinc smelting operations in Spain and Germany, interests in four operating mines and a lead smelter in Australia, and a lead refining plant in the UK.

In addition, Xstrata owns Xstrata Technology, which develops, tests and markets technology for the global mining, mineral processing and metals extraction industries.

Further information, including detailed information on Xstrata's financial and operational performance, is set out in Xstrata's Annual Report, available from our website at www.xstrata.com.

*Pre-exceptionals, excluding discontinued operations, other businesses and unallocated.