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First Supplementary Target’s Statement 1 First Supplementary Target’s Statement This Target’s Statement has been issued in response to the Offers by Metro Mining Limited (ACN 117 763 443) for all of the Gulf Shares. THIS IS AN IMPORTANT DOCUMENT AND REQUIRES YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION. If you are in any doubt about how to deal with this document, you should contact your broker, financial advisor or legal advisor immediately. ACN 108 086 371

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Page 1: First Supplementary Target’s Statement

First Supplementary Target’s Statement 1

First Supplementary Target’s Statement

This Target’s Statement has been issued in response to the Offers by Metro Mining Limited (ACN 117 763 443) for all of the Gulf Shares.

THIS IS AN IMPORTANT DOCUMENT AND REQUIRES YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION.

If you are in any doubt about how to deal with this document, you should contact your broker, financial advisor or legal advisor immediately.

ACN 108 086 371

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Gulf Alumina Limited ACN 108 086 371

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First Supplementary Target’s Statement 1

 

1  N-­‐5163790:1  

 (ACN  108  086  371)  

 

First  Supplementary  Target's  Statement  

1   Introduction  This  document  is  a  supplementary  target’s  statement  under  section  644  of  the  Corporations  Act  2001  (Cth).  It  is  the  first  supplementary  target’s  statement  (First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement)  issued  by  Gulf  Alumina  Limited  (ACN  108  086  371)  (Gulf)  in  relation  to  the  off-­‐market  takeover  bid  to  acquire  all  the  ordinary  shares  in  Gulf  by  Metro  Mining  Limited  ACN  117  763  443  (Metro).  This  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement  supplements,  and  should  be  read  together  with,  Gulf’s  Target’s  Statement  dated  6  January  2016  (Target’s  Statement).  This  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement  is  dated  23  March  2016,  which  is  the  date  it  was  lodged  with  ASIC.  Neither  ASIC  nor  any  of  its  officers  take  any  responsibility  for  its  contents.  This  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement  was  approved  by  a  resolution  of  the  Gulf  Board  and  includes  corrective  disclosure  required  by  the  Takeovers  Panel.  Gulf  Shareholders  should  refer  to  the  Target’s  Statement  as  corrected  by  this  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement  for  detailed  information  on  the  Offer  and  why  the  Gulf  Board  recommend  that  Gulf  Shareholders  reject  the  Offer.  If  you  are  in  any  doubt  as  to  the  action  which  you  should  take  in  relation  to  the  Offer,  you  should  consult  your  legal,  taxation  or  financial  adviser.  If  you  have  any  queries,  please  contact  the  Gulf  office  on  +61  2  9221  4689.  Further  information  in  relation  to  the  Offer  can  also  be  found  on  Gulf’s  website  (www.gulfalumina.com.au).  Unless  the  context  otherwise  requires,  capitalised  terms  used  in  this  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement  but  not  defined  have  the  same  meaning  given  to  them  in  the  Target’s  Statement.  The  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement  prevails  to  the  extent  of  any  inconsistency  with  the  Target’s  Statement.    

2   Retraction  of  Previous  Statements  Gulf  refers  to  the  letter  to  Gulf  Shareholders  dated  3  December  2015  and  advises  that  any  express  or  implied  statements  therein  that  go  to  the  value  of  Gulf  (value  statements)  are  hereby  retracted.      

The  Gulf  directors  are  not  relying  on  such  value  statements  and  Gulf  Shareholders  should  ignore  such  value  statements.    

3   Directors  Recommendations  The  Gulf  Directors  continue  to  recommend  that  Gulf  Shareholders  reject  the  Metro  Offer,  but  note  that  as  a  consequence  of  commissioning  an  Independent  Expert’s  Report,  as  advised  in  Section  7  below,  this  recommendation  could  change  (but  may  not  necessarily  do  so)  in  light  of  the  Independent  Expert’s  assessment  and  the  reasons  for  it.      

4   Shareholders  Intentions  

Section  3.2  of  the  Target’s  Statement  referred  to  statements  provided  by  Non-­‐participating  Gulf  Shareholders  dated  between  15  December  2015  and  3  January  2016  (“First  Intention  

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Statements”).    The  First  Intention  Statements  have  been  replaced  with  further  intention  letters  between  17  February  2016  and  24  February  2016  (“Second  Intention  Statements”).    The  First  Intention  Statements  are  retracted  and  Shareholders  should  disregard  them.    

Fourteen  of  these  fifteen  Non-­‐participating  Gulf  Shareholders  have  now  advised  Gulf  that  they  will  not  accept  the  takeover  offer  from  Metro  Mining  Limited  for  all  of  the  ordinary  shares  in  Gulf  as  announced  to  ASX  on  2  December  2015,  “nor  will  they  accept  any  improved  offer  from  Metro  Mining  Limited  other  than  a  substantially  improved  offer,  taking  account  of  whether  it  has  been  recommended  to  Gulf  Shareholders  unanimously  by  the  Gulf  Board,  and  the  reasons  for  that  recommendation”,  with  Edale  Capital  Pty  Limited  stating  that  “nor  will  it  accept  any  revised  offer  from  Metro  Mining  Limited  unless  that  offer  is  an  improved  offer”.  

The  Non-­‐Participating  Gulf  Shareholders  may  not  act  inconsistently  with  their  statements  in  accordance  with  the  “truth  in  takeovers”  principles.  

The  composition  of  the  shareholdings  of  the  Non-­‐participating  Gulf  Shareholders  in  the  Company,  and  their  relation  with  Gulf,  are  set  out  in  the  below  table.  

 Name   of   Non-­‐participating   Gulf  Shareholder  

Number   of  Shares  

Percentage   of  Shares   in   the  Company  

Relationship   with  Gulf,  if  any  

1.     Cheng  Wang                  3,700,000     4.30%   Director  

2.     Weidong  Zhang*                  5,695,000     6.61%   Director  

3.     Wenzhen  Zhang                    6,714,760     7.80%   Associate  of  Director    

4.     Quiyun  Shen**                  6,060,372     7.04%    

5.     George  Birch                      600,000     0.70%    

6.     George  Gaal  *                      111,667     0.13%   Consultant  

7.     ACT  2  Pty  Limited***                      500,000     0.58%    

8.     Mathew  (Jun  Jie)  Gu                  1,000,000     1.16%    

9.     Hong  Jiang                  3,654,920     4.24%    

10.     Aulis  John  Keppo  *                      100,000     0.12%   Company  Secretary  

11.     Yanhua  Liu                  4,140,460     4.81%  Beneficially  owned  by  associate  of  Director  

12.     Amanda  (Yitong)  Li                    6,771,240     7.86%  Beneficially  owned  by  associate  of  Director  

13.     Edale  Capital  Pty  Ltd****              11,247,843     13.06%    

14.     John  Wardman  &  Associates  Pty  Ltd                        500,000     0.58%  

 

15.     Shandong  Nanshan  Aluminium  Co.  Ltd  *****              10,316,146     11.98%  Associate  of  Director  

  Total              61,112,408     71.0%    

*  Provides  services  to  Gulf.  **  Is  the  lender  referred  to  in  Section  5.1.  ***  Director  provides  services  to  Gulf.  ****Has  an  interest  in  the  royalty  described  in  Section  7.4  of  the  Target’s  Statement.  *****Has  entered  into  a  Heads  of  Agreement  with  Gulf  (refer  to  Section  5.4).  

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The  Non-­‐participating  Gulf  Shareholders  have  not  been  provided  with  information  concerning  Gulf  which  has  not  been  made  available  to  all  Gulf  Shareholders.  

5   Financing  5.1   Updated  Financial  Position  of  Gulf  

The  Company’s  current  cash  position  is  approximately  $252,000.    During  December  it  drew  down  a  $200,000  unsecured  term  loan  facility  (interest  rate  8%  and  repayable  in  August  2016)  provided  by  a  shareholder  holding  approximately  7%  of  the  Company’s  shares.  An  additional  $50,000  was  drawn  down  in  March  2016.  Funds  were  also  supplemented  by  $268,500  received  in  December  2015  on  exercise  of  options  by  2  Directors.    Mr  Zhang  and  Mr  Wang  being  directors  of  the  Company  will  exercise  additional  options  if  required  to  meet  the  Company’s  short  term  funding  requirements.    Creditors  aged  more  than  30  days  currently  total  $210,000  of  which  the  Managing  Director  is  owed  $169,400  in  respect  of  his  remuneration.    Mr  Zhang  has  not  invoiced  an  aggregate  of  $48,400  (inclusive  of  GST)    for  his  services  pending  the  receipt  of  additional  funding  by  Gulf.    Arrangements  to  raise  additional  capital  are  progressing.  The  Directors  have  received  a  proposal  to  provide  Gulf  with  additional  funding  of  $2.5  million  (before  expenses)  for  the  issue  of  shares.  The  Directors  are  currently  evaluating  this  proposal  together  with  the  possibility  of  conducting  a  rights  issue  or  a  pro  rata  placement  to  sophisticated  investor  shareholders  in  each  case  to  raises  up  to  $2.5  million  (before  expenses).    

5.2   Exercise  of  Options  

We  refer  to  the  Gulf  Options  detailed  in  section  6.1  of  the  Target’s  Statement.  A  total  of  895,000  of  Gulf  Options  have  been  exercised  at  $0.30  by  Gulf  Directors  to  raise  $268,500.    The  table  of  Relevant  Interests  of  the  directors  of  Gulf  and  their  associates  are  varied  as  follows:  

Director,  and/or  their  Associates  

Number  of  Gulf  Shares  

Number  of  Gulf  Options  

*  Weidong  Zhang   16,606,700   695,000  exercisable  at  $0.30  expiring  on  8/1/17  895,000    exercisable  at  $0.30  expiring  on  10/3/19  1,000,000    exercisable  at  $0.30  expiring  on  10/3/19****    

**  Cheng  Wang     10,414,760   150,000  exercisable  at  $0.30  expiring  on  10/3/19  

***  Jianbo    Song     10,316,146   200,000  exercisable  at  $0.30  expiring  on  8/1/17  150,000  exercisable  at  $0.30  expiring  on  10/2/19  

Stephen  Lonergan   Nil   Nil  Zhaohui  Wu   Nil   Nil  

*   5,695,000  Shares  held  beneficially  by  associate,  4,140,460  Shares  in  the  name  of  Yanhua  Liu  and  6,771,241  Shares  in  the  name  of  Amanda  (Yitong)  Li.    All  Options  held  beneficially.  

**   3,700,000  Shares  and  all  Options  held  beneficially.  6,714,760  Shares  held  by  an  associate,  Wenzhen  Zhang.  

***   All  Shares  held  by  an  associate,  Shandong  Nanshan  Aluminium  Co.  Ltd.  All  Options  held  beneficially.  

****   Exercisable  as  a  result  of  Metro’s  Takeover  Offer  in  accordance  with  Gulf’s  Executive  Option  Plan  Rules  

 5.3   Agreement  to  Grant  Security  

As  referred  to  in  Section  7.4  of  the  Target’s  Statement,  Gulf  is  contractually  obliged  to  enter  into  a  security  agreement  over  all  the  assets  comprising  the  Project  pursuant  to  a  Mineral  Royalty  Deed  

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between  Gulf,  RSI  (QLD  Bauxite)  Pty  Ltd  and  Royalty  Stream  Investments  Pty  Ltd  dated  20  May  2014  as  security  for  royalty  payments,  payable  by  Gulf  after  commencement  of  the  export  of  bauxite.    The  terms  of  the  security  agreement  have  now  been  agreed  by  the  parties  and  were  executed  and  entered  into  on  9  February  2016.  

It  is  a  prescribed  occurrence  under  the  Offer  if  Gulf  charges  a  substantial  part  of  its  business  or  properties.  Accordingly  the  execution  by  Gulf  of  the  security  agreement  may  constitute  a  Target’s  prescribed  occurrence  under  the  Offer.  

5.4   Heads  of  Agreement  with  Shandong  Nanshan  Aluminium  Co.  Ltd  

On  4  August  2014,  Gulf  entered  into  a  Heads  of  Agreement  with  Nanshan  under  which  Gulf  granted  to  Nanshan  first  right  to  the  supply  of  a  minimum  of  2  million  metric  dry  tonnes  per  annum  (representing  a  proportion  of  the  Project’s  output)  of  bauxite  on  a  take  or  pay  basis,  provided  that  Nanshan  still  owns  all  of  the  shares  in  Gulf  that  it  currently  holds  and  has  advanced  project  funding  to  be  used  for  financing  the  construction  of  the  Project.  

The  parties  agree  to  negotiate  an  offtake  agreement  and,  once  the  scope  and  cost  of  the  Project  has  been  established,  Nanshan  agrees  to  advance  a  project  loan  for  the  purpose  of  financing  construction  capital  as  required  by  the  Project,  subject  to  Gulf  and  Nanshan’s  respective  board’s  approval.    Gulf  is  not  bound  to  accept  funding  from  Nanshan  and  may  obtain  alternate  project  funding  including  from  other  off-­‐take  parties.  

The  offtake  price  is  to  be  based  on  a  recognised  independent  bauxite  pricing  index  and  adjusted  for  quality.    The  amount  of  the  project  funding  in  the  form  of  a  loan  is  to  be  agreed  based  on  the  outcome  of  the  final  feasibility  study.    Security  will  be  granted  against  the  project  assets  and  applicable  interest  rate  will  be  consistent  with  market  rates.  

Gulf  and  Nanshan  are  currently  negotiating  an  offtake  agreement  on  the  basis  that  Gulf  agrees  to  deliver  and  sell  and  Nanshan  agrees  to  purchase  and  receive  a  minimum  of  2  million  dry  metric  tonnes  per  annum  of  bauxite.    If  Nanshan  does  not  purchase  the  full  amount  of  the  product,  it  is  required  to  pay  the  price  for  product  that  it  does  not  purchase.      However,  off-­‐take  arrangements  will  not  be  in  place  unless  a  legally  binding  agreement  is  signed.  

6   Retraction  of  Value  Statements  in  Shareholder  Letters  

We  refer  to  our  letters  to  Gulf  Shareholders  dated  3  December  2015  and  12  February  2016  respectively  (Shareholder  Letters)  and  advise  that  in  determining  whether  or  not  to  accept  the  Offer,  Gulf  Shareholders  should  ignore  these  Shareholder  Letters  and  solely  rely  on  the  contents  of  the  Bidder’s  Statement,  Metro’s  Supplementary  Bidder’s  Statement  dated  4  February  2016  (Supplementary  Bidder’s  Statement),  Target’s  Statement  as  corrected  by  this  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement  along  with  any  further  Supplementary  Bidder’s  Statement  or  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement.  

In  particular  Gulf  Shareholders  should  disregard  any  and  all  express  or  implied  statement  as  to  the  value  of  Gulf  or  its  assets  in  the  Shareholder  Letters,  and  all  such  statements  are  revoked.    The  Gulf  Directors  are  not  relying  on  any  such  statements  in  recommending  to  Shareholders  not  to  accept  the  Metro  Offer.  

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7   Independent  Expert’s  Report  

The  directors  of  Gulf  have  mandated  Grant  Thornton  Corporate  Finance  Pty  Ltd  to  provide  an  independent  expert’s  report  (IER)  on  the  Offer.    The  IER  is  expected  to  be  finalized  by  15  April  2016  and  will  then  be  provided  in  the  form  of  a  further  supplementary  Target’s  Statement  to  each  Gulf  Shareholder.  

8   Gulf’s  DFS  Since  issuing  the  Target’s  Statement  Gulf  has  updated  its  Final  DFS  with  the  results  of  the  mining  contract  tendering.      

Project  highlights    

Ø   Robust  project  economics  in  line  with  Interim  DFS  

Ø   Initial  3mtpa  rising  to  5mtpa  in  Year  3  of  DSO  bauxite  produced  over  a  13  year  mine  life  

Ø   Development  capex  of  $52.4m  with  a  capital  payback  of  1.9  years  

Ø   Annual  EBITDA  of  $96.0m  

Ø   Post  tax  NPV  of  $547m  (at  10%  discount  rate)    

The  DFS  is  based  on  a  start-­‐up  of  3.0  million  tonnes  per  annum  (mtpa)  production  with  plans  to  increase  it  to  5.0mtpa  in  Year  3  over  a  13  year  mine  life  based  on  a  mine  schedule  completed  by  independent  mine  consultants,  Australian  Mine  Design  and  Development  Pty  Ltd  (AMDAD).  The  DFS  is  based  on  mining  all  of  the  Direct  Shipping  Ore  (DSO)  quality  bauxite  that  was  considered  feasible  as  part  of  the  DFS  findings  and  has  avoided  the  need  to  beneficiate  (wash  and  screen)  the  ore.    A  total  of  63.5mt  of  Mineral  Resources  (see  Table  -­‐  Ore  Resources  on  page  7)  have  been  estimated  within  the  tenements  in  compliance  with  the  JORC  Code.    Of  these  Mineral  Resources,  48.3mt  have  been  estimated  as  Ore  Reserves.  

The  DFS  confirmed  that  the  Skardon  River  Bauxite  Project  will  have  robust  project  economics  with  a  moderate  pre-­‐production  capex  and  low  opex  and  an  attractive  life  of  mine  operating  margin  of  $31.32/tonne.  The  DFS  calculated  a  post-­‐tax  Net  Present  Value  (NPV)  of  $547  million  and  an  Internal  Rate  of  Return  (IRR)  of  135%.      

Project  Description  

The  Skardon  River  Bauxite  Project  (SRBP)  covers  an  area  over  70  square  kilometres  at  Skardon  River  situated  80kms  north  of  Weipa,  on  western  Cape  York  in  North  Queensland.    Western  Cape  York  is  world-­‐renowned  for  its  deposits  of  high  quality,  export  grade  bauxite.    Gulf  became  the  sole  holder  of  the  tenements  in  2011  inclusive  of  various  improvements  embracing  the  airstrip,  the  haulage  and  access  roads  and  barge  ramp  and  hard  stand  at  the  Port.  There  is  no  useable  road  to  the  site  and  as  such  all  equipment  and  supplies  must  be  bought  in  by  barge.    Personnel  can  access  the  site  by  air.  

The  forecast  quality  and  nature  of  the  bauxite  on  the  tenements    are  suitable  for  export  as  Direct  Shipping  Ore  having  identified  Mineral  Resources  with  insitu  grades  high  enough  in  alumina  and  low  enough  in  silica  that  will  require  no  processing  other  than  simple  sizing.    As  a  result,  the  DFS  considers  a  simple  mining  operation  as  follows:  

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Ø   Free-­‐dig  mining  of  bauxite  using  front  end  loaders  (no  drilling  or  blasting  required)  

Ø   Transport  of  the  bauxite  by  haul  trucks  to  the  wharf  loading  facility  

Ø   Sizing  of  bauxite  at  the  Port  to  a  maximum  of  100mm  

Ø   Transhipment  of  the  bauxite  down  the  Skardon  River  using  self-­‐propelled  barge(s)  to  the  ocean  going  vessels  located  off-­‐shore  for  shipment  to  the  customer  

The  simple  mining  operation  facilitates  a  quick  production  start-­‐up  and  assumes  rehabilitation  to  occur  progressively  with  the  replacement  of  topsoil  and  overburden  to  assist  revegetation  in  the  mined  areas.  The  mining  activities  are  to  be  carried  out  over  the  9  month  dry  season  window  between  April  and  December  but  the  period  may  be  extended  or  varied  to  optimise  production.  

The  DFS  considers  a  13+  year  mining  operation  producing  60.9  million  tonnes  of  quality  bauxite  for  shipment.  This  production  is  based  on  mining  all  of  the  DSO  Resources  considered  to  be  feasible  having  modelled  a  range  of  loss  and  dilution  thicknesses  over  a  range  of  maximum  silica  grades  to  identify  saleable  DSO  bauxite  product  over  a  number  of  scenarios.  This  definition  was  used  to  develop  the  mining  plan.    A  total  of  63.5mt  of  Mineral  Resources  have  been  estimated  across  the  tenements  (refer  to  Table  below  –  Ore  Resources)  with  48.3mt  of  Ore  Reserves  (refer  to  Table  below  –  Ore  Reserves)  at  Skardon  River.    

 

 

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Reserves  and  Resources  

Using   information   from   the   JORC   based   DSO   Resource   Estimation   Study   completed   by  independent   geologists,   Geos   Mining,   the   mine   plan   was   subsequently   developed   by   an  independent  mining   consultant  AMDAD  and  a  DSO  Ore  Reserve   compliant  with   the   JORC  Code  was  estimated.    

The  results  of  the  Study  show  that  the  evaluation  of  the  analysis  results  from  samples  taken  from  the   sonic   drilling   campaign   in   August   2014   and   the   resource   modelling   have   indicated   a   DSO  Resource   (comprised  of   the  categories   indicated   in   the   table  below)  of  63.5mt  with  an  average  50%  alumina  content  (assuming  a  20%  silica  cut-­‐off  grade).  Some  75%  of  the  Mineral  Resource  is  in  the  Measured  and  Indicated  categories.    

The  Mineral  Resource  estimation  carried  out  by  Geos  Mining  in  compliance  with  the  JORC  Code  and  their  report  for  the  DSO  Resource  Estimate  Update  was  issued  on  21  May2015.  The  Ore  Reserves  estimation  conducted  by  AMDAD  was  issued  in  a  report  Skardon  River  DSO  Project  –  Ore  Reserves  Estimate  in  May  2015.    Table  –  Ore  Resources  

Resource  Category  *  

Dry  Tonnes  (mt)  

DSO  Bauxite  Qualities  

 SIO2  (%)    Al2O3(%)  

Reactive  SiO2  (%)  at  

148⁰C  

Available  AI2O3  (%)  at  148⁰C  

Measured  Resource   16.6   13.9   50.2   5.9   41.7  Indicated  Resource   32.3   14.15   49.4   6.2   40.0  Inferred  Resource   14.6   14.3   49.4   6.1   39.8  Total  Resource   63.5   14.3   49.6   6.1   40.4  *  Based  on  minimum  thickness  of  0.5m  (20%  SiO2,  40%  Al2O3  and  8%  Reactive  SiO2  cog)

Table  -­‐  Ore  Reserves  

Category   Dry  tonnes  (mt)     Al2O3  %   SiO2  %     AAl2O3  %     RSiO2  %  Proved   16.6     49.8   14.3   41.4   6.1  Probable   31.8   49.2   15.0   39.8   6.4  Total   48.3   49.4   14.7   40.3   6.3  

Mining  and  transhipment  operations  

The  mining  and  transhipment  operations  will  be  undertaken  over  a  9  month  per  annum  program  with  sufficient  flexibility  to  increase  the  period  to  suit  operating  conditions.    Operating  on  a  24  hour  per  day  basis,  exported  ore  is  expected  to  achieve  3  million  dtpa  (dry  tonnes  per  annum)  for  the  first  2  years  of  operations  and  5  million  dtpa  for  the  remaining  mine  life.    Providing  their  own  mobile  plant  and  equipment,  the  mining,  haulage  and  wharf  out-­‐loading  activities  is  to  be  contracted  to  a  mining  operator  while  the  transhipment  contractor  is  responsible  for  the  transport  and  discharge  of  the  bauxite  onto  the  shipping  vessel.  

Front  end  loaders  suited  to  working  in  the  variable  DSO  zones  together  with  road  trains  will  be  used  at  the  mine  site  and  front  end  loaders  of  the  same  specification  also  used  at  the  Port  for  product  reclaim  and  loading  onto  the  wharf  conveyors.  The  trucking  fleet  will  deliver  run  of  mine  (ROM)  product  to  the  Port  where  it  will  be  crushed  and  stockpiled  adjacent  to  the  barge  loading  conveyor.  

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The  mine  schedule  and  grade  control  will  be  managed  by  the  geological  team  responsible  for  selection  of  the  optimum  mining  sequence  over  the  bauxite  deposits  and  product  testing.    Mining  is  planned  to  commence  in  the  northern  part  of  the  resource  and  around  the  airstrip  area  to  achieve  some  blending  from  different  locations  for  consistent  DSO  quality  specifications.  

Loading  at  a  rate  of  2,000  tph,  the  transhipment  contractor  will  complete  the  river  and  sea  barging  to  the  ocean  going  vessel  anchored  at  the  designated  transhipment  point  approximately  15  km  west  of  the  Skardon  River  mouth.  The  total  barging  distance  is  25  km.    Barges  will  anchor  adjacent  to  the  bulk  carriers  for  the  unloading  of  bauxite  ore  using  self-­‐discharging  equipment.    

Operating  initially  with  one  barge  and  increasing  to  two  barges  in  full  production,  each  barge  will  have  a  capacity  of  about  4,000  to  7,000  tonnes  per  barge.  Barges  would  work  24  hours  per  day  with  barge  volumes  adjusted  depending  on  the  river  depth  at  the  time  of  the  crossing.    As  cost  saving  in  transhipping  occurs  when  barge  loads  are  increased,  bathymetric  and  hydrological  studies  confirm  that  barge  loads  can  be  increased  if  some  degree  of  bed-­‐levelling  of  the  shallow  zones  at  the  river  mouth  is  conducted  to  retain  a  minimum  water  depth  of  LAT  -­‐2.2m.        

A  marine  survey  found  no  environmentally  sensitive  sea  grass  habitat  where  bed-­‐levelling  is  proposed  and  this  enhances  the  likelihood  of  obtaining  necessary  permitting  for  bed-­‐levelling  operations.  The  environmental  impact  assessment  of  the  proposed  bed-­‐levelling  has  been  included  in  the  Project  EIS.  

The  project  requires  an  approximate  workforce  of  160  personnel  engaged  on  a  shift  roster  as  not  all  personnel  will  be  at  site  at  any  one  time.  Mining  will  operate  on  2  x  12  hours  shifts  and  operations  personnel  are  assumed  to  work  on  a  14  day  on  -­‐  7  day  off  roster  and  other  personnel  on  a  9  day  on  –  5  day  off  roster  flying  back  to  Cairns.  

Bauxite  market  overview  

Bauxite  is  the  main  material  used  in  the  production  of  alumina  that  is  then  smelted  to  produce  aluminium.    The  Chinese  alumina  refining  capacity  over  the  past  decade  continues  to  be  robust  with  Chinese  bauxite  from  Australia  likely  to  replace  declining  quality  and  availability  of  Indian,  Indonesian  and  Vietnamese  ore  as  these  countries  increasingly  reserve  bauxite  for  domestic  value  adding  and  to  supply  local  rising  aluminium  consumption.    Indonesia’s  ban  to  export  its  low  temperature  bauxite  as  a  raw  material  has  seen  Malaysia  step  into  the  void  to  supply  bauxite  in  the  past  18  months.    The  Malaysian  export  potential  will  curb  as  raw  material  resources  decline  and  Australia’s  expanding  bauxite  reserves,  if  developed,  can  capture  much  of  the  future  growth.  

Securing  reliable  supplies  of  imported  bauxite  is  vital  for  the  Chinese  alumina  refiners  resulting  in  the  industry  policy  makers  declaring  bauxite  a  strategic  resource.    New  refineries  recently  constructed  have  relied  on  the  low  temperature  energy  efficient  gibbsite  enriched  ore  which  can  displace  more  costly  domestic  supply  of  diaspore  enriched  ore  that  require  higher  temperatures  (450ºC  cf.  150ºC)  to  extract  alumina  from  the  bauxite.    Accordingly,  Gulf  is  well  placed  as  its  bauxite  is  predominantly  a  low  temperature  product.  

Bauxite  price  forecast  

Bauxite  pricing  has  traditionally  been  negotiated  on  a  fixed  price  per  volume  basis  linked  to  the  aluminium  price.  In  recent  years,  and  with  the  emergence  of  independent  raw  material  bauxite  suppliers,  pricing  using  an  independently  published  index-­‐linked  pricing  system  founded  on  pricing  adjustments  for  variability  in  the  alumina  grade  and  reactive  silica  content,  is  emerging.      

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Based  on  CRU’s  bauxite  and  aluminium  outlook  reports,  various  updates  on  the  bauxite  market  and  other  generally  available  market  information,  Gulf  has  used  this  to  determine  the  US  Dollar  per  tonne  outlook  for  the  Skardon  River  Bauxite  Project  taking  into  account  the  quality  specifications  (available  alumina  content  and  level  of  reactive  silica  at  low  temperature)  of  the  bauxite  expected  to  be  mined  over  the  mine  life.    

Sensitivity  Analysis  

A  sensitivity  analysis  of  the  key  assumptions  of  the  DFS  was  completed.  

NPV  Effect     -­‐15%   -­‐10%   -­‐5%   +5%   +10%   +15%  

Price   $404  m   $452  m   $500  m   $595  m   $643  m   $691  m  

Capex   $554  m   $552  m   $550  m   $545  m   $543  m   $541  m  

Operating  Costs   $624  m   $598  m   $573  m   $522  m   $496  m   $471  m  

FX   $716  m   $654  m   $598  m   $502  m   $460  m   $423  m  

Compilation  methodology  

The  DFS  was  compiled  by  Gulf  management  from  the  various  studies  undertaken  based  on  the  bauxite  market  information,  potential  off  takers,  discussions  with  third  party  contractors,    consultants  and  tendered  information.  Independent  consultants  were  engaged  by  Gulf  to  prepare  the  wharf  study,  the  transhipment  contractor  proposals,  the  mine  scheduling  and  mining  activity  study,  the  engineering,  infrastructure  and  construction  study,  etc.    The  financial  information  from  these  sources  was  included  in  the  project’s  financial  model  together  with  other  pertinent  information  relating  to  royalties,  projected  exploration  activity,  corporate  costs,  etc.    Gulf  reserves  the  right  to  amend  the  project’s  financial  model  in  the  future  to  allow  for  any  timing  reassessments,  and  for  negotiation  outcomes,  final  design,  product  offtake,  financing,  marine  logistics  and  the  mining  contracts.  This  process  ensures  that  Gulf  maintains  an  updated  working  financial  model  for  tracking  progress  and  for  Gulf  Board  reporting  purposes.    Gulf  Shareholders  were  updated  with  project  progress  and  financial  highlights  of  the  interim  DFS  during  July  2015.    Since  that  time,  Gulf  has  tendered  the  EPC  contract  and  obtained  preliminary  pricing  for  the  mining  contract  both  of  which  have  enhanced  the  accuracy  of  the  project  estimates,  culminating  in  the  update  of  the  capital  expenditure  and  operating  cost  estimates.    Tender  submissions  for  the  EPC  contract  (for  completing  the  wharf  and  other  infrastructure  design,  carrying  out  and  project  managing  the  construction)  were  received  mid-­‐November  2015  from  a  number  of  shortlisted  contractors  capable  of  completing  the  works  and  likely  to  provide  a  conforming  tender.    The  quotes  are  inclusive  of  a  10%  contingency  allowance  at  the  time  to  provide  a  measure  of  assurance  in  the  project  model.  The  analysis  of  the  comparative  likely  fixed  lump  sum  quotes  formed  the  basis  for  updating  the  financial  model  with  a  high  level  of  assurance.      A  select  number  of  contractors  responded  to  the  mining  contract  request  for  budget  pricing  tender  where  the  scope  of  works  covers  the  mining,  haulage  and  all  wharf  activities  through  to  loading  the  transhipment  barge.  Budget  pricing  was  conducted  in  sufficient  detail  that  significant  changes  are  not  expected  in  the  final  tender.  The  project  assumes  Gulf  would  remain  responsible  for  mine  scheduling  and  quality  control.    

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Comparison  between  Interim  DFS  and  Final  DFS  

The  following  table,  all  in  Australian  dollars,  is  a  comparison  of  the  interim  and  the  latest  DFS  to  highlight  the  improvement  of  the  project  economics.  

 

 

Interim  DFS   Final  DFS  

Annual  production  rate  –  Years  1  &  2     3.0mt   3.0mt      Annual  production  rate  –  Year  3  onwards   5.0mt   5.0mt  LOM  production  tonnes     60.9mt   60.9mt  Mine  life   13.2  years   13.2  years  Total  LOM  Revenue   $3.54b   $3.45b  Average  bauxite  price  (FOB)   $58.23  /t   $56.67  /t  Average  operating  costs   $28.34  /t   $25.36  /t  Average  operating  margin   $29.89  /t   $31.32  /t  Average  annual  EBITDA   $134m   $143m  Average  profit  after  tax   $  89m   $  96m  After  tax  NPV  (10%)   $485m   $547m  After  tax  IRR   97%   135%  Payback  period   2.6  years   1.9  years  Exchange  rate   80  cents   75  cents  Total  funding  through  to  start-­‐up   $90.1m   $60.5m  Development  capex   $74.8m   $52.4m  Deferred  and  sustaining  capex   $15.4m   $14.5m  Working  capital   $16.3m   $  7.4m  

     In  addition  to  the  above  assumptions,  the  DFS  financial  model  was  based  on  the  following  assumptions:  

•   Royalty  –  a  statutory  10%  royalty  on  FOB  Sales  ex-­‐port  of  Skardon  River,  a  financial  benefit  royalty  payable  to  the  native  title  claimants  and  a  funding  royalty  payable  on  FOB  Sales  

•   Operating  Season  –  production  to  be  based  on  a  9  month  dry  season  operation  (to  be  reviewed  at  Gulf  discretion)  

•   Infrastructure  Relocation  –  the  airstrip  relocation  in  Year  9  to  allow  mining  to  be  carried  out  on  current  locations  

•   Mining  Tonnage  –  based  on  the  Direct  Shipping  Bauxite  Ore  Reserve  of  48.3mt  @49.3%  total  alumina,  40.3%  available  alumina  at  148C  and  6.3%  reactive  silica  at  148⁰C  as  disclosed  in  Gulf’s  Target’s  Statement  and  LOM  schedule  includes  12.6mt  of  Inferred  Resources  (the  tonnage  assumed  is  less  than  the  Inferred  Resources  of  14.6mt  taking  into  account  risks  of  converting  inferred  resource  to  reserve).    

Analysis  of  Gulf’s  DFS  

The  latest  project  NPV1  has  improved  by  $62m  over  the  interim  DFS.    Although  the  analysis  demonstrates  some  softening  in  the  sales  price  in  recent  times,  together  with  the  improved                                                                                                                            1  Of  future  cash  flows  discounted  at  a  10%  rate  

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USD:AUD  exchange  rate  this  has  been  offset  by  the  approximate  $25m  reduction  in  upfront  capex  and  an  average  $3.00  /t  reduction  in  the  opex  cost.  

The  upfront  capex  reduction  of  $25m  represents  an  improvement  of  more  than  30%,  significantly  lowering  the  funding  to  be  raised  by  the  Company  to  complete  mine  setup.    The  working  capital  allowance  represents  the  funding  to  bring  the  project  into  production  inclusive  of  corporate  office  expenses.    The  significant  reduction  from  $16.3m  to  $7.4m  follows  a  reassessment  of  these  costs  and  higher  confidence  from  negotiations  with  prime  contractors.    The  reduction  flows  from  the  initial  conservative  estimate  for  start-­‐up  production  costs  and  a  higher  allowance  for  the  transhipment  security  deposit  in  the  interim  DFS.  

The  DFS  continues  to  be  based  on  a  9  month  dry  season  operation  with  an  initial  start-­‐up  production  of  3mtpa  for  the  first  2  years  before  ramping  up  to  a  5mtpa  production  rate.    Practically  and  subject  to  securing  the  product  offtake,  Gulf  may  increase  the  production  rate  over  a  shorter  than  2  year  period.  

Capital  Expenditure  

Capital  Cost  Item           Final  DFS  $m  

Project  design,  EPC  contract  &  mobilisation     $  6.0m  

Construction  –  non  marine         $14.2m  

Construction  –  marine           $  7.1m  

 

Camp  setup  &  operations                                                                                                              $9.5m  

Transshipment  mobilisation  and  asset  deposit                                    $3.2m  

Other  infrastructure                                                                                                                                $6.5m  

Contingency                                                                                                                                                            $4.0m  

Owners  costs             $  1.9m  

Total               $52.4m  

Operating  Cost  Estimates  

Operating  Cost  Item           Final  DFS  Average  /t  

Mining,  haulage  &  loading           $10.74  

Transhipment             $  5.17  

Site  &  Cairns  administration         $  2.57  

Royalties             $6.88  

Total               $25.36  

Project  Development  Schedule  (February  2016  estimation)  

Event               Scheduled  Dates            

Preliminaries  (EA  approval,  recruitment,  etc)     June  2016  –  October  2016      

Mine  and  wharf  loading  construction       July  2016  –  March  2017  

Mobilisation  to  site           July  2016  

Site  infrastructure           July  2016  –  March  2017    

Commence  mining           April  2017  

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The  Table  above  shows  the  development  timeline  estimation  assuming  all  regulatory  approvals  are  granted  by  June  2016  and  project  funding  is  obtained  prior  to  the  commencement  of  project  development.  The  project  development  is  expected  to  take  9  months  to  involve  the  following  activities:  

Ø   Completion  of  preliminaries,  final  design,  construction  planning  and  mobilisation  

Ø   Construction  of  a  new  wharf  loading  facility  consisting  of  dolphin  piers  north  of  the  cargo  ramp    

Ø   Acquisition  and  upgrade  and  expansion  of  the  camp  and  related  services  

Ø   Construction  of  other  site  infrastructure  around  the  port  for  run  of  mine  (ROM)  stockpiling  and  processing,  warehousing,  workshops,  water  supply  and  site  communications  

The  estimation  of  the  SRBP  Ore  Reserves  has  been  made  in  accordance  with  the  requirements  of  the  JORC  Code  (2012)  by  John  Wyche,  a  Competent  Person  who  is  a  member  of  The  Australian  Institute  of  Mining  and  Metallurgy.  He  is  a  full  time  employee  of  Australian  Mine  Design  and  Development  Pty  Ltd  and  has  sufficient  experience  that  is  relevant  to  the  style  of  mineralisation  and  type  of  deposit  under  consideration  to  qualify  as  a  Competent  Person  as  defined  in  the  2012  Edition  of  the  “Australasian  Code  for  Reporting  of  Exploration  Results,  Mineral  Resources  and  Ore  Reserves.”    .    John  Wyche  has  consented  in  writing  to  the  inclusion  in  this  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement  of  the  information  set  out  above,  in  the  form  and  context  in  which  it  appears.  

The  estimation  of  SRBP  Mineral  Resources  has  been  made  in  accordance  with  the  requirements  of  the  JORC  Code  (2012)  by  Jeff  Randell,  a  Competent  Person  who  is  a  member  of  The  Australian  Institute  of  Geoscientists.  He  is  a  full  time  employee  of  Geos  Mining,  an  independent  geological  consultancy,  and  has  sufficient  experience  that  is  relevant  to  the  style  of  mineralisation  and  type  of  deposit  under  consideration  and  to  the  activity  being  undertaken  to  qualify  as  a  Competent  Person  as  defined  in  the  2012  Edition  of  the  “Australasian  Code  for  Reporting  of  Exploration  Results,  Mineral  Resources  and  Ore  Reserves.”    Jeff  Randell  has  consented  in  writing  to  the  inclusion  in  this  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement  of  the  information  set  out  above,  in  the  form  and  context  in  which  it  appears.  

The  DFS  referred  to  in  this  section  was  complied  by  Weidong  Zhang,  the  Managing  Director  of  Gulf,  and  George  Gaal,  a  Business  and  Commercial  Consultant  to  Gulf.  

Weidong  Zhang  obtained  a  Ph.D  in  Chemical  and  Materials  Engineering  from  Auckland  University  in  1992.    He  has  over  20  years  of  aluminium  industry  experience  which  includes  the  technology  and  project  development  division  of  Comalco  Limited,  now  part  of  Rio  Tinto  Group  from  1992  to  1997.  In  1998  he  joined  Sino  Mining  International  Limited  in  Sydney  specialized  in  resource  project  development  targeting  the  demand  of  the  Chinese  market  and  the  associated  project  financing  and  product  marketing.  Since  2000  Weidong  was  involved  in  the  development,  implementation  and  management  of  Sino  Mining’s  US$240  million  investment  project  in  Alcoa  worldwide  bauxite  and  alumina  production  facilities  until  2008.  Weidong  Zhang  was  engaged  by  Gulf  in  2008.    George  Gaal  (B  Bus,  Dip  CM,  FGIA,  CPA)  was  engaged  by  Gulf  in  September  2009  to  provide  advice  and  support  to  executive  management  covering  a  range  of  pre  development  activities  involving  commercial,  general  management  issues  and  financial  matters.    Prior  to  this  role,  George  Gaal  was  the  CFO  of  the  ASX  listed  Minerals  Corporation  Limited  that  operated  the  kaolin  business  at  Skardon  River.  

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9   Retraction   of   statement   regarding   Skardon   River   North  Tenement  

The  Skardon  River  North  Tenement  has  not  been  explored  by  Gulf  and  has  not  been  valued.    The  statement  in  Section  2  of  the  Target’s  Statement  that  Gulf  will  also  endeavour  to  increase  the  Skardon  River  Mine  life  by  mining  at  Skardon  River  North  Tenement  should  be  ignored  and  such  statement  is  retracted.    The  Gulf  Directors  are  not  relying  on  such  statement  in  recommending  to  shareholders  not  to  accept  the  Metro  Offer.  

10   Retraction  of  statement  regarding  Convertible  Notes  

In  Section  3.2  of  the  Target’s  Statement  Gulf  stated  that  convertible  notes  were  purchased  by  a  party  on  an  arm’s  length  basis  for  the  equivalent  price  of  $0.2756  per  share  (including  transaction  costs)  and  not  $0.15  as  claimed  by  Metro.    Gulf  was  not  involved  so  the  purchase  was  arms  length  from  Gulf  but  Gulf  is  not  certain  whether  the  Notes  were  in  fact  purchased  on  an  arm’s  length  basis  between  the  seller  and  the  buyer,  and  accordingly  the  statement  that  they  were  purchased  on  arms  lengths  basis  should  be  ignored  and  is  retracted.    Gulf  Directors  do  not  base  their  recommendations  on  this  statement.  

11   Update  on  EIS  Approval  and  Project  Timeframe  

Submissions  on  Gulf’s  EIS  were  received  on  21  December  2015.  Key  issues  in  submissions  have  been  identified  and,  where  required,  specialist  studies  are  underway  to  respond  to  particular  technical  aspects  of  submissions.  These  technical  aspects  can  be  summarised  as  providing  greater  detail  on  particular  design  issues  and  impacts  of  the  Project,  rather  than  fundamental  issues  with  the  assessment  of  Project  impacts.  The  response  to  the  majority  of  submissions  requires  clarifying  information  already  presented  in  the  EIS,  the  provision  of  minor  additional  information  or  additional  commitments  from  Gulf  on  environmental  and  social  management.  

The  amended  EIS  and  submission  response  document  is  expected  to  be  submitted  by  not  later  than  24  March  2016.  The  Queensland  Department  of  Environmental  and  Heritage  Protection  (EHP)  will  then  review  the  EIS  responses  for  adequacy  and,  if  satisfied  with  responses,  prepare  an  EIS  Assessment  Report.  The  EIS  Assessment  Report  may  be  finalised  in  May  2016.  This  will  form  the  basis  for  the  Project’s  EA,  in  approximately  June  2016.  Note  that  the  estimated  timeline  is  dependent  on  EHP’s  process  in  finalising  the  EIS  Assessment  Report  and  the  EA.  

The  EA  is  prerequisite  for  Project  construction  to  commence  which  is  also  subject  to  adequate  funding  for  the  project  capital  expenditure  being  secured  in  time.    

12   Consents  

The  following  persons  have  given  and  have  not,  before  the  date  of  this  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement,  withdrawn  their  consent:  

a)   To  be  named  in  this  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement  in  the  form  and  context  in  which  they  are  named;    

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b)   For  the  inclusion  of  their  respective  reports  or  statement’s  (if  any)  noted  next  to  their  names  and  the  references  to  those  reports  or  statements  in  the  form  and  context  in  which  they  are  included  in  this  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement;  and    

c)   For  the  inclusion  of  other  statements  in  this  First  Supplementary  Target’s  Statement  which  are  based  on  or  referable  to  statements  made  in  those  reports  or  statements,  or  which  are  based  on  or  referable  to  other  statements  made  by  those  persons  in  the  form  and  context  in  which  they  are  included.    

Name  of  person   Named  as   Reports  or  statements  

ACT2  Pty  Limited  Mathew  (Jun  Jie)  Gu  Cheng  Wang  Weidong  Zhang  Hong  Jiang  George  Birch  George  Gaal  Aulis  John  Keppo  Quiyun  Shen  Amanda  (Yitong)  Li  Yanhua  Liu  Wenzhen  Zhang  John  Wardman  and  Associates  Pty  Ltd  Shandong  Nanshan  Aluminium  Co.  Ltd  

Non-­‐Participating  Gulf  Shareholders  

As  to  their  intention  not  to  accept  the  Offer  other  than  a  substantially  improved  offer,  taking  account  of  whether  it  has  been  recommended  to  Gulf  Shareholders  unanimously  by  the  Gulf  Board,  and  the  reasons  for  that  recommendation.  

Edale  Capital  Pty  Limited   Non-­‐Participating  Gulf  Shareholder  

As  to  its  intention  not  to  accept  the  Offer  other  than  an  improved  offer.  

The  Directors  of  Gulf  Alumina  Limited  

Directors  or  Gulf  Board   Statements  of  Opinion  and  Intention.  

John  Wyche   Competent  Person   Information  relating  to  Gulf’s  mineral  reserves    

Jeff  Randell   Competent  Person   Information  relating  to  Gulf’s  mineral  resource  

George  Gaal   Consultant   Information  contained  in  Section  8  

Weidong  Zhang   Managing  Director  of  Gulf   Information  contained  in  Section  8  

   

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13   Authorisation  

This  document  has  been  approved  by  a  resolution  passed  by  the  directors  of  Gulf.    Signed  for  and  on  behalf  of    Gulf  Alumina  Limited                          Weidong  Zhang  Director  

 

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Target’s Statement

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