12 November 2021

Steppe Cement Ltd

Interim Dividend in light of Regulatory Changes

After careful consideration of the changes in certain government regulations in 2021 in Kazakhstan and having taken independent accounting advice, the Board has been made aware that an Interim Dividend may attract a 15% Withholding Tax when paid to a foreign holding company.  

The position of the Kazakhstan Tax Department is that dividends can only be declared from post-tax profit once the accounts are audited and the Annual General Meeting has approved the audited accounts. 

The Board is of the opinion that paying the 15% Withholding Tax and hoping to recover it in the summer represents a significant risk and has therefore decided to pay the Dividend for 2021 only after the Annual General Meeting. 

The financial position of the company remains as indicated in the first half announcement and the Net Cash position (cash minus debt) is USD 12 million.

This policy on Interim Dividends will continue until the Board is convinced that payment of Interim Dividends can be made under the same conditions as the Final Dividend.

Steppe Cement's AIM nominated adviser and broker is RFC Ambrian Limited.

Nominated Adviser contact: Stephen Allen or Andrew Thomson on +61 8 9480 2500.

Broker contact: Charlie Cryer at +44 20 3440 6800