22/03/2013 (4-Traders) - New Britain Palm Oil Limited (LSE: NBPO), one of the world's largest fully integrated producers of sustainable palm oil, announces the following operational update.

On 1 February 2013 the Company reported that heavy rainfall had been experienced throughout January at the Group's main production site of West New Britain Province in Papua New Guinea.  Further heavy rainfall in the Province has been experienced to date in March.  By the end of the month some areas will have recorded in excess of 3,000 millimetres of rainfall for the year, well above average levels. 

Recent heavy rains have caused severe flooding in some areas as well as extensive damage to local access roads and several bridges, as has been reported by the local media.  The Company has been working closely with the Department of Works and the Provincial departments to complete emergency repairs to damaged roads and bridges.

The Company's oil palm fruit production in March, and consequently in the first quarter of this year, has been negatively impacted by the heavy rainfall in West New Britain.  Total fruit processed by the Group for the year to date is approximately 5% below the level processed during the corresponding period in 2012, however it is too early to quantify the impact on overall Group production for the full year.  It is also worth noting that production levels in the first quarter of this year versus last year will be impacted by this year's Easter public holidays falling in March rather than April.  Oil extraction rates have also been negatively impacted by the heavy rains due to the higher water content of the fruit processed. 

High rainfall inhibits the ability of our workforce to collect FFB from the field, primarily because of the resulting transportation and access difficulties.  Harvesting rounds have been extended in the worst affected areas to limit fruit loss, however it is expected that some fruit will be irretrievably lost in the field during this period.  Once the rainfall abates harvesting rounds will return to normal as soon as practicable.West New Britain Province is the worst affected area and the Group's operations elsewhere have been less severely affected.

Further developments will be updated to the market in due course.

Enquiries:

New Britain Palm Oil Limited. Tel: +44(0)20 7472 5936
Nick Thompson (Chief Executive Officer)
Alan Chaytor (Executive Director)
Amir Mohareb (Chief Financial Officer)
Ben Oakley (Corporate Development and IR)

Newgate Communications (PR Adviser). Tel: +44 (0)20 7680 6550
Andrew Robinson
Stephanie Dobbs
Email: nbpol@newgatecomms.com
Website: www.nbpol.com.pg

Notes to editors:

New Britain Palm Oil Limited
NBPOL is a large scale integrated industrial producer of sustainable palm oil in Australasia, headquartered in Papua New Guinea (PNG). It has over 78,000 hectares of planted oil palm estates, over 7,700 hectares of sugar cane and a further 9,200 hectares of grazing pasture, (some of which will be converted to oil palm); twelve oil mills; two refineries, one in PNG, and one in Liverpool, UK; and a seed production and plant breeding facility. The Company is listed on both the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange and on the Port Moresby Stock Exchange in PNG.

NBPOL is fully vertically integrated, producing its own seed (which it also sells globally), planting, cultivating and harvesting its own land, and processing and refining palm oil (both in PNG and the UK). It also contracts directly with its end customers in the EU and arranges shipping of its products.

NBPOL has high regard for the importance of its sustainability credentials and is active in proving its performance through its certification to ISO 14001 and its close involvement and support of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil ("RSPO"). The Company is a certified supplier of sustainable palm oil from its entire production base in West New Britain Province in PNG, at RAIL in PNG, and from its entire Solomon Islands estates, under the RSPO guidelines.

In September 2011, the World Economic Forum ("WEF") identified NBPOL as one of 16 out of a study of 1,000 companies from across the developing world that are best showing how to grow profits at the same time as actively tackling environmental and social challenges. Describing NBPOL, the WEF report says that "the company has developed new ways to engage small farmers, who provide one-third of the company's supply. These close ties have not only helped reduce poverty, but also enable the company to develop one of the world's first fully traceable palm oil supply chains."