Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Business: Brazilian miner MHAG hires Luis Carlos Nepomuceno as CEO

Hong Kong, (ANTARA News/Xinhua-PRNewswire-AsiaNet) - MHAG, a Brazilian iron ore mining company of which Noble Group (SGX:NOBL) owns 30 per cent, has appointed Luis Carlos Nepomuceno to head the executive board as CEO effective immediately.

With 26 years of mining experience, Mr Nepomuceno will lead the expansion and implementation of the company's key initiatives including the pellet feed and pellet plant project, port construction, slurry line and rail system.

Prior to joining MHAG, Mr Nepomuceno worked for 22 years for Vale in various positions including responsibility for business units in Brazil, Director General of the Department of Manganese and Alloys and as Director, President of Rio Doce Manganese Europe. An engineer and a post-graduate in Environmental Engineering in Belgium (Ghent), Mr Nepomuceno initially specialized in environmental control studies in Japan (JICA) and subsequently in Corporate Management in Europe and USA (IMD, MIT, INSEAD and KELLOGG).

Luis Carlos Nepomuceno replaces Pio Egidio Sacchi, a shareholder, who presided over the company during the last 3 years. Mr Sacchi will elevate to the Administrative Board where he will work on strategies, investments and acquisitions of the company.

"The hiring of Mr Nepomuceno as CEO reflects the determination of the shareholders to implement strong corporate governance to ensure the goals and projects of the company are successful," noted Edson Duda, President of the Administrative Council.

MHAG possesses inferred mineral resources of 3.8 billion tons of iron ore located in the states of Rio Grande do Norte and Paraiba. In 2006, MHAG started production and export through the port of Suape/PE to the Far East and Middle East.

"The quality of the ore, the location of the mines in proximity to the coast (125 km) and the potential of the resources, have driven the decision of the shareholders, Campina Participacoes S/A and Noble Group, to accelerate the investments with the intention of increasing the production and exports," added Mr Duda.

About Noble Group

Noble Group (SGX: NOBL) is a market leader in managing the global supply chain of agricultural, industrial and energy products. We operate from over 100 offices in more than 40 countries, serving 4000+ customers. Noble manages a diversified portfolio of essential raw materials, integrating the sourcing, marketing, processing, financing and transportation.

With annual revenues exceeding US$20 billion, Noble continues its transition to owning and managing more strategic assets, sourcing from low cost producers such as Brazil, Australia and Indonesia and supplying to high growth demand markets including China, India and the Middle East. Today Noble owns coal and iron ore mines, grain crushing facilities, sugar and ethanol plants, vessels, ports and other infrastructure to ensure high quality products are delivered in the most efficient and timely manner to its customers.

Noble recently appeared on the Forbes Global 2000 and Forbes Fab 50 while being named to the S&P Global Challengers and The Asset's Best 60 Corporate Governance Award. Noble also received the Corporate Governance Recognition Award: Classes Of 2006 and 2007 -- by Corporate Governance Asia and was chosen as one of Finance Asia's Best Companies.

In 2008, Noble earned a spot on the new benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) and received a BBB- rating (investment grade) from Fitch. In 2005, Noble joined the MSCI Singapore Index. During this period, the Group was recognized as one of Business Week's Stars of Asia and a Best Employer by Hewitt Associates. Noble ranked #1 on The Forbes Global 2000 -- Total Return during the five-year period 2001 - 2005.

For further details please contact: Mr Stephen Brown Noble Group Limited Tel: +852 2250 2060 Fax: +852 2861 0018 Email: stephenbrown@thisisnoble.com

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Mr Brad Smolar Smolar Limited
Tel: +852 2522 0268 Fax: +852 2573 2473
Email: reputation@smolar.com
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SOURCE: Noble Group

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