CNMC expects its H1 to be hit by extended Malaysia lockdown

Michelle Zhu

Published Mon, Jun 28, 2021 · 04:06 PM

CNMC Goldmine Holdings on Monday said it expects the Malaysian government's decision to extend the nation-wide full lockdown beyond June 28 to negatively affect the Catalist-listed group's financial performance for the half-year ending June 30, 2021.

This comes after Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin on Sunday announced that the government would continue to prohibit all social and economic activities until the number of Covid19 cases falls below 4,000 per day.

CNMC ceased all on-site activities in Kelantan from June 1 this year. In view of the lockdown being extended, the group said its exploration and production activities in Kelantan will be delayed yet again.

While the company has no bank borrowings and remains in a net cash position, the group said in its latest filing that its outlook beyond H1 FY2021 "could remain challenging" if the pandemic continues to stall its exploration and production activities.

It added that despite not being able to immediately resume exploration and production activities, it has received permission from the relevant authorities to carry out maintenance activities on-site at the Sokor project for its critical infrastructure and equipment.

This will allow not more than 142 workers to carry out maintenance activities on-site, provided that they comply with the relevant standard operating procedures and safety measures when undertaking their duties.