16 January 2013

IRC: Q4 to 31 December 2012 Trading Update:

Kuranakh beats 2012 Production Targets for Second Consecutive Year

Petropavlovsk PLC ("Petropavlovsk") holds a majority stake in IRC Limited ("IRC"), the Groups former Non-Precious Metals Division prior to its listing on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (stock code: 1029).

Petropavlovsk is pleased to confirm that IRC has issued today its Trading Update for the Fourth Quarter of 2012, to 31st December 2012.

Key Highlights:

n  Iron ore production targets exceeded at Kuranakh Mine by 18%

n  K&S Project construction and operations on track

n  2013 production targets set significantly higher at 900,000 tonnes for iron ore (10% increase year-on-year) and 160,000 tonnes for ilmenite (28% increase year-on-year)

The full announcement may be found on IRCs website, http://www.ircgroup.com.hk.

Enquiries