Frequently Asked Questions
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When is the next AGM, EGM?
Financial Events 2007 Full Year results announcement 18 February 2008 2008 Annual General Meeting 03 April 2008 2008 First Quarter trading update 28 April 2008 2008 First Half results announcement 04 August 2008 2008 Third Quarter trading update 27 October 2008 -
How many shares are currently issued by the Company?
The ratio of Class A shares to Class B shares must be maintained at 2:1 as required by the Articles of Incorporation.
In accordance with IFRS, earnings per share calculations should be made using the 12 month weighted average number of economic shares as adjusted for share buy backs.
As a result of the ongoing share buy back programme, the 12 month weighted average number of economic shares at 31 March 2008 was 414 327 943.
The listed security is the Fiduciary Depositary Receipt (“FDR”), listed on the Luxembourg and Euronext Paris Stock Exchanges. Each of these is backed by one A share and has all the rights attaching to that share, except the right of attending General Meetings of shareholders. In order to attend a General Meeting, at least one registered share must be held. Voting rights may be exercised by notifying the Fiduciary (Banque et Caisse d’Epargne de l’Etat) of the voting intention.
Of the Class A Shares, 276 746 054 (69.26 % of the economic shares) are currently lodged with the Fiduciary and trade in the form of FDRs.
Shares of Class B are held by the Luxembourg state and the public institutions Banque et Caisse d’Epargne (BCEE) and Société Nationale de Crédit et d’Investissement (SNCI). Class B shares carry 40% of the economic rights of the shares of Class A. The B shares are not listed on any exchange and do not back a tradable security.
SES buys FDRs ("shares") to support Executive Share Option Incentive schemes and as part of its share buy back and cancellation programme. B Shares are also purchased by the company in order to maintain the 2:1 ratio mentioned above.
The number of issued shares of each class as at 26 June 2008 was as follows:
SES ShareholdersNumber of Shares% Voting Shareholding% Economic ParticipationA SharesSofina Group18 600 0003.72 %4.65 %Luxempart S.A.11 538 2642.31 %2.89 %Santander Telecommunications S.A.11 149 7352.23 %2.79 %Other shareholders12 118 7072.43 %3.03 %BCEE FDRs (free float)279 578 42455.97 %69.97 %Total A Shares332 985 13066.66 %83.33 %B SharesBCEE54 336 75610.88 %5.44 %SNCI54 329 97910.88 %5.44 %Etat du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg57 825 83011.58 %5.79 %Total B Shares (1)166 492 56533.33 % (2)16.67 %Total Shares (Actual)499 477 695Total Shares (Economic)399 582 156(1) Shares of Class B carry 40% of the economic rights of shares of Class A.
(2) These figures have been rounded up to the second decimal, as a result of which the Class B shareholders appear to hold a total of 33.34 % of the voting interest in the Company. The actual total voting interest of the Class B shareholders is, however, one-third.
Under IAS 33, the earnings per share and dividend per share calculations should be made using the weighted average number of shares during the period. The weighted average number of shares should be adjusted for the shares purchased by the company.
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How is Corporate Governance managed by the SES Group?
Corporate Governance is maintained by ensuring compliance with the following charters:
PDF, 77 kb
Annex 1 : Charter of the Audit Committee
PDF, 42 kb
Annex 2 : Charter of the Remuneration Committee
PDF, 22 kb
Annex 3 : Charter of the Nomination Committee
PDF, 29 kb
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Who are the members of the Board of Directors of SES?
The Board of Directors is composed exclusively of non-executive Directors. Proposals of candidates for the Board are submitted by the Nomination Committee. Eleven Board members were elected based upon a proposal by holders of Class-A shares and six Board members upon a proposal by holders of Class-B shares.
Members of the Board:Mr. René Steichen (Chairman of the Board)Mr. Marcus BicknellMrs. Bridget CosgraveMr. Jacques EspinasseMr. Jean-Claude FinckMr. Hadelin de Liedekerke BeaufortMr. Gaston ReineschMr. Victor RodMr. Robert W. RossMr. Luis Sanchez-MerloMr. Christian SchaackMr. Georges SchmitMr. Terry SeddonMr. Marc SpeeckaertMr. Gerd TenzerMr. François Tesch (Vice-Chairman)Mr. Jean-Paul Zens (Vice-Chairman) -
Who are the Executive Management of SES?
SES is managed through an Executive Committee whose members are:
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Romain Bausch
President and CEO, SES
Joined SES as CEO in May 1995
Chairman of the Executive Committee of SES
Chairman of the Board of Directors of SES ASTRA, SES AMERICOM and SES NEW SKIES
Chairman of the Board of Directors of SES SIRIUS
Previous appointments:
Administrator General in the Luxembourg Ministry of Finance
Member of the Board of Directors of Société Européenne des Satellites (SES)
Vice-Chairman of SES’ Board of Directors
Chairman of Société Nationale de Crédit et d'Investissement
Government Commissioner to Compagnie Luxembourgeoise de Télédiffusion (CLT)
Government Commissioner to Banque Internationale à Luxembourg
Chairman of the Economic and Social Council (Luxembourg)Education :
Master of Arts in Economics and Business Administration, University of Nancy (France)
Other:
Luxembourgish national, born July 3rd, 1953
Married and father of two daughters
Leisure interests: Literature and sports activities -
Robert Bednarek
President and CEO, SES AMERICOM-NEW SKIES
Previous appointments:
Executive Vice-President Corporate Development, SES GLOBAL
Executive Vice-President and Chief Technology Officer, PanAmSat Corporation
Senior Vice-President, Engineering and Operations, PanAmSat Corporation
Co-founder and partner of Rubin, Bednarek & Associates
Deputy Chief Scientist of the US Corporation for Public BroadcastingEducation:
B.S. in Electrical Engineering, University of Florida
Other:
U.S. national, born October 6, 1957
Board Member, American Astronautics Society -
Ferdinand Kayser
President and CEO, SES ASTRA
Previous appointments:
Managing Director of Kirch Pay Co Holding and Premiere Medien GmbH and Co. KG
Managing Director of Premiere Medien GmbH and Co. KG
Executive Vice-President, Member of the Management Board, responsible for all TV activities RTL
Senior Vice-President at CLT MultimediaEducation:
Masters of Economics, University of Paris I, Panthéon-Sorbonne
Other:
Luxembourgish national, born July 4, 1958
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Mark Rigolle
Chief Financial Officer, SES
Joined SES in August 2004
Previous appointments:
Group Controller, Belgacom
Chief Financial Officer, Belgacom
Chief Strategy and Business Development Officer, Belgacom
General Manager of Group Business Development, Belgacom
Corporate Account Officer, Sanwa Bank
Education:
Degree in Economic Science from the Catholic University Leuven
Other:
British and Belgian nationalities, born 1965
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Martin Halliwell
President SES ENGINEERING
Joined SES in 1987
Previous appointments
General Manager Global Multimedia Networks of SES (1998)
Technical Director of SES Multimedia (1997)
SES Operations Manager (1991)Education
BA in Mathematics and Mechanical Engineering and an MBA, specializing in the external environment and strategic management, University of London
Other
British national
Married, father of one daughter
Leisure interests: electric bass, motorcycling, racing, football, reading
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- What is the current SES Share Price?
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Who is the Investor Relations contact? Investor Relations contact details:
Mark Roberts
Investor Relations
SES
L-6815 Château de Betzdorf
Luxembourg
Tel: +352 710 725 490
Fax: +352 710 725 9836
Mark.Roberts@ses.com -
When will dividends be paid?
Dividends Ex Dividend Date 18 April 2008
(SOB)Record Date 22 April 2008
(COB)Dividend Pay Date 23 April 2008 -
Will I be taxed on my SES dividend? Dividend payments made to SES shareholders are subject to a Luxembourg withholding tax of 15%. In many instances, depending on the tax domicile of the shareholder, this tax credit can be used to offset other taxes that might be payable by the shareholder. For more information on this subject, shareholders should consult their broker or tax adviser.
