Annual Report 2001 - Bohler Uddeholm materializing visions

We have audited the accompanying consolidated group accounts of BÖHLER-UDDEHOLM AG
prepared according to the International Accounting Standards (IAS) and adopted from the International
Accounting Standards Board (IASB) printed on pages 32 to 33 and 44 to 78, consisting
of the balance sheets as at 31 December 2001 and 2000 and the related consolidated statements
of income, the cash flow statements, the changes in equity capital and minority interests
for the years 2001 and 2000, and the notes. The organization and content of the consolidated
group accounts are the responsibility of the company’s management. Our responsibility is to
express an opinion on the consolidated group accounts based on our audit. In some cases the
annual accounts of individual subsidiaries included in the consolidated group accounts have
been audited by other auditors. Our opinion as far as these subsidiaries are concerned is based
solely on the reports of the other auditors.
We conducted our audit in accordance with the International Standards on Auditing of
the International Federation of Accountants Board (IFAB). Those standards require that we plan
and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated group
accounts are free of material misstatements. An audit includes examining on a random sample
basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the consolidated group accounts.
An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles and significant estimates made by
management, as well as evaluating the overall conclusions of the consolidated group accounts.
We believe that our audit provides a reliable basis for our opinion.
In our opinion, the consolidated group accounts present fairly, in all material respects,
the financial position of BÖHLER-UDDEHOLM Aktiengesellschaft as at 31 December 2001 and
2000, and of the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended, in accordance
with International Accounting Standards (IAS).
Pursuant to Austrian commercial law, the Director’s Report and the group’s adherence to
requirements for exemption from the compilation of consolidated group accounts prepared in
accordance with the Austrian Commercial Code must be examined. In our opinion the Director’s
Report complies with the consolidated group accounts and the legal requirements for an
exemption from the obligation to compile consolidated financial statements in accordance with
the Austrian Commercial Code have been met.
Linz, 19 February 2002
KPMG Alpen-Treuhand GmbH
Wirtschaftsprüfungs- und Steuerberatungsgesellschaft
Stephan Beurle m.p. Johann Lummerstorfer m.p.
Auditors and tax consultants
Report of the Auditors
and Audit Certificate
BÖHLER-UDDEHOLM Annual Report 2001 79