For Newmont, 2010 was a pivotal year  In addition to delivering strong performance in a bullish metal-price environment, 2010 was the year we accelerated our efforts to build our business for long-term growth and sustainability, thanks to the efforts of our organization and its focus on execution.

Record results, fundamental strengths  We achieved record financial results in an environment where average realized gold prices rose more than 25 percent year over year. Our revenues increased by 23 percent to a record $9.5 billion, compared with $7.7 billion a year ago. Our gold operating margin was 60 percent in 2010, and we generated $3.2 billion in operating cash flow. Adjusted net income, a non-GAAP measure, was $1.9 billion, or $3.85 per share.

At year-end 2010, Newmont’s proven and probable attributable gold reserves were 93.5 million ounces, up from 91.8 million ounces at the end of 2009. Attributable copper reserves increased by 3 percent in 2010 to a record 9.4 billion pounds.

Furthermore, our project pipeline is much deeper than it was a year ago and we have made significant investments to ensure we have the right people and processes to successfully deliver value from our projects.

We’re pleased, but virtually every mining company is reporting record results. In the current metal price environment, it’s expected. How is Newmont different? Our fundamental financial strength, operational performance and cash-flow-per-share generation position us to benefit more from today’s bullish gold-price environment than most of our competitors. And, we have an extremely strong balance sheet with over $5.6 billion of cash and marketable securities at year-end 2010.

Newmont is proud to offer investors the best per-share gold-price leverage in the industry. Every $100 increase in gold price translates into approximately $350 million in additional after-tax operating cash flows, or approximately $0.70 per share.

We deliver better gold price leverage than any of our competitors. That’s a powerful case for Newmont.

Newmont turns 90  In 2011, Newmont will celebrate its 90th year in business. While our Company’s list of accomplishments is too long to adequately cover here, our history presents a proud legacy of leadership and learning, of innovation and industry firsts, and of integrity and responsibility. We are now moving to the next stage of our Company’s journey, one in which we will pair the execution capabilities we have demonstrated in the past, and emphasized over the last three years, with the promise of the future.

Next for Newmont  We have spent the better part of the last three years building the foundation required to take Newmont to the next level. We are now turning our attention to the next phase in our development: the long-term growth of our business.

Newmont has a strong, balanced and global development portfolio with significant opportunities for more projects as we advance work in key districts.

In Ghana, our Akyem project has the potential to produce a total of 8 million to 9 million ounces of gold over its mine life, which along with the Subika expansion could boost annual production in Ghana to approximately one million ounces and make Africa our fastest growing region. Another exciting project in the region is Nimba, our iron-ore joint venture with BHP Billiton in Guinea.

In South America, our largest project is Conga in Peru, with current potential mine life production of 15 to 20 million ounces of gold and between 4 billion and 6 billion pounds of copper on a 100% basis. In addition to Conga, our Chaquicocha Underground and Yanacocha Verde sulfide projects represent the next phase of development in this key district, holding significant potential for additional future gold and copper production.

Our North American region includes the Hope Bay project in Nunavut, Canada with a current district-scale potential of up to 10 million ounces of gold. We also have a number of near-term expansion projects in various stages of development that represent growth potential and mine life extension in Nevada, including an expansion at Gold Quarry and Leeville/Turf, and the Phoenix Copper Leach project. Longer term, we are in the process of waking our “Sleeping Giants,” including the Mike, Fiberline, Copper Basin and Greater Phoenix projects, all of which have significant potential to extend mine life in Nevada.

In our Asia Pacific region, the Elang project in Indonesia represents an exciting opportunity in early-stage development that could eventually exceed the size of our current operation at Batu Hijau. Currently, we estimate Elang’s potential to be approximately 25 million ounces of gold and 15 billion pounds of copper on a 100% basis – a world-class deposit by any measure.

Focused innovation  With 90 years in the resource business, Newmont has tremendous industry knowledge and capability for innovation. We are reviving our commitment to innovation by focusing our people and resources in two areas of the company: exploration and processing.

Excellence in exploration is a key competitive advantage at Newmont. We’re constantly innovating to maximize our effectiveness in discovering potential reserves, and determining the best ways to bring them into production.

Innovation in ore processing methods is an integral part of our heritage. When we started in Nevada more than 45 years ago, we projected a 9 million ounce reserve that would be produced over a 15-year period. In addition to near-mine exploration, we have invested extensively in secondary and tertiary recovery there, with production that has surpassed 50 million ounces to date, reserves of 31 million ounces at year-end 2010 and strong prospects for continued growth in the future.

We believe we can take the same approach at Yanacocha in Peru. We are applying our 90 years of mining experience, along with that of our partners at Buenaventura, to extend the life of this extraordinary asset and realize what we think is significant additional gold and copper production potential.

Mining is a people business  Ultimately, mining is not just about production, or reserves, or strategies. Mining is about people. The safety of our employees, the health and wellbeing of our communities, and the sustainability of our operations are more than critical success factors – they are each fundamental values upon which Newmont is built.

Although fatalities were down in 2010, this is of no consolation to us as we reflect on the death of Johanis A. Dawir, who was killed in a pit wall failure at Batu Hijau on January 17, 2010. The loss of one of our own hardens our resolve to achieve a zero-fatality and serious injury workplace.

While we are one of the safest mining companies in the world, we know we can improve. In 2010 we formed a Safety Task Force that interviewed more than 15,000 employees across our enterprise to gain new insights on what we can do to further drive a safety-focused culture. In addition, we want to be a company that does more than talk about an injury-free workplace – we want to achieve it. For everyone.

We’ll continue to focus on safety and we have made a great deal of progress in achieving consistent operational execution. We have a strong project pipeline, a robust exploration program and the financial resources to develop them. But what gives me the most confidence in Newmont’s future? Our people.

I believe that Newmont employees are some of the most conscientious, capable and committed in the industry. I sincerely appreciate their invaluable contributions to the success of our company. As Newmont enters its 90th year, I am looking forward to working together to meet the challenges ahead and realize the promise of this great company.

A bright future for Newmont  Our evolution continues as we enter 2011 and we are now, more than ever, uniquely positioned to grow our business. Our efforts over the last three years are bearing fruit. We have a very strong enterprise and a wealth of growth opportunities in each of our regions. We have a management team and workforce committed to achieving Newmont’s potential and maximizing value for our shareholders and other stakeholders.

Our Board of Directors has been critical to our success. We are grateful for these individuals’ guidance and tireless contributions. I especially would like to thank Dr. James Taranik, who retired in 2010 after 24 years of distinguished service on our Board, for his support and leadership in our environmental and social responsibility initiatives.

Finally, thanks to you, our shareholders, for your support throughout the year. We have much to be proud of, but we know we have much to do. I expect the year ahead to be one of continued, significant progress – I have never been more enthusiastic and optimistic about our future than I am today.

Sincerely,

Richard O’Brien
President and Chief Executive Officer