UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

Form 6-K

REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER
PURSUANT TO RULE 13a-16 OR 15d-16
UNDER THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

April 18, 2007


 

 

 

BHP BILLITON LIMITED

(ABN 49 004 028 077)

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

 

VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA

(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organisation)

 

180 LONSDALE STREET, MELBOURNE, VICTORIA

3000 AUSTRALIA

(Address of principal executive offices)

 

 

 

BHP BILLITON PLC

(REG. NO. 3196209)

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

 

ENGLAND AND WALES

(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organisation)

 

NEATHOUSE PLACE, VICTORIA, LONDON,

UNITED KINGDOM

(Address of principal executive offices)

 


 
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F:  [x] Form 20-F   [  ] Form 40-F
 
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1):  [ ]
 
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7):  [ ]
 
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant by furnishing the information contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing the information to the Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934:  [ ] Yes    [x] No
 
If "Yes" is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to the registrant in connection with Rule 12g3-2(b):    n/a 
 

Issued by: BHP Billiton Plc

To:
Company Announcements Office
The London Stock Exchange

Company Announcements Office
The Australian Stock Exchange

cc:
New York Stock Exchange
Swiss Stock Exchange
JSE Limited
Deutsche Bank
UBS Zurich

Date: 18 April 2007

For Release: Immediately

Contact: Jamin Lawton + 44 (0)20 7802 4108

 

Notification of Major Interests in Shares

 

The following notification was received on 20 March 2007 by BHP Billiton Plc from Old Mutual Plc relating to major interests in shares of BHP Billiton Plc

 


TR-1(i): notification of major interests in shares

1. Identity of the issuer or the underlying issuer of existing shares to which voting rights are attached(ii):

BHP Billiton Plc

2. Reason for the notification (please tick the appropriate box or boxes):

 

An acquisition or disposal of voting rights

An acquisition or disposal of financial instruments which may result in the acquisition of shares already issued to which voting rights are attached

An event changing the breakdown of voting rights

Other (please specify): First Notification under TR1 - 20th March 2007

X

3. Full name of person(s) subject to the notification obligation(iii):

Old Mutual Plc

4. Full name of shareholder(s) (if different from 3.)(iv):

Old Mutual Investment Group (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd

Old Mutual Asset Managers (Namibia) (Pty) Ltd

Old Mutual Asset Managers (Bermuda) Ltd

Taquanta Asset Managers (Pty) Ltd

Syfrets Securities Ltd

Taquanta Securities Pty Ltd

BOE (Pty) Ltd

5. Date of the transaction and date on which the threshold is crossed or reached(v):

20th March disclosure

6. Date on which issuer notified:

20th March 2007

7. Threshold(s) that is/are crossed or reached:

N/A

8. Notified details: N/A

A: Voting rights attached to shares

Class/type of shares
if possible using the ISIN CODE

Situation previous to the Triggering transaction(vi)

Resulting situation after the triggering transaction(vii)

Number of Shares

Number of Voting Rights (viii)

Number of shares

Number of voting rights (ix)

% of voting rights

Direct

Direct(x)

Indirect(xi)

Direct

Indirect

GB0000566504

N/A          N/A

Nil

Nil

114002541

0 %

4.62%

B: Financial Instruments

Resulting situation after the triggering transaction(xii)

Type of financial instrument

Expiration date(xiii)

Exercise/ Conversion Period/ Date(xiv)

Number of voting rights that may be acquired if the instrument is exercised/ converted.

% of voting rights

Nil

Nil

Nil

Nil

Nil

Total (A+B)

Number of voting rights

% of voting rights

114002541

4.62%

 

9. Chain of controlled undertakings through which the voting rights and/or the financial instruments are effectively held, if applicable(xv):

Old Mutual Investment Group (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd

Old Mutual Asset Managers (Namibia) (Pty) Ltd

Old Mutual Asset Managers (Bermuda) Ltd

Taquanta Asset Managers (Pty) Ltd

Syfrets Securities Ltd

Taquanta Securities Pty Ltd

BOE (Pty) Ltd

Old Mutual Investment Group (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd has 3.96% of the Voting Rights

Proxy Voting:

10. Name of the proxy holder:

N/A

11. Number of voting rights proxy holder will cease to hold:

N/A

12. Date on which proxy holder will cease to hold voting rights:

N/A

13. Additional information:

14. Contact name:

Peter Keynes

15. Contact telephone number:

020 7002 7119

Annex Notification Of Major Interests In Shares(xvi)

A: Identity of the person or legal entity subject to the notification obligation

Full name (including legal form for legal entities)

Old Mutual plc

Contact address (registered office for legal entities)

Old Mutual plc, 2 Lambeth Hill, London, EC4V 4GG

Phone number

020 7002 7119

Other useful information (at least legal representative for legal persons)


B: Identity of the notifier, if applicable(xvii)

Full name

Contact address

Phone number

 

Other useful information (e.g. functional relationship with the person or legal entity subject to the notification obligation)


C: Additional information

 

Notes

(i) This form is to be sent to the issuer or underlying issuer and to be filed with the competent authority.

(ii) Either the full name of the legal entity or another method for identifying the issuer or underlying issuer, provided it is reliable and accurate.

(iii) This should be the full name of (a) the shareholder; (b) the person acquiring, disposing of or exercising voting rights in the cases provided for in DTR5.2.1 (b) to (h); (c) all the parties to the agreement referred to in DTR5.2.1 (a), or (d) the direct or indirect holder of financial instruments entitled to acquire shares already issued to which voting rights are attached, as appropriate.

In relation to the transactions referred to in points DTR5.2.1 (b) to (h), the following list is provided as indication of the persons who should be mentioned:

- in the circumstances foreseen in DTR5.2.1 (b), the person that acquires the voting rights and is entitled to exercise them under the agreement and the natural person or legal entity who is transferring temporarily for consideration the voting rights;

- in the circumstances foreseen in DTR 5.2.1 (c), the person holding the collateral, provided the person or entity controls the voting rights and declares its intention of exercising them, and person lodging the collateral under these conditions;

- in the circumstances foreseen in DTR5.2.1(d), the person who has a life interest in shares if that person is entitled to exercise the voting rights attached to the shares and the person who is disposing of the voting rights when the life interest is created;

- in the circumstances foreseen in DTR5.2.1 (e), the parent undertaking and, provided it has a notification duty at an individual level under DTR 5.1, under DTR5.2.1 (a) to (d) or under a combination of any of those situations, the controlled undertaking;

- in the circumstances foreseen in DTR5.2.1 (f), the deposit taker of the shares, if he can exercise the voting rights attached to the shares deposited with him at his discretion, and the depositor of the shares allowing the deposit taker to exercise the voting rights at his discretion;

- in the circumstances foreseen in DTR5.2.1 (g), the person that controls the voting rights;

- in the circumstances foreseen in DTR5.2.1 (h), the proxy holder, if he can exercise the voting rights at his discretion, and the shareholder who has given his proxy to the proxy holder allowing the latter to exercise the voting rights at his discretion.

 (iv) Applicable in the cases provided for in DTR 5.2.1 (b) to (h). This should be the full name of the shareholder or holder of financial instruments who is the counterparty to the natural person or legal entity referred to in DTR5.2.

(v) The date of the transaction should normally be, in the case of an on exchange transaction, the date on which the matching of orders occurs; in the case of an off exchange transaction, date of the entering into an agreement.

The date on which threshold is crossed should normally be the date on which the acquisition, disposal or possibility to exercise voting rights takes effect (see DTR 5.1.1R (3)). For passive crossings, the date when the corporate event took effect.

These dates will usually be the same unless the transaction is subject to a condition beyond the control of the parties.

(vi) Please refer to the situation disclosed in the previous notification, In case the situation previous to the triggering transaction was below 3%, please state 'below 3%'.

(vii) If the holding has fallen below the minimum threshold , the notifying party should not be obliged to disclose the extent of the holding, only that the new holding is less than 3%.

For the case provided for in DTR5.2.1(a), there should be no disclosure of individual holdings per party to the agreement unless a party individually crosses or reaches an Article 9 threshold. This applies upon entering into, introducing changes to or terminating an agreement.

(viii) Direct and indirect

(ix) In case of combined holdings of shares with voting rights attached 'direct holding' and voting rights 'indirect holdings', please split the voting rights number and percentage into the direct and indirect columns-if there is no combined holdings, please leave the relevant box blank.

(x) Voting rights attached to shares in respect of which the notifying party is a direct shareholder (DTR 5.1)

(xi) Voting rights held by the notifying party as an indirect shareholder (DTR 5.2.1)

(xii) If the holding has fallen below the minimum threshold, the notifying party should not be obliged to disclose the extent of the holding, only that the new holding is below 3%.

(xiii) date of maturity / expiration of the finical instrument i.e. the date when the right to acquire shares ends.

(xiv) If the financial instrument has such a period-please specify the period- for example once every three months starting from the [date]

(xv) The notification should include the name(s) of the controlled undertakings through which the voting rights are held. The notification should also include the amount of voting rights and the percentage held by each controlled undertaking, insofar as individually the controlled undertaking holds 3% or more, and insofar as the notification by the parent undertaking is intended to cover the notification obligations of the controlled undertaking.

(xvi) This annex is only to be filed with the competent authority.

(xvii) Whenever another person makes the notification on behalf of the shareholder or the natural person/legal entity referred to in DTR5.2 and DTR5.3.

 

BHP Billiton Limited ABN 49 004 028 077
Registered in Australia
Registered Office: Level 27, 180 Lonsdale Street Melbourne Victoria 3000
Telephone +61 1300 554 757 Facsimile +61 3 9609 3015

BHP Billiton Plc Registration number 3196209
Registered in England and Wales
Registered Office: Neathouse Place London SW1V 1BH United Kingdom
Telephone +44 20 7802 4000 Facsimile +44 20 7802 4111

                                                                  The BHP Billiton Group is headquartered in Australia

                                                                          


SIGNATURES
 
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
 
    BHP Billiton Limited and BHP Billiton Plc
     
Date: 18 April 2007 By:

Karen Wood


  Name:  Karen Wood
  Title: Group Company Secretary