Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
Anglo American Platinum Ltd. said first-half profit likely fell as much as 75% due to lower metal prices and after South African power outages cut sales volumes.
The crisis at state-owned power utility Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. is putting South African miners under pressure, forcing them to curb operations and resort to expensive diesel generators. That’s reducing profitability as production falls and costs increase.
Earnings at Amplats — a unit of Anglo American Plc — also declined as the price of rhodium and palladium slumped 47% and 29% respectively, from a year earlier. Sales were also impacted by maintenance at its Polokwane smelter, the Johannesburg-based company said Monday.
Amplats expects profit for the period to be between 6.6 billion rand ($364 million) and 9.3 billion rand, down from 26.7 billion rand a year earlier. Profit before some one-time items, known as headline earnings, also likely dropped by as much as 75%, it said.
The shares fell as much as 6.7%, snapping four days of gains. They were 5.6% lower by 2:17 p.m. local time, leading the retreat in a South African index of precious-metals producers.
Read: Amplats Sees 1H EPS Between 65% and 75% Lower y/y
Amplats is scheduled to publish sales and production results for the six months on July 20 and will release earnings for the period on July 24.
(By Rene Vollgraaff and William Clowes, with assistance from John Viljoen)
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