Johannesburg - Sibanye Gold expects earnings for the half year to June to leap by up to 611 percent as it continues printing money on the strengthening of the bullion price.
The JSE-listed company, whose share price has gained 120 percent in the six months, has together with its peers Gold Fields, AngloGold Ashanti and Harmony Gold received a major boost from the upswing of the gold price. The gold price has increased 31 percent in the six months to June.
Earlier this month, Sibanye flagged that it would impair R820 million on Cooke 4, its underperforming gold and uranium mining assets.
Sibanye told shareholders at the time that about 1 700 jobs were at risk as it decided whether to close Cooke 4. A 60-day consultation with labour unions is under way in terms of section 189 of the law.
Headline earnings per share (HEPS) were likely to be between 484 percent and 611 percent, or 92 cents a share and 116c a share, higher than the 19c a share reported for the previous comparable period last year, the company said.
Earnings per share (EPS), which included certain non-recurring items, were expected to be between 70 percent and 110 percent or 14c a share and 22c a share higher than the 20c a share reported for the previous comparable period.
Normalised earnings per share, which are adjusted for gains and losses on foreign exchange and financial instruments, non-recurring items and share of result of associates after taxation, were expected to be between 678 percent and 848 percent (or 183c and 229c a share) higher than the 27c a share reported for the previous comparable period.
Major boost
Gold production for the six months to June was higher at 746 800 ounces compared with 713 900 ounces for the previous comparable period.
All-in-sustaining costs were R454 000 a kilogram or $920 an ounce compared with R434 769/kg ($1 137/oz) for the previous comparable period. All-in costs (AIC) of R469 000/kg ($948/oz) compared with R441 348/kg ($1 155/oz) for the previous comparable period.
Platinum group metals (PGM) production (4E - a type of platinum) for the six months was 178koz (168koz for the previous comparable period), with Kroondal and Mimosa forecast to deliver record PGM output.
“Both operations continue to deliver above nameplate capacity, a notable achievement given their respective challenging operating environments,” the company said.
Sibanye, which is acquiring Anglo American Platinum's Rustenburg operations, said its platinum division’s cash costs for the Kroondal Mine were expected to be R9 511 an ounce (4E) ($615/oz) with unit costs of R623 a ton, while cash costs plus capital expenditure are R10 766/oz (4E) ($696/oz).
Sibanye shares fell 0.08 percent yesterday to close at R63.90.
BUSINESS REPORT