- Impala Platinum declared a divided for the first time in six years.
- Net cash of R5.7 billion was generated from operations.
- A total of 19 Implats employees have died from Covid-19.
Impala Platinum lifted earnings and declared a dividend for the 2020 financial year, a period characterised by Covid-19 disruptions which impacted production.
However, the platinum producer said it reinstated a dividend after a six-year break, with CEO Nico Muller stating that the firm's Zimbabwe operations continue to add value to the group performance, despite that country's fragile socio-economic conditions.
Headline earnings were up R16.1 billion at R20.75 per share for the financial year, and the company declared a full-year dividend of R5.25 per share. The company last declared a dividend in 2013, with a R1.25 interim dividend only reinstated in the 2020 half-year earnings.
The company said Covid-19 disruptions on operations were felt at the end of the third quarter of 2020 and became more marked in the last segment of the year, impacting production with an estimated loss of around 290 000 ounces.
"The Covid-19 pandemic impacted production, sales, costs and capital spend in the group as well as the global environment in which the Group operates," the company said.
Total production losses of 151 000 ounces of platinum group concentrate were directly attributed to the impact of Covid-19 during the year, leaving the company with a net cash position of R5.7 billion.
In December 2019, Impala concluded a $758 million acquisition of Canada’s North American Palladium Limited (NAP), in a move intended to improve the company's competitive edge and portfolio.
It noted that its exposure to a single grouping of commodities made it vulnerable to significant potential market volatility, with platinum prospects said to remain muted in the near term due to lower diesel vehicle and jewellery sales.
At home, Impala operations are still navigating the effects of coronavirus, which has taken the lives of 19 employees.
A total of 740 employees, mainly those over 60 years old and living with pre-existing health conditions that put them at risk of contracting the virus, are still not back at work.
The chief of Implats’ Rustenburg operations, Mark Munroe, was arrested in April over an alleged breach of lockdown regulations when he recalled some 6 000 employees to work. The charges were dropped in August.
Implats Chief Operating Officer, Gerhard Potgieter, said the Covid-19 interruption had delayed the further development of shaft 16 and 20 by four to five months.