Denel group chief executive Shaun Liebenberg will not renew his contract when it expires on May 31 next year, the company said on Monday.
”Mr Liebenberg has indicated that he will be pursuing other business opportunities and that he would therefore not be available to serve a second term,” the state-owned arms manufacturer said in a statement.
The board thanked Liebenberg for the significant role he played during his three-year tenure in placing Denel on the road to financial recovery and sustainability, and wished him well in his future endeavours.
Because of the need to maintain the momentum and direction of the approved recovery strategy by building on the achievements of the past number of years, the board has already started the process of appointing a successor to manage Denel’s turnaround strategy to completion, the statement said.
Liebenberg was appointed in 2005 to manage Denel’s turnaround.
While the company posted a loss of R549,1-million for the financial year ended March 31 2007, gross profit rose to R754-million — up from a loss last year of R131,1-million.
Releasing Denel’s results in July, Liebenberg said turnover rose by R495-million to R3,2-billion, mainly due to large contracts including the Airbus A400M military transport aircraft and the Agusta A109 helicopter.
”We focused on revenue generations and cost control over the past 18 months; this led to the huge improvement in gross profit,” he said at the time.
It was expected that Denel, which has been a loss-making venture for years, would post a loss this year as Liebenberg predicted it would only break even in the 2009/10 financial year.
”Our results this year clearly show we are on the road to improved fortunes,” Liebenberg said.
He stressed there were still many issues to be resolved and Denel would only be in a ”sustainable position” in the coming 24 to 36 months.
In the past year, Liebenberg has continued his strategy of forming partnerships with larger international firms.
In February, the Denel SAAB Aerostructures company started operating as a venture where Denel owns 80% and Sweden’s SAAB owns a minority equity stake.
German company Carl Zeiss Optronics took 70% of the newly formed Carl Zeiss Optronics, which was formed out of Denel Optronics.
Denel has won some big contracts in the past year — the biggest being the R8,3-billion contract to develop the South African army’s new-generation infantry combat vehicle. This was also the biggest contract in Denel’s 16-year history.
BAE Systems awarded Denel Munitions a contract worth R300-million over three years to supply brass cups used in manufacturing small-calibre ammunition.
It also awarded Denel Optronics, now known as Carl Zeiss Optronics, a contract worth R200-million to produce pilot helmet tracker systems for the Eurofighter Typhoon jet.
In the past year, Denel has also suffered some losses, the biggest being the unsuccessful bid to supply the Rooivalk attack helicopter to Turkey. It also reduced its staff complement by 6% from 8 120 to 7 634. — Sapa