Sasol, the world’s top maker of fuel from coal, on Monday posted a 50% jump in full-year earnings to R38,09 per share on the back of higher oil prices and a favourable exchange rate.
Sasol, which is also Africa’s biggest chemical products maker, said increased production and higher crude oil prices are expected to benefit earnings for 2009.
Headline EPS, which strips out capital, non-trading and some extraordinary items, is the key profit measure in South Africa.
The company said operating profit rose 32% to R34-billion and declared a final dividend of R9,35 rand showing a 58% rise.
”Higher product prices together with higher volumes and a focus on cost containment have enabled the company to deliver superior returns to our shareholders,” Christine Ramon, Sasol’s chief financial officer, said in a statement.
Sasol said it has decided to reduce its 37,5% interest in the Escravos gas-to-liquids project to 10%.
”In China, our feasibility study into CTL [coal-to-liquids] opportunities has been rescoped to comprise a single CTL plant of 80 000 barrels per day located in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region,” said the company.
Sasol said its feasibility study into expanding capacity at Secunda in South Africa continues, as well as a pre-feasibility study into a new CTL plant of 80 000 barrels per day.
The company also announced that its chairperson, Pieter Cox, will step down on November 28 and would be replaced by Hixonia Nyasulu. – Reuters