JOHANNESBURG, September 20, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --
Sasol Limited has announced its proposed new Broad-Based Black
Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) ownership structure, Sasol Khanyisa,
which will be submitted for shareholder approval at the Sasol
Limited AGM later this year.
Sasol Khanyisa is intended to achieve effective direct and
indirect B-BBEE ownership of at least 25% in Sasol South Africa, a
wholly-owned subsidiary of Sasol. Through two invitations eligible
existing Sasol inzalo Groups and Public shareholders will receive
bonus Sasol BEE ordinary shares (SOLBE1), that trade on the BEE
segment of the JSE, at no cost to them. These bonus SOLBE1 and
additional SOLBE1 shares issued to shareholders are tradeable from
the date of issue, realising upfront and immediate value creation
for shareholders.
"As a company proudly rooted in our South African heritage, we
embrace transformation. We are committed to contributing
meaningfully to sustainable transformation as we accelerate this
journey across Sasol," said Bongani Nqwababa, Joint President and
Chief Executive Officer, Sasol Limited.
"In designing Sasol Khanyisa, we included several key design
principles that would enable our objectives - specifically, to
ensure that the transaction will deliver long-term value and lead
to sustainable ownership of Sasol by Black South African
shareholders," said Stephen Cornell,
Joint President and Chief Executive Officer, Sasol Limited.
Sasol Khanyisa is a key milestone in Sasol's transformation
journey. Sasol Inzalo, which was created in 2008, comes to an end
in 2018. Eligible participants in Sasol Khanyisa will comprise
Sasol's qualifying employees, existing Sasol Inzalo Public and
Groups shareholders, and existing Black Sasol shareholders that own
shares listed on the empowerment segment of the JSE.
Black members of the public participated in Sasol Inzalo through
54 different groups. In addition, more than 200 000 members of
the South African Black public participated in the Inzalo Public
Funded element and Sasol Limited has more than 50 000 SOLBE1
shareholders. Approximately 23 000 Sasol employees participated in
the Sasol Inzalo employee trusts.
When Sasol Inzalo ends next year, it is expected that there will
be no distribution of Sasol shares to participants, given the
closing Sasol Ordinary share price of R389 on 4 September 2017.
Sasol South Africa is well placed to achieve at least 25% Black
ownership, and a proportional share of the dividend stream from
Sasol South Africa will be used to repay the funding cost.
"This means Sasol Khanyisa's success is not dependent on Sasol
Limited's share price fluctuations. As no external funding will be
used, there will be no cash outflows from Sasol," added
Nqwababa.
In February 2018, eligible
participants will be invited to keep Sasol BEE Ordinary (SOLBE1)
shares on the empowerment segment of the JSE and receive the
following should they elect to keep the SOLBE1 designation:
- Receive one bonus SOLBE1 share for every four
SOLBE1 shares owned; and
- Be invited to participate in Sasol Khanyisa.
Thereafter, in April 2018,
eligible Sasol BEE Ordinary shareholders (SOLBE1) and Sasol Inzalo
Groups and Public funded shareholders will be invited to
participate in Sasol Khanyisa and receive the following:
- One Sasol Khanyisa Public share for every Sasol Inzalo share
held; and
- One Sasol BEE Ordinary share for every 10 Sasol Khanyisa Public
shares held.
These bonus SOLBE1 and additional SOLBE1 shares issued to
shareholders are tradeable from the date of issue.
At the end of the 10 year period and once the vendor funding has
been settled, Sasol Khanyisa Public shares will be exchanged for
SOLBE1 shares listed the empowerment segment of the JSE. This will
lead to long-lasting, unencumbered ownership of Sasol Limited by
Black South Africans.
Participants in the Sasol Khanyisa employee share ownership plan
will receive a debt-free share grant of Sasol ordinary shares and
Sasol shares listed on the empowerment segment of the JSE worth
R100 000. These shares, subject to taxation, will become theirs to
keep or sell at the end of a three-year period, in 2021.
Participating employees will also receive a pro rata portion of
dividends received by the Sasol Khanyisa trust during the
three-year period.
"To accelerate transformation, Sasol Khanyisa has been designed
to empower Black employee participants with 'rights to shares',"
said Cornell. These rights to shares, to be held in a trust, will
be exchanged for Sasol shares listed on the empowerment segment of
the JSE at the end of a 10-year period, after which employees will
be able to freely trade these shares or retain them as Sasol
shareholders.
The Sasol Inzalo Foundation will be renamed and will continue as
a public benefit organisation, driving excellence in science,
technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education at all
levels of the education value chain. The Sasol Inzalo Foundation
benefitted over 20 million learners in South African public schools
by way of 118 natural science, technology and mathematics school
work books that were developed. In addition, more than 800
bursaries and fellowships have been awarded to students at 16 South
African universities, to name but a few examples.
Sasol Khanyisa's ownership structure will be subject to
shareholder approval later this year.
"At Sasol, we believe that Broad-Based Black Economic
Empowerment is a key enabler for economic transformation and
inclusive growth, and is important for South Africa's long-term sustainability,"
Cornell said. "Sasol Khanyisa is an important vehicle for
transformation of the company, which we view as a strategic,
business and social imperative."
Note:
- Additional supporting information relating to Khanyisa is
available on Sasol's investor centre at http://www.sasol.com .
- Sasol will host a conference call and webcast at 15h00 (SA),
09h00 (EDT), on Thursday, 21 September
2017. The webcast can be accessed from
http://www.sasol.com.
Sasol may, in this document, make certain statements that are
not historical facts and relate to analyses and other information
which are based on forecasts of future results and estimates of
amounts not yet determinable. These statements may also relate to
our future prospects, developments and business strategies.
Examples of such forward looking statements include, but are not
limited to, statements regarding exchange rate fluctuations, volume
growth, increases in market share, total shareholder return,
executing our growth projects, (including LCCP), oil and gas
reserves and cost reductions, including in connection with our
BPEP, RP and our business performance outlook. Words such as
"believe", "anticipate", "expect", "intend", "seek", "will",
"plan", "could", "may", "endeavour", "target", "forecast" and
"project" and similar expressions are intended to identify such
forward-looking statements, but are not the exclusive means of
identifying such statements. By their very nature, forward-looking
statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general
and specific, and there are risks that the predictions, forecasts,
projections and other forward-looking statements will not be
achieved. If one or more of these risks materialise, or should
underlying assumptions prove incorrect, our actual results may
differ materially from those anticipated. You should understand
that a number of important factors could cause actual results to
differ materially from the plans, objectives, expectations,
estimates and intentions expressed in such forward-looking
statements. These factors are discussed more fully in our most
recent annual report on Form 20-F filed on 28 August 2017 and in other filings with the
United States Securities and Exchange Commission. The list of
factors discussed therein is not exhaustive; when relying on
forward-looking statements to make investment decisions, you should
carefully consider both these factors and other uncertainties and
events. Forward-looking statements apply only as of the date on
which they are made, and we do not undertake any obligation to
update or revise any of them, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise.
Please note: A billion is defined as one thousand million. All
references to years refer to the financial year 30 June.
Any reference to a calendar year is prefaced by the word
"calendar".
Comprehensive additional information is available on our
website: http://www.sasol.com
About Sasol:
Sasol is an international integrated chemicals and energy
company. Through our talented people, we use selected technologies
to safely and sustainably source, produce and market chemical and
energy products competitively to create superior value for our
customers, shareholders and other stakeholders.
Investor relations:
Cavan Hill
Senior Vice President: Investor Relations
Telephone: +27(0)10-344-9280
Alex Anderson
Head of Group Media Relations
Direct telephone: +27(0)10-344-6509
Mobile: +27(0)71-600-9605
alex.anderson@sasol.com
Matebello Motloung
Senior Specialist: Media Relations
Direct telephone: +27(0)11-344-9256
Mobile: +27(0)83-773-9457
matebello.motloung@sasol.com
SOURCE Sasol Limited