JOHANNESBURG, Feb. 8, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Sasol is expected to
deliver a mixed set of results for the six months ended
31 December 2021 (2022 financial half year).
Improved Brent crude oil price, refining margins and chemical
prices resulted in a notable gross margin improvement from the
prior half year, combined with strong cost and capital expenditure
performance. These benefits were partly offset by operational
challenges in our South African value chains which resulted in
lower production, as reported in our Business Performance Metrics
SENS announcement on 25 January
2022.
Sasol´s adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and
amortisation (adjusted EBITDA**) for the six months ended
31 December 2021 is expected to
increase by between 66% and 76% from R18,6 billion in the prior
half year, to between R30,9 billion and R32,7 billion. This is due
to a strong recovery in Brent crude oil and chemical prices, partly
offset by lower sales volumes for chemicals and energy.
Shareholders are advised that, for the 2022 financial half
year:
- Earnings per share (EPS) are expected to be between R22,81 and
R25,15 compared to the prior half year earnings per share of R23,41
(representing a change of between (3%) and 7%);
- Headline earnings per share (HEPS) are expected to be between
R14,25 and R16,17 compared to the prior half year headline earnings
per share of R19,16 (representing a decrease by between 16% and
26%); and
- Core HEPS (CHEPS*) are expected to be between R22,13 and R22,91
compared to the prior half year CHEPS of R7,86.
- Notable non-cash adjustments (before taxation) for the six
months ended 31 December 2021
include:
- Unrealised losses of R4,9 billion on the translation of
monetary assets and liabilities and valuation of financial
instruments and derivative contracts;
- Remeasurement items net gain of R5,8 billion, mainly due to a
gain of R4,9 billion on the realisation of the foreign currency
translation reserve (FCTR) on the divestment of Sasol Canada's
shale gas assets and a R1,4 billion reversal of impairment on the
Chemicals Work Up & Heavy Alcohols value chain due to a higher
price outlook on the back of a sustained increase in demand for
alcohols into the personal hygiene market during and post the
COVID-19 pandemic.
The financial information on which this trading statement is
based has not been reviewed and reported on by the Company's
external auditors.
Sasol will release its 2022 interim financial results on Monday,
21 February 2022. Sasol's President
and Chief Executive Officer, Fleetwood
Grobler, and Chief Financial Officer, Paul Victor, will present the results. The
pre-recorded presentation will be available on 21 February 2022 on the following link:
https://www.corpcam.com/Sasol21022022. Fleetwood Grobler and Paul Victor will host a conference call via
webcast on 21 February 2022 at 15h00
(SA time) to discuss the results and provide an update of the
business. Please confirm your participation by registering online:
https://www.corpcam.com/Sasol21022022Q.
* Core HEPS is calculated by adjusting headline earnings with
non-recurring items, earnings losses of significant capital
projects (exceeding R4 billion) which have reached beneficial
operation and are still ramping up, all translation gains and
losses (realised and unrealised), all gains and losses on our
derivatives and hedging activities (realised and unrealised), and
share-based payments on implementation of Broad-Based Black
Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) transactions. Adjustments in relation
to the valuation of our derivatives at period end are to remove
volatility from earnings as these instruments are valued using
forward curves and other market factors at the reporting date and
could vary from period to period. We believe core headline earnings
are a useful measure of the group´s sustainable operating
performance.
** Adjusted EBITDA is calculated by adjusting operating profit
for depreciation, amortisation, share-based payments, remeasurement
items, change in discount rates of our rehabilitation provisions,
all unrealised translation gains and losses, and all unrealised
gains and losses on our derivatives and hedging activities.
Adjusted EBITDA and Core HEPS are not defined terms under IFRS
and may not be comparable with similarly titled measures reported
by other companies. The aforementioned adjustments are the
responsibility of the directors of Sasol. The adjustments have been
prepared for illustrative purposes only and due to their nature,
may not fairly present Sasol´s financial position, changes in
equity, results of operations or cash flows.
For further information, please contact:
Sasol Investor Relations,
Tiffany Sydow, Investor Relations
Officer
Telephone: +27 (0) 71 673 1929
investor.relations@sasol.com
Disclaimer - Forward-looking statements
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, expectations, developments, and business
strategies. Examples of such forward-looking statements include,
but are not limited to, the impact of the novel coronavirus
(COVID-19) pandemic, and measures taken in response, on Sasol's
business, results of operations, markets, employees, financial
condition and liquidity; the effectiveness of any actions taken by
Sasol to address or limit any impact of COVID-19 on its business;
the capital cost of our projects and the timing of project
milestones; our ability to obtain financing to meet the funding
requirements of our capital investment programme, as well as to
fund our ongoing business activities and to pay dividends;
statements regarding our future results of operations and financial
condition, and regarding future economic performance including cost
containment, cash conservation programmes and business optimisation
initiatives; recent and proposed accounting pronouncements and
their impact on our future results of operations and financial
condition; our business strategy, performance outlook, plans,
objectives or goals; statements regarding future competition,
volume growth and changes in market share in the industries and
markets for our products; our existing or anticipated investments,
acquisitions of new businesses or the disposal of existing
businesses, including estimates or projection of internal rates of
return and future profitability; our estimated oil, gas and coal
reserves; the probable future outcome of litigation, legislative,
regulatory and fiscal developments, including statements regarding
our ability to comply with future laws and regulations; future
fluctuations in refining margins and crude oil, natural gas and
petroleum and chemical product prices; the demand, pricing and
cyclicality of oil, gas and petrochemical product prices; changes
in the fuel and gas pricing mechanisms in South Africa and their effects on prices, our
operating results and profitability; statements regarding future
fluctuations in exchange and interest rates and changes in credit
ratings; total shareholder return; our current or future products
and anticipated customer demand for these products; assumptions
relating to macroeconomics; climate change impacts and our climate
change strategies, our development of sustainability within our
Energy and Chemicals Businesses, our energy efficiency improvement,
carbon and GHG emission reduction targets, our net zero carbon
emissions ambition and future low-carbon initiatives, including
relating to green hydrogen and sustainable aviation fuel; our
estimated carbon tax liability; cyber security; and statements of
assumptions underlying such statements. Words such as "believe",
"anticipate", "expect", "intend", "seek", "will", "plan", "could",
"may", "endeavour", "target", "forecast" and "project" and similar
expressions are intended to identify 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 and others are
discussed more fully in our most recent annual report on Form 20-F
filed on 22 September 2021 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 foregoing
factors and other uncertainties and events, and you should not
place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. 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.
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SOURCE Sasol Limited