Group CEO Andries van Heerden said that Afrimat had delivered robust results on the back of favourable iron ore prices, the expeditious turnaround of Nkomati Anthracite mine (‘Nkomati’), the establishment of the Jenkins mine, and the return to pre-Covid-19 volumes in the Construction Materials and Industrial Minerals segments, all of which translated into strong operating cash flows.
He said that the Group’s solid track record of augmenting acquisitions as part of its diversification strategy and cost management and efficiency improvement initiatives enabled it to continue delivering good growth. He added that future growth, sustainability and access to exciting new products and markets are enhanced by new long-life projects such as the recently announced Glenover phosphate, rare earth minerals and vermiculite project and the Gravenhage manganese mine.
“The latter is due to contribute to the 2024 financial year, while Driehoekspan and Doornpan are iron ore reserves that will come online in the future to ensure the sustainability of our iron ore export business,” said van Heerden.
Afrimat secured an operating profit margin of 23.7% compared to 24% in the previous year, with headline earnings per share increasing by 22.9%, from 441.7 cents to 542.9 cents.
Van Heerden said that all Afrmiat operating units remain strategically positioned to deliver outstanding service to customers whilst acting as an efficient hedge against volatile local business conditions given the product diversification they represent. During the full-year reporting period, Afrimat created more than 500 jobs, taking total Group employees to over 2,500.
Looking ahead, Van Heerden said Afrimat is poised to capitalise on strategic initiatives and future opportunities. “Our future growth will continue to be driven by the successful execution of our proven strategy, recent acquisitions and a wider product offering to the market, with several exciting opportunities being investigated.”
