Anglo American Platinum Ltd. said first-half profit likely fell as much as 75% due to lower metal prices and after power outages and a smelter rebuild cut sales volumes.
Earnings declined as the price of rhodium and palladium slumped 47% and 29% respectively, from a year earlier, the Johannesburg-based company known as Amplats said Monday in a statement. Sales volumes dropped 12% after maintenance at its Polokwane smelter and load curtailment by state-owned power utility Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd.
Amplats expects profit for the period to be between 6.6 billion rand ($364 million) and 9.3 billion rand, down from 26.7 billion rand a year earlier. Profit before some one-time items, known as headline earnings, also likely dropped by as much as 75%, it said.
Read: Amplats Sees 1H EPS Between 65% and 75% Lower y/y
Amplats, a unit of Anglo American Plc, is scheduled to publish sales and production results for the six months on July 20 and will release earnings for the period on July 24.
