Explosives and speciality chemicals company AECI expected its earnings a share (EPS) and headline earnings a share (HEPS) for 2012 to decline by between 21% and 28%, owing to strike action in the mining and transport industries.
EPS and HEPS would be further impacted on by the recognition of noncash costs of R168-million, the company said in a trading statement.
Some R30-million of this charge related to the AECI Employees Share Trust component of the transaction and R138-million was a one-off amount pertaining to the AECI Community Education and Development Trust.
“The combined effect of these charges and the additional 4.7-million AECI ordinary shares issued in terms of the broad-based black economic-empowerment (BBBEE) transactions is estimated to reduce HEPS by 151c for the year,” the company said.
The group’s BBBEE transactions were most adversely affected by labour disruptions across the mining and manufacturing production sectors, which were already under pressure owing to prevailing global trading conditions
AECI’s financial results for the year would be released on February 26.