An expanded African footprint boosted JSE-listed Group Five’s earnings for the year to June, with headline earnings expected to be between 145% and 165% higher than the headline earnings achieved in the previous financial year.

The construction and infrastructure group pointed out that headline earnings per share (Heps) would increase from the 116c reported in the prior year to between 284c and 307c per share.

“Emphasis on a larger geographic footprint for more of the group’s business units, the beneficial contribution of the group’s strategic positioning for annuity-type businesses of investments and concessions, manufacturing and operations and maintenance contracts, as well as the group’s strong position in African mining and energy . . . mitigated, to an extent, the effects of continued fragility in the South African building and civil engineering markets,” the group said in a statement to shareholders in late July.

Fully diluted Heps from continuing operations would be between 310c and 345c per share – 75% to 95% higher than the 177c recorded in the prior financial year.

Group Five also expected fully diluted earnings per share and earnings per share to turn around from a loss of 288c a share in 2012 to between 265c and 290c in 2013.

These included provisions for possible administrative penalties – the value of which was not yet disclosed – on four contracts that did not fall within the group’s leniency agreement with the Competition Commission.

In June, the commission levied a collective R1.46-billion fine on 15 of the 18 construction companies found liable for collusive tendering between 2006 and 2011.

Group Five was the first major construction company to approach the Competition Commission for leniency, which it received in return for information.

The group obtained a leniency position on 25 contracts, as it supported the commission’s investigation into the construction industry and undertook its own internal scrutiny into its previous behaviour.

Group Five will publish its financial results on August 12.