Royal Bafokeng Platinum to stop trading on JSE tomorrow

Impala Platinum Holdings (Implats) announced today that Royal Bafokeng Platinum (RBPlat) shares would be suspended from trading on the JSE from Wednesday, 2 August 2023. 

Last week, Implats announced it had completed its acquisition of RBPlat. The company currently holds 98.73% of RBPlat’s issued ordinary share capital. 

Implats recently confirmed its intention to invoke the Companies Act to compulsorily acquire all of the RBPlat shares not already held by it.

“If any of the remaining RBPlat shareholders wish to oppose Implats compulsorily acquiring their Remaining RBPlat Shares, such remaining RBPlat shareholders are advised that they are entitled to make an application to Court in terms of section 124(2) of the Companies Act within 30 business days after receiving the notice, seeking an order in terms of that section,” the company told shareholders today.

The acquisition process is expected to be completed in September, after which RBPlat shares will be delisted from the JSE.

RBPlat released its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2023 today, which revealed a struggling company.

The mining company reported an 85.1% decrease in EBITDA to R507.4 million (H1 2022: R3. 41 billion).

It also saw its headline earnings per share drop by more than 114%, swinging from a profit of 767.3 cents per share to a loss of 113.8 cents.

It also went from a gross profit of R2.79 billion to a loss of R394.9 million – a 114.2% decrease.

The company attributed these weak results to a tough operating environment, characterised by a decline in the basket price combined with ongoing inflationary pressure on the business’ operating costs.

It said the weakening rand against the US dollar also drove higher-than-expected inflation, further exacerbating its cost pressures.

RBPlat was founded in 2008 and listed on the JSE in 2010.

Below is a timeline of events over the coming months leading up to RBPlats’ delisting.