Precious and battery metals miner Sibanye-Stillwater has warned that it expects to report a 40% to 46% year-on-year decrease in earnings per share (EPS) and 46% to 51% decrease in headline earnings per share (HEPS) for the year ended December 31.

EPS is expected to be between R6.18 and R6.83, or between $0.38 and $0.42, for the year under review, compared with the EPS of R11.40, or $0.77, reported for 2021.

HEPS is likely to be between R6.19 and R6.84, or between $0.38 and $0.42, compared with HEPS of R12.72, or $0.86, for 2021.

The decrease in EPS and HEPS is the result of a three-month industrial action at the group's South African gold operations; severe weather in Montana, in the US, that resulted in a seven-week shutdown of the Stillwater operations; and lower platinum-group metals (PGMs) basket prices.

Meanwhile, production from the South African PGM operations of 1.73-million ounces of platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold (4E) was marginally below the lower end of guidance but was a solid performance considering the ongoing impact of electricity load curtailment, copper cable theft and proactive safety-related stoppages.

The South African gold operations were suspended for three months during the first half of 2022 as a result of industrial action which, together with a subsequent gradual ramp-up in production during the second half of the year, resulted in a 50% decline in production for 2022 to 441 623 oz.

Sibanye further reports that the ramp-up of production from the US PGM operations post the regional flood event in early June 2022, progressed well, with production rates having normalised during the fourth quarter. Mined platinum and palladium (2E) production for 2022 of 421 133 oz was 5% below the lower end of yearly guidance, reflecting the full impact of the flood event, as well as ongoing operational constraints which contributed to the repositioning of the US PGM operations as presented to the market in August 2022

“We have used 2022 to carefully navigate wage negotiations in both our South African gold and PGM operations and reposition the Montana operations for the current skills shortage and changing macro environment.

"The company is now well positioned to deliver an improved performance for 2023 through the normalisation of production rates at the South African gold and US PGM operations with the concomitant improved unit cost performance,” comments CEO Neal Froneman.

Sibanye will publish its results on February 28.