The strong rand and volatile oil price offset volume growth at Sasol’s local and Eurasian operations in the year to June and will be reflected in a decrease of 11% to 21% in headline earnings, the company says. Although Sasol’s earnings a share will rise by 48% to 58% compared with 2016, they are distorted as the company suffered a R9.9bn impairment of the group’s Canadian shale gas assets that year. Sasol is SA’s largest listed energy company, selling liquid fuels, gas and chemicals. It operates globally and recently began work on a chemicals complex in Lake Charles, Louisiana. By the end of June, Sasol had spent $7.5bn on Lake Charles, which was now 74% complete, joint CEOs Bongani Nqwababa and Stephen Cornell said on Tuesday. In 2016, Sasol alarmed the market by announcing an increase in the project’s cost from $9bn to $11bn. The group’s shares added 3.68% to R385.63 after the announcement as oil firmed and the rand weakened. Despite its substantial chemicals business, Sasol shar...
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