Sibanye to create gold holding firm

SIbanye-Stillwater is overhauling its corporate structure and will create a holding company for its gold assets, months after it took over platinum producer Lonmin. Picture: Reuters/Siphiwe Sibeko/File Photo
JOHANNESBURG – Sibanye-Stillwater is overhauling its corporate structure and will create a holding company for its gold assets, months after it took over platinum producer Lonmin. 
The company told investors after the market closed on Friday that the move would boost efficiency and flexibility. It proposed acquiring 100 percent of the issued capital of Sibanye-Gold Limited (SGL) through a scheme of arrangement that is subject to certain conditions being met, including approval by SGL shareholders, the South African Reserve Bank and the JSE. 
“SGL is proposing that, as contemplated under the scheme, Sibanye-Stillwater acquires the entire issued share capital of SGL in exchange for the issue and allotment of shares in Sibanye-Stillwater to the SGL shareholders. Sibanye-Stillwater will serve as the holding company for the group,” it said. SGL directly holds the Kloof and Driefontein mines in Gauteng and the Beatrix operation in the Free State. All three operations were hit by a five month-long wage strike that ended in April.

Sibanye-Stillwater said its gold assets would be included as a subsidiary of a new holding company, to be listed with the same shareholders and exactly the same shares in the new holding company to be issued to existing shareholders. “The new holding company will replicate the corporate governance structures and policies of Sibanye Gold Limited. 
This will be achieved through a proposed scheme of arrangement. The new holding company will be called Sibanye-Stillwater and the gold subsidiary will retain the name Sibanye Gold Limited,” the group said. 
It said the move was aimed at creating a structure where its gold and platinum group metal (PGM) portfolios were each held within their own distinct legal entities. 
The group said subsequent to the implementation of the scheme, it expected the shareholding of Sibanye Platinum to be reorganised, resulting in all of the issued shares in Sibanye Platinum being held directly by Sibanye-Stillwater and not held directly by SGL, which will be a Sibanye-Stillwater subsidiary. 
The group’s South African PGM assets include the Kroondal, Rustenburg, Platinum Mile operations and the Marikana operations, which were acquired as part of the Lonmin acquisition. 
Sibanye-Stillwater, which also owns PGM, gold and copper operations in the US, Canada and Argentina last month said that it would axe more than 5 000 jobs at the loss-making Marikana operations. 
In February, Sibanye-Stillwater entered into consultation with stakeholders regarding the possible restructuring of its gold operations following ongoing financial losses experienced at the Beatrix 1 and Driefontein 2, 6, 7 and 8 shafts last year. In June, the company said that it had reduced the number of workers to be laid off to 3 450 after concluding the section 189 consultation process. About 5 870 employees and 800 contractors were potentially going to be affected by the restructuring. Sibanye-Stillwater closed 2.17 percent lower at R23 on Friday.
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Source: iol.co.za