Sibanye joins mining profit boom as earnings expected to jump 560%

Sibanye-Stillwater is the latest miner to report a spectacular improvement in earnings, driven by rising precious metals prices.

The platinum and gold producer expects earnings per share (EPS) of between 597 cents and 658 cents (ZAR) for the six months to June 2026 – an improvement of more than 560% from the loss of 127 cents reported a year earlier, according to a trading statement issued on Thursday.

Headline earnings per share (Heps) are expected to come in at between 571c and 631c, more than three times the 190c recorded in the first half of 2025.

This continues a run of excellent results from miners benefitting from sharply higher gold, platinum group metals (PGMs), copper and silver prices.

Sibanye’s shares are up 14% over seven days and nearly 40% over the last 30 days.

Sibanye has lagged many of its precious metals peers this year, with its share price falling from a high of about R85 in January to below R50, suggesting investors remain wary of its complicated portfolio, relatively heavy debt burden and recent record of impairments.

Unlike more focused gold producers such as Gold Fields and Harmony, Sibanye’s stronger assets are funding its cash-hungry lithium, nickel, zinc and recycling operations.

Its Keliber lithium project in Finland recorded impairments totalling R7.8 billion in 2025, while the US Stillwater operations posted repeated write-downs following the collapse in palladium prices.

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Those concerns may be starting to ease as higher metal prices lift cash generation across the group.

Sibanye says revenue less cost of sales, before depreciation and amortisation, is expected to have more than doubled in the latest six-month period.

SA operations shine

The standout performer was its South African gold division, including DRDGold, where adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) increased by about 85%.

The gold division includes Kloof, Driefontein and Beatrix mines, with PGMs centred around its Rustenburg, Marikana and Kroondal operations.

The average rand gold price received rose 35%, while gold sales increased 5%, more than compensating for a 2% decline in production and a 14% increase in all-in sustaining costs to R1.64 million per kilogram.

The South African PGM operations delivered even stronger profit growth, with adjusted Ebitda increasing by roughly 300%.

Production was largely unchanged at 831 307 ounces of PGMs and gold. The average rand PGM basket price jumped 67% and sales volumes rose 12%. All-in sustaining costs increased 10%, partly because royalties rose in line with metal prices.

The US PGM operations benefitted from a 70% increase in the average dollar basket price, despite production declining 2%.

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Sibanye’s recycling operations processed and sold 2.79 million precious metal ounces, an increase of 142%, following stronger output at its Pennsylvania facility and the integration of the North Carolina operation acquired in September 2025.

Century, its Australian zinc retreatment operation, increased adjusted Ebitda by about 50% despite lower production and higher costs.

Tax credits 

The comparison with the previous year is complicated by R5.1 billion in US Section 45X tax credits recognised in the first half of 2025, most of which related to earlier years.

Sibanye says the underlying improvement is therefore even stronger than the reported numbers suggest.

Section 45X credits are US tax incentives intended to encourage domestic production of critical minerals, including platinum and palladium.

The full results, due on 1 September, should show whether the commodity windfall is translating into lower debt, stronger free cash flow and improved returns to shareholders.

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