* H1 headline EPS 76.04 cts vs 139.22 cts
* H1 saleable coal output down 16 pct
* Cuts FY export production outlook
(Adds detail)
JOHANNESBURG, Feb 9 (Reuters) – Optimum Coal,
the takeover target of top commodity trader Glencore,
on Thursday forecast a better second half after strikes at one
of its mines hit output and led to a 45 percent drop in
first-half profit.
Optimum said headline earnings per share for the six months
to the end of December were 76.04 cents, compared to 139.22
cents previously. Headline EPS are the main profit gauge in
South Africa and strip out certain one-time items.
Optimum said first-half production of saleable coal fell 16
percent to 5.9 million tonnes.
Production of coal destined for exports fell 20 percent to
2.9 million tonnes, while output of coal destined for power
utility Eskom slumped 11 percent to 3 million tonnes.
The company, South Africa’s sixth largest coal producer, cut
its full-year guidance for export saleable production from
Optimum Collieries to between 4.6-4.8 million tonnes on the back
of the labour disputes.
The company had initially forecast for Optimum Collieries to
deliver between 5.3-5.5 million tonnes of coal destined for
exports. The revision should impact Optimum’s previous full-year
guidance of total coal output of around 13.7 million tonnes.
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