JOHANNESBURG: South African miner Harmony Gold on Tuesday posted a 94 percent plunge in first-half profit due to higher costs and depreciation, and a weaker rand.
Headline earnings per share (HEPS), the main profit measure in South Africa that strips out certain one-off items, came in at 14 cents ($0.0101) per share for the six months ended Dec. 31, 2018, compared with 224 cents per share a year earlier. This was in line with the company's forecast.
The company said depreciation rose mainly due to Hidden Valley's return to full production which contributed 896 million rand of the increase.
Harmony said its South African operations were also impacted by two months of higher winter electricity tariffs and annual wage increases.
All-in sustaining unit costs for the group increased by 6 percent to 528,265 rand per kilogram.
The miner said gold production rose 34 percent to 751,008 ounces, boosted by the inclusion of a full six months of Moab Khotsong and Hidden Valley operations.
"The group is on track to achieving annual production guidance of 1.45 million ounces of gold in FY19," said Harmony Chief Executive Officer Peter Steenkamp.
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