Petrochemicals giant Sasol says it expects to report at least a 20% year-on-year improvement in headline earnings a share for the financial year ending June 30.

It posted a headline loss a share of R11.79 for the year ended June 30, 2020.

Earnings a share are also expected to improve by at least 20%, compared with a loss a share of R147.45 reported for the 2020 financial year.

The company will release its financial results around August 16.

Meanwhile, in a production and sales metrics report for the nine months ended March 31, 2021, Sasol says it continues to see strong recovery in demand for liquid fuels and gas, following the easing of Covid-19 restrictions over the past year.

However, the company advises that jet fuel demand remains constrained.

Sasol notes that its integrated value chain continued delivering a strong financial performance and benefitted from the company’s cost discipline, as well as higher demand.

On the mining side, Sasol says its mining productivity rate continues to trend higher than the prior year; however, external purchases were required in the nine months under review to achieve the Secunda Synfuels operation’s planned production.

This while export coal sales have been improving, with the company taking advance of high export prices to maximise profitability.

Sasol’s operations, in the midstream, delivered a satisfactory performance and have been seeing more stable run-rates since the start of April. At the company’s Natref refinery, Sasol and its partner managed to reduce its run rates to respond to lower market demand, while they ran Secunda Synfuels at full rates to maximise margins.

Sasol’s Synfuels business is expected to deliver at the lower end of a between 7.6-million- and 7.7-million-tonne production guidance range for the full year.

In Mozambique, the company has continued to maintain stable operations in its gas production business.

In the downstream, despite the cutback at Natref and lower jet fuel demand, Sasol still expects to deliver liquid fuels sales volumes of between 54-million and 55-million barrels for the full year, in line with previous market guidance.