Sibanye investors want ‘Mr Fix-It’ Froneman back
Once the antidote to an indebted and growth-obsessed industry, Sibanye now has the second-highest debt in the sector, thanks to its foray into platinum — and it’s making people nervous
In 2013, Sibanye Gold was marketed as the antidote to an indebted and growth-obsessed gold mining industry. Today, its borrowings are the second-highest in the sector and the company is digesting its biggest deal yet. Sibanye, spun off from Gold Fields four years ago under mining industry veteran Neal Froneman, was supposed to be a steady, dividend-paying operator of three ageing but profitable South African gold mines. Since then, Froneman has pursued acquisitions outside gold, to the extent that Sibanye will produce more ounces of platinum group metals than bullion this year. The $2.2bn takeover of Stillwater Mining this year has left Sibanye with net borrowings more than double its annual earnings and the company cancelled its dividend last month. The executive who earned the nickname Mr Fix-It for his turnaround successes in the 1990s now needs to show he can run the new mines profitably and reduce debt. "We’ve seen Neal the deal maker and we want to see more a Neal-of-old comin...
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