Thungela slides to R7.1bn full-year loss after R8.8bn impairment

Thungela Resources swung to a net loss of R7.1bn for the year ended 31 December 2025, after booking an R8.8bn non-cash asset impairment, the company said on 23 March 2026. Headline earnings per share fell 125% year-on-year, even though the group actually produced and sold more coal than in 2024.

Prices, not volumes, did the damage

Thungela's South African export coal price averaged $89.53 a tonne in 2025, down 20% from $105.30 a tonne the year before, while its Ensham mine in Australia realised $105.37 a tonne, 17% lower than 2024's $134.85 a tonne. Management pointed to persistently weak demand in key coal-consuming countries, as China and India both expanded domestic renewable generation and leaned less heavily on imported thermal coal.

The price slump came despite a decent operating year: South African saleable production rose to 13.85 million tonnes from 13.6 million tonnes, and total group saleable production increased to 17.8 million tonnes from 16.6 million tonnes, as Ensham's output eased only slightly to 3.99 million tonnes.

Impairment reflects a lower price outlook

The R8.8bn impairment is an accounting recognition that the discounted future cash flows of some assets no longer support their book value at prevailing coal price assumptions, rather than a sign of any operational failure. It is a familiar pattern for coal miners globally: even producers with efficient mines and improving logistics can be forced into writedowns when benchmark export prices fall for a sustained period.

What it means

The loss arrived just as South Africa's coal exporters were starting to benefit from Transnet's slowly recovering rail network, illustrating how commodity prices, not just logistics, remain the dominant swing factor for the sector's profitability. Thungela's management said the seaborne thermal coal market remained depressed for much of the year, a backdrop that makes the subsequent price recovery and improved first-half 2026 results, including the return to profit and a restored dividend, look like a genuine turnaround rather than a one-off bounce.

Sources

• Miningmx: Thungela slides into full year loss after R8.8bn asset impairment, 23 Mar 2026

Photo: Coal wagons near Piet Retief in South Africa's Mpumalanga coal-mining province. JMK, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.