Anglo American Platinum announces the launch of a new employee share ownership plan (“ESOP”), envisaged to be implemented during Q4 2022. The ESOP will see employees receiving Anglo American Platinum listed shares to the value of R8,000 each per year, in addition to participation in the evergreen ownership of 2% of Rustenburg Platinum Mines (“RPM”), the operating subsidiary of Anglo American Platinum. The estimated total value of the employee share allocations over the life of the scheme is approximately R1.8 billion and the estimated day 1 value of the 2% evergreen shares, based on the 30-day volume-weighted average price (VWAP) of Anglo American Platinum shares as at 27 September 2022, is R6.5 billion.

The ESOP will allow permanent employees, excluding executives and other management who already participate in share incentive schemes, to receive shares, thereby benefitting directly from the company’s performance across our operations in South Africa and Zimbabwe, both through dividends declared and share price appreciation. This is the third ESOP for the organisation and will replace the second ESOP, which expires this month when the final 2020 allocation vests.

Under the terms of the new ESOP, qualifying employees will be allocated Anglo American Platinum listed shares of R8,000 each per year, with each tranche vesting three years after allocation. Subject to compliance with the relevant JSE Listings Requirements, these shares will either be purchased from RPM (being Anglo American Platinum shares held as treasury shares) or purchased in the market on an annual basis for the purposes of allocating to qualifying employees under the ESOP (at an annual cash outflow of approximately R170 million). Once shares have vested, employees will have the option to sell or retain their shares.  

The ESOP also has a new evergreen component in addition to the annual share allocation. As part of the evergreen component, ESOP trusts will be established in which an aggregate 2% of the shares of RPM, will be held into perpetuity on behalf of qualifying employees. The purchase of these shares will be fully funded by the company, and qualifying employees will be entitled to receive dividends as and when RPM declares a dividend.

Executive head of human resources, Virginia Tyobeka said, “Guided by our purpose, to re-imagine mining to improve people’s lives, we are committed to driving shared value creation for all our stakeholders. Every colleague in our business plays a crucial role in mining and processing the metals that enable so much of our everyday lives and a cleaner future for our planet. As an organisation, we are deeply committed to ensuring that our colleagues can benefit from sustainable livelihoods and are rewarded for the hard work that they do. We will be working hard to ensure that everyone understands how the new scheme will be implemented, and that they are empowered to manage their interest in our company sustainably.”