South African petrochemicals company Sasol has announced that Walt Bruns will take over as the chief financial officer, replacing Hanre Rossouw from the start of next month. Rossouw resigned from the company to pursue a different career opportunity after two years with the company and will be leaving on Aug. 31. Bruns, who currently serves as the finance chief of Sasol’s southern African operations, takes on the new role at a challenging time for the company. Sasol issued a profit warning on Monday, citing heavy writedowns on the carrying value of its chemicals and fuel assets due to weaker prices.
Sasol expects to report a basic loss per share of between 68.82 rand and 71.48 rand for the year to June 30, compared with basic earnings per share of 14 rand the previous year. The company’s shares opened with a 1% decline on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and have slid by 31% since the start of the year.