Thungela Resources Ltd said on Thursday it had signed an agreement with the state-owned transport utility Transnet SOC Ltd, changing terms of the existing long-term coal transportation agreement.

This comes after Transnet in April declared a force majeure, terminating the long-term agreements with local coal exporters as it battled with ongoing legal matters related to the irregular locomotive acquisition, maintenance contracts, as well as the vandalism of the coal line.

Transnet provides a crucial rail service for exporters like Thungela, transporting coal from fields in Mpumalanga to the privately held port Richards Bay Coal Terminal.

In terms of the amended contract, Thungela said on Thursday Transnet has declared a minimum contractual rail capacity of 60 million tonnes for its financial year ending March 2023, which will be reviewed by Transnet on a six-monthly basis with a view to increasing this.

The deed of amendment to the long-term agreement covers the balance of the tenure that expires on March 31, 2024.

Transnet hauled about 53.3 million tonnes on its railway line for the year to June 30, compared to over 70 million tonnes at the same time in 2020 and earlier years.

Thungela said it did not believe that the agreement will have a material impact on its operational outlook.

In interim results released on Monday, the company said it had revised its full-year export saleable production guidance downward to 13.0 million tonnes and 13.6 million tonnes for 2022, down from 14.0 million tonnes to 15.0 million tonnes forecast previously.

Annual export coal production was at 15.0 million tonnes in 2021.

Thungela was spun off from Anglo American PLC in June last year and was then listed on both the London and Johannesburg stock exchanges in the same month.

Its shares were 2.1% higher at 1,611.00 pence each in London on Thursday morning. In Johannesburg, the stock rose by 3.4% to R 320.79.

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