The State-owned Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) slumped to a R4.7-billion loss for its 2025/26 financial year from a profit of R329-million on the back of losses reported by associate companies and subsidiaries, notably Foskor.
The phosphate rock miner and fertiliser producer’s Richards Bay acid plant was placed into care and maintenance during the year after the supply of sulphur and ammonia, which are key inputs, was heavily disrupted by developments linked to the US/Israel war on Iran.
The prices of sulphur and ammonia have also reportedly tripled since the start of the war, making the resumption of production commercially unviable.
Foskor’s operations had already been impacted prior to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz by two fatalities and mine flooding; incidents that resulted in the suspension of operations for a number of weeks.
The company’s operational losses were recorded at R1.2-billion, but the IDC also reversed a deferred tax benefit of R1.6-billion on uncertainty over whether it would be realised in the coming five years.
