PATRICE Mostepe, non-executive chairperson of African Rainbow Minerals (ARM), appeared to distance himself from a bid for the ANC presidency, saying he was better employed “outside politics”.
Speaking at ARM’s interim results presentation in Johannesburg on Friday, Motsepe said: “As has always been our position, the best place for us to play and make that contribution is outside politics. I said this 20 years ago and I said it five years ago.
“The minute you run for votes, you deviate from the broader objectives and the broader benefit for all South Africans.”
In a typically swerving monologue, consisting of multiple digressions, Motsepe also denied accusations he was subverting ANC regulations amid online “PM27” campaigns, referencing the ANC’s national conference in December 2027 at which a new party president is to be appointed.
“I have a duty to answer these questions to you, because I’m chairman of African Rainbow Minerals, a company we started many, many years ago. But let’s try and do what I do — I ignore these things,” said Motsepe on his political ambitions. “It’s false, it’s unfounded. I would never go and fund people to buy [campaign caps]. And “PM27” — that could also mean post meridian,” he said to laughter from the audience.
ARM announced in February Motsepe had relinquished his position as executive chair and was retiring as an employee of the company – a function of the JSE’s ‘Simplification Project’ which forbids a person from working as executive chair and CEO positions.
At the results presentation, Philip Tobias, CEO of ARM, said Motsepe’s remuneration cost as an executive director would be replaced by lower non-executive director fees in the group’s corporate overhead structure. “He ceases to be an employee of the company,” he said.
“So what you would have previously seen in terms of salary, long-term incentive, and short-term incentives falls away. He would be earning non-executive director fees, like our other board members, going forward. You would see that coming through to the numbers in corporate costs,” he said.
Motsepe received total remuneration of R38.46m in 2025 including a R19m guaranteed package and a R12.8m cash bonus, according to ARM’s latest annual report. As a 45.9% shareholder in ARM, Motsepe also receives a commensurate cut of corporate profits. For the 2025 financial year this was R575m, a year-on-year decline of 47%.
ARM had improved platinum group metal prices, and a R116m dividend from its 12% stake in Harmony Gold to thank for a 10% year-on-year lift in interim earnings (to end-December 2025), equal to R8.66/share.
At the basic earnings level ARM reported a 69% year-on-year improvement to R2,35bn. The difference between headline and basic earnings was due to the inclusion of a profit on disposal of ARM’s Sakura manganese processing facility and a gain on ARM’s stake in the Nkomati nickel mine in which the group bought control in the period.
Elsewhere in ARM there was pressure. The group’s ferrous division posted a 34% decline in headline earnings driven significantly by a weaker manganese performance, while the coal division lost R271m (2025 H1: +R182m). In both divisions lower prices were blamed.
Despite this ARM announced a R5/share interim dividend (R4.50/share). Net cash increased to R8.46bn compared to R6.6bn as of June 30.
