Nov. 20: This post has been updated to reflect stock and net worth figures as of November 9, the date we used to measure fortunes for the 2012 Africa's 40 Richest List.
It has been a dark year for South African mining, marred most notably by the devastating murder of 34 miners by police on August 16, in what is now known as the "Marikana massacre." That event, which took place at a Lonmin-owned mine (LSE:LMI), marked the deadliest labor violence South Africa has seen since apartheid’s end in 1994, and sparked a larger wave of protests that have left Africa’s largest economy shaken.
The ensuing impact on South Africa's resource economy has been massive. South Africa’s National Treasury measures the production losses at $1.14 billion (10.1 billion rand). The prolific strikes have impacted numerous companies in the market. Kitco News has a thorough round-up of that group here on Forbes.com.
One company that saw little trouble from the protests is Assore, chaired by 70-year-old Desmond Sacco. Sacco owns roughly 33 million shares, just under a quarter of the company, and while other mining outfits have been struggling with lower revenues and profits in light of the protests, Assore's stock price has risen steadily. This time last year, shares in the company were worth roughly $23.75 (210 Rand), but are now around $40.68 (360 rand) -- a 66% increase. That rise has pushed Sacco into billionaire territory. His shares of Assore are worth $1.4 billion.
Assore's strong stock price is due in part to higher earnings at Assmang, of which Assore owns 50% (African Rainbow Minerals, from which South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe derives the bulk of his fortune, owns the other 50%). In Assmang's latest fiscal year, which ended in June, net income rose 19% to $780 million (6.9 billion rand) as iron ore production grew to 14 million tonnes at the Khumani Iron Ore Mine. In addition to Assmang, Assore owns 100% of Wonderstone, African Mining and Trust Company, Ore & Metal Company and Zeerust Chrome Mines.
Desmond Sacco traces his stake in the company back to 1928, when his father, Guido Sacco, established Gloucester Manganese Mines. Guido went on to acquire other mining interests and later formed Assore Group, which listed its shares on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange more than 60 years ago. Desmond, a geologist, joined the Assore Group in 1968, was appointed to the group's board in 1974 and, upon Guido's 1992 retirement, was appointed Chairman and Managing Director. In his younger years, he played cricket and hockey at the University of South Africa. He is also a mineral collector, and has published "The Desmond Sacco Collection," the product of 40 years of collecting mineral specimens from South Africa's "premier mineral-producing localities"
Assore representatives did not respond to emails from FORBES about Sacco's new billionaire status.
Assore has other connections to South Africa's richest. Following the end of apartheid, the company transferred 11.76% of its ownership to Shanduka Resources, a a subsidiary of Shanduka Group, founded by Cyril Ramaphosa in 2001 as a black-owned investment holding company, to adhere to Black Economic Empowerment standards. In August 2011, Shanduka sold its stake for 2.7 billion rand ($305 million), having acquired it for 280 million rand ($31.5 million) in 2005, realizing a gain of nearly $275 million. Ramaphosa continues to hold a personal stake in the company worth roughly $200 million.
Last year Ramaphosa appeared on Forbes' first-ever list of Africa's 40 Richest, clocking in with a net worth estimated at $275 million. The centimillionaire is considered to be a possible contender to replace current President Jacob Zuma as the head of the ruling African National Congress party and is historically considered a labor hero. In 1987, he led 300,000 miners in a three-week pay strike. However, court proceedings surrounding the Marikana massacre have revealed emails that show Ramaphosa, whose Shanduka also owns 9% of Lonmin, referring to the protest as a "criminal" act, and encouraging police involvement.
The South African mining industry is slowly returning to normal as protests wane in the face of increased government involvement. Now the rest of the industry has the unenviable job of playing catch-up to Sacco's seemingly impervious Assore.
