Omnia Holdings CEO discusses strong agricultural and mining outlook amid global challenges

The global outlook for agriculture and mining remains fundamentally strong, with rising global populations and urbanisation driving the demand for food, technology, and basic materials, said Omnia Holdings CEO Seelan Gobalsamy.

This is in spite of a global macroeconomic environment that is likely to remain challenging, and a subdued economic growth outlook for South Africa. Globally, geopolitical tensions, conflicts, and trade disruptions could continue to impact energy and commodity markets, and increasing trade tariffs may affect international trade flows and economic stability, he said in the group’s annual report released on Tuesday.

JSE-listed Omnia is a global, diversified chemicals group supplying chemicals and specialised services and solutions that are mainly manufactured in Sasolburg, to the agriculture, mining, and chemicals application industries in 23 countries. The group is well positioned to meet demand in the agriculture and mining sectors, he said.

“In our Chemicals segment, the 2026 financial year will be a significant transition year, in which non-core assets and business lines will be sold, capital released and returns improved. This is in line with the strategic restructuring initiatives we have undertaken to ensure the long-term sustainability and profitability of Protea Chemicals,” he said.

“We continue to execute our strategy with clarity and discipline, expanding our global footprint and reinforcing the competitiveness of our core operations. The leadership team remains steadfast in the belief that long-term value is built through disciplined capital allocation, operational excellence, customer-centric innovation, and a relentless commitment to sustainability,” he said.

He said that in the context of heightened global and regional volatility, businesses were now required to operate with increased agility, discipline, and resilience, and this was reflected in their performance for the 2025 financial year.

During the year, the Mining segment continued its "outstanding growth trajectory", achieving increased volumes, improved profitability, and stronger margins, he said.

The Agriculture segment performed resiliently, as Agriculture RSA delivered near-record volumes and higher margins, while this was offset by weaker performance in the Rest of Africa. This was further complemented by a strong contribution from the Agriculture International operations.

In the past year, operating profit remained broadly in line with the prior year at R1.7 billion despite costs associated with the Protea Chemicals restructuring, increased credit loss provisions in the Agriculture Rest of Africa business, and currency volatility. Headline earnings a share increased by 1% to 704 cents.

Growth in the core business was underpinned by the execution of several growth initiatives. In Sasolburg, Ammonium Nitrate storage (ANS) capacity was doubled, enhancing operational resilience and enabling the onboarding of new customer contracts.

There was continued investment in integrated manufacturing and supply chain capabilities, facilitating market share gains across front-facing segments, including Agriculture, Mining, and ammonia derivatives sales, he said.

The group returned R1.1bn to shareholders in the 2025 year via 400 cents a share ordinary dividends and a special dividend of 275 cents per share, and share buybacks.

The report showed Gobalsamy’s remuneration, in a single digit and including incentives, fell to R36.8 million for 2025, compared to R86.52m the previous year - the 2024 year included R56.24m of long-term incentive shares that vested. His basic salary increased by 16.1% to R9.09m.

Omnia’s share price was steady at 79.61 on Tuesday afternoon, a price that was over 21% higher than 12 months before.

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