THE South African government awarded a mining right to Southern Palladium’s Bengwenyama project, the exploration and development firm said today.
Johan Odendaal, MD of Southern Palladium, described the award – for a 30-year period – as a “pivotal catalyst”, adding that it paved the way towards early development of the prospect.
Mining right awards are no small matter given the extended wait times miners in South Africa endure owing to the under-resourced Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources (DMPR).
The Bengwenyama project is a potential future PGM mine on the Eastern Limb of the Bushveld Complex, adjacent to the Valterra/African Rainbow Minerals Modikwa Mine. In July last year, Southern Palladium adjusted its plans in terms of which the mine would be built in two phases, lowering peak funding to $279m from $452m previously.
First-phase output of 200,000 ounces of platinum group metals in concentrate is targeted, compared with Southern Palladium’s October 2024 prefeasibility report, which envisaged a single-stage project averaging 400,000 oz/year over about 20 years.
“With the Mining Right in hand, we can continue to progress the DFS [definitive feasibility study] completion, fast-track the project execution plan and operational readiness activities, to mobilise contractors for decline and box-cut works and start early works at the project,” said Odendaal.
The DFS is planned for completion by the fourth quarter. In April, the company doubled expected recoveries of chromefrom Bengwenyama to 65% from 30% previously, equal to nearly 400,000 tons a year of concentrate from a 100,000t/month ore feed. Roger Baxter, chair of Southern Palladium, said the prospect of producing more chrome from Bengwenyama was “particularly encouraging”.
Southern Palladium also lodged an environmental guarantee with the DMPR as part of the project’s development requirements.
