JUBILEE Metals is considering selling its long-held Tjate platinum group metal (PGM) project after receiving expressions of interest in the South African asset, and as it puts its focus entirely on copper production in Zambia.
The AIM- and JSE AltX-listed company retained Tjate when it sold its South African chrome and PGM operations earlier this year. Jubilee Metals said on Monday “various companies” had since shown interest in Tjate which it was reviewing as part of a strategic review.
A sale would come as Jubilee Metals further reshapes its portfolio around its Zambian copper business.
The company is also in the process of selling its Large Waste Project (LWP) in Zambia for $35m, with an option for an accelerated settlement at $30m. Due diligence is expected to conclude shortly, after which a $2.25m deposit would be paid if successful.
Jubilee Metals said the changes represents its shift from mainly processing third-party material to an integrated copper mining, processing and refining business.
Its strategy now comprises third-party processing through Roan, refining at Sable and the development of its own mines and exploration projects.
Molefe, Jubilee’s first owned and operated mine, is central to building its own supply of copper feed for Sable. But the mine has yet to reach stable production.
Mining at Molefe was temporarily cut in the fourth quarter as Jubilee focused on faster pre-stripping and pit development to combine two pits into a larger open-pit operation. It aims to increase high-grade ore production to about 7,500 tons a month during October.
That level will be used to test if copper grades and the performance of the ore through Sable can be sustained. If successful, Jubilee Metals plans to move towards its project target of 10,000 tons a month before the end of 2026.
It said it would base production guidance on operations that had demonstrated “stable operating performance”, rather than assumptions about project ramp-ups.
Roan is currently the only operation included in Jubilee’s production forecast, with FY2027 output estimated at 2,850 tons to 3,150 tons of contained copper.
Molefe and Project G will be added to the forecast once they have showed they can perform stably and predictably.
Combined copper production before refining rose 225% to 3,739 tons in the year to June. Final copper products produced for sale increased 1.3% to 2,120 tons, with some copper remaining in process or stockpiled.
Jubilee Metals also faced higher input costs at Sable in the fourth quarter. Acid costs rose more than 200% amid tighter supplies, while diesel costs increased 90%.
It said the increases had a “marked impact” on production at the refinery.
The Tjate platinum project, situated in the Limpopo province on the Eastern Limb of the Bushveld Complex, emerged in 2003 when then Anglo subsidiary, Anglo Platinum released 12 farms back to government for empowerment deals in terms of the recently enacted MPRDA.
Tiego Moseneke’s New Platinum Corporation formed Tjate Platinum Corp into which Jubilee Platinum, then run by CEO and chair Colin Bird, bought a 25% stake in 2004. Jubilee slowly acquired control of the project but it has never found its way to development, always losing out when the cycle turned down.
According to Jubilee an independent study in 2011, Tjate was judged to contain a potential 65 million ounces of PGMs, but at depth.
