Sedibelo Platinum expands Pilanesberg operation ahead of 2021 Jo’burg listing

SEDIBELO Platinum Mines (SPM) would press ahead with long-standing plans to list in Johannesburg and a second jurisdiction, possibly London, during 2021, said BusinessLive citing the firm’s chairman, Arne Frandsen.

“We’ve always said we are going to list, but until now valuations of PGM companies have been crazily low. Now we’re in a much better environment. So, for a listing, next year is a good year to do so,” he said.

Frandsen was commenting following an announcement by SPM it was expanding its Pilanesberg Platinum Mines into contiguous deposits of Sedibelo Central, Magazynskraal and Kruidfontein.

The properties are known as the “Triple Crown” with an estimated resource base in excess of 60 million 4PGE ounces – considered one of the world’s largest undeveloped PGM deposits, the company said.

“The predominantly shallow deposits will enable safe and sustainable mining activities for potentially more than 60 years. The approved expansion will be funded through Sedibelo’s existing cash resources and future cash flow. The first ounces from Triple Crown are expected to be extracted in 2023,” it said.

BusinessLive said the mine would produce between 400,000oz and 600,000 ounces a year of four platinum group metal (PGM) elements.

Concentrate from the expanded mine would feed a new Kell plant described by BusinessLive as innovative technology breakthrough. The Kell plant, with a capacity of 110,000 tons, will cost about $150m or R2.3bn to build over two years.

The plant accepts concentrate and delivers a final metal for the market, separating out the six metals making up PGMs and in a form the market needs, Frandsen told BusinessLive. “It’s the big competitive advantage for us,” he said.