NORTHAM Platinum said it had signed a new five-year wage deal with the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) for members at the firm’s Zondereinde mine.
The agreement, the details of which were not disclosed, is effective from July and “… assures Zondereinde employees of increases to all major components of remuneration over the next five years”. Consideration was taken of “inflationary pressures faced by our employees”, said Northam.
Said Northam: “The agreement provides both Northam and our Zondereinde employees with certainty and allows a singular focus on the pursuit of safe and sustainable production”.
Paul Dunne, CEO of Northam Platinum, has among the most optimistic of views on the platinum group metal (PGM) market saying elevated prices of the last two years could be expected to continue for the next 10 years.
Northam produced 352,741 ounces of 4E PGMs in the six months ended December, a 15% year-on-year increase, and has a medium-term target of reaching annual production of about one million ounces of PGMs.
Speaking in March, Dunne said that Northam’s three mines/projects: Zondereinde, Booysendal (and Booysendal South), and Eland Platinum, were replete with optionality and could support yet further production growth beyond a million oz.
“We will double production by the middle of the decade … We are also considering our next phase of growth,” he said, adding that: “I think we can look forward to improved returns”.
Said Dunne today of the Zondereinde wage agreement: “We appreciate the mature and constructive manner in which the wage agreement has been concluded and recognise the positive impact on the sustainability of Northam’s operations”.
