WESIZWE Platinum would produce half of forecast platinum group metals (PGMs) production in its 2020 financial year, said BusinessLive citing the company’s interim results published on Wednesday.
However, the company didn’t disclose production numbers. “The original targets set for 2020 and beyond have been affected by lockdown delays and the slow start of teams upon return,” Wesizwe said referring to the South African government’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic earlier this year.
In a gradual relaxation of these restriction, underground mines were allowed to return to full capacity in phases in April and May. “The current forecast for the 2020 production target is set to about 50% of the original plan,” it said.
Wesizwe Platinum has been developing the Bakubung PGM mine for nearly a decade. The mine is planned for a million tons of ore a year, later increasing to three million tons, said BusinessLive.
The company initially secured a $227m (R3.7bn) cash injection by China Africa Jinchuan Investments for a 45% stake in the company and $650m in project development funding from China Development Bank. Wesizwe had, by the end of June 2020, drawn down the full $650m, said BusinessLive.
“The majority shareholder has provided a letter of comfort supporting any shortfall in funding and guaranteed the repayment of the China Development Bank loan,” said Wesizwe, but did not disclose if additional funding was required to bring the Bakubung mine into full production.
