Amplats shows 2% rise in trading
ANGLO American Platinum (Amplats) yesterday released a trading update, which showed that the company produced 610 000 ounces of metal-in-concentrate in the fourth quarter, a 2 percent quarterly improvement year-on-year.
The group said the fourth quarter production is seasonally lower than the third quarter, due to the impact of the public holidays.
Strong operational performances have been achieved by the retained own mines, with Mogalakwena up 5 percent and Unki up 7 percent, as well as from joint-venture operations BRPM and Kroondal.
“A record production for the quarter at Kroondal and strong production from BRPM was offset by lower production at Bokoni, due to closures of unprofitable production from UM2 and Vertical Shafts at the end of 2015.
“On a normalised basis, excluding production from the closure of the two vertical shafts, production at Bokoni increased 4 percent yearon-year,” the group said.
Anglo American Platinum is a member of the Anglo American group and is the world’s leading primary producer of platinum group metals.
Reduced production
Refined production was lower, owing to the run-out of molten furnace matte at Amplats’s Waterval Smelter in September, which reduced refined production by 59 000 ounces. The full year impact was 65 000 ounces less refined production.
The group said total mined production from Rustenburg operations including the Western Limb Tailings Retreatment increased 9 percent year-on-year and 7 percent on the third quarter of 2016, reflecting a quarter of production not impacted by safety issues.
Izak van Niekerk, an equity analyst at Mergence Investment Managers, said the trading update was in line with what the market expected.
“It is their quarter production update, so the full year production is not known as yet.”
Amplats shares closed 1.07 percent higher at R363.84 on the JSE yesterday.