Jubilee’s output up, offsetting declines in prices
Diversified metals processor Jubilee Metals reported a strong operational performance in the six months ended December 31, with increased production across all operations delivering growth in revenue and earnings.
The London-based company, with projects in SA and Zambia, reported significant increases in the production of copper, chrome concentrate and platinum group metals (PGMs).
Copper cathode and copper in concentrate production rose 46.5% and chrome concentrate output 7.4%. PGM production was up 11.2% to 20,244oz.
The Zambian copper operations continued to show strong growth driven by investment in expansion projects, particularly the upgrade to the Roan copper concentrator, which is expected to drive further growth.
Revenue increased 18.4% to £74.7m, driven by greater production. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) rose 13.6% to £11.7m and profit after tax 7.3% to £4.4m. Earnings per share increased 6.7% to 0.16p.
Jubilee specialises in recovering metals from overlooked resources, such as unprocessed waste rock in SA and Zambia.
“The continued expansion of our copper and chrome operations was able to offset a significant reduction in PGM metal prices to deliver growth in both revenue and earnings,” said CEO Leon Coetzer.
The group’s shares were up 0.8% at R1.26 in early afternoon trade on the JSE, but are down almost 22% year to date.
IG senior market analyst Shaun Murison said the decline in Jubilee’s share price year to date was not dissimilar to those of its locally listed PGM mining peers. “PGM prices have been and remain under pressure.”
In December Jubilee entered a strategic partnership with Abu Dhabi’s International Resources Holding to develop a waste rock project in Zambia, in a deal which helped the company secure one of the largest waste rock assets in Zambia.
The group said in a statement on Monday it had successfully concluded an oversubscribed placing to accelerate the copper expansion drive at the project. In the northern Copperbelt, it is estimated to hold more than 350-million tonnes of material. The waste comprises dumped material and ore from 60 years of mining that was regarded as too low-grade at the time.
Jubilee made its first foray into Zambia in 2018 with a copper and cobalt strategy mirroring its successful PGM and chrome business model in SA.
Jubilee kept its guidance for full-year 2024 copper and PGM production unchanged, but said its chrome operations were expected to exceed guidance of 1.45-million tonnes of chrome concentrate.