Eastplats provides PGM production and underground mine design updates
Eastern Platinum has dispatched 199.8 dry tons of platinum group metal concentrates containing 490.9 oz of PGMs under the offtake agreement with Impala Platinum Limited, within the production month of April 2021. This marks the first full month of PGM production following the recent completion of the reconfiguration and optimization of the small-scale PGM circuit.
The Company completed the process upgrades to ensure a consistent production of a minimum of 200 tons of PGM concentrates per month from Circuit D. All concentrates produced reached the satisfactory quality requirements under the offtake agreement.
Diana Hu, President and Chief Executive Officer of Eastplats stated, “Circuit D’s first full month of production is an important breakthrough for the Company. It not only created a new revenue stream in addition to the Company’s chrome production, but will also assist and accelerate the recommissioning of the PGM Main Circuit, which is expected to add a further 600-800 tons of PGM concentrates per month from September, a significant boost to the Company’s operation and revenue growth”.
The Company has also commissioned a life of mine design and schedule on the Zandfontein vertical shaft as the first step in evaluating and planning the restart of underground mining at Crocodile River Mine. The work is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2021.
Eastplats owns directly and indirectly a number of PGM and chrome assets in the Republic of South Africa. All of the Company’s properties are situated on the western and eastern limbs of the Bushveld Complex, the geological environment that hosts approximately 80% of the world’s PGM-bearing ore.
Operations at the Crocodile River Mine include re-mining and processing of its tailings resources. The chrome and PGM concentrates produced from the Company’s Zandfontein UG2 tailings facility have been delivered under the respective offtake agreements.
The Retreatment Project remains in full operation and continues to produce and transport chrome and PGM end products. The effects of COVID-19 are evolving and changing and the consequences of a further increase in the alert level in South Africa, temporary shutdown of any operations or other related issues cannot be reasonably estimated at this time, but could potentially have material adverse effects on the Company’s business, operations, liquidity and cashflows.
