Sibanye-Stillwater is set to resume production on the Siphumelele shaft at its Rustenburg platinum group metal (PGM) operation in South Africa next month.
Damage to surface infrastructure at the Siphumelele shaft at the end of February resulted in the suspension of production from the shaft.
The incident occurred when an ore collector bin attached to the shaft headgear sheared off and fell to the ground, damaging a surface ore conveyor belt system.
The incapacitation of the ore collector bin and the collapse of the conveyor system necessitated the suspension of production, and employees were placed on leave while the damage was assessed and repair work was underway.
All employees returned from leave on April 15 for startup procedures.
The Siphumelele shaft was projected to produce an average output of 4,500 4Eoz per month or 54,000 4Eoz planned for 2024, which accounts for at least 3.5% of annual production from the company’s South African PGM operations, excluding third-party processing and Mimosa.
Meanwhile, Sibanye has also announced that the 4 Belt (4B) shaft at its Marikana operation will be closed, as it has been unable to meet the profitability conditions set as an outcome of the Section 189A process, as reported in October last year.
The closure comes five years after the initial proposed closure in 2019, with several successful initiatives supported by stronger PGM prices, enabling the shaft to remain open to mine the last remaining economically extractable reserves.
Sibanye said that despite all efforts to restore the shaft to profitability since February 23, 2024, the 4B shaft has continued to be loss-making.
“Despite 4B shaft having limited remaining economic reserves, the decision to close a shaft is never taken lightly. We cannot, however, continue to absorb ongoing losses, which, in turn, affects the viability of the rest of the South African platinum group metal operations to the detriment of all stakeholders,” said company chief executive Neal Froneman.
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished
