Zimplats to offer voluntary job cuts after platinum price rout
20/03/2024 14:13
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Zimplats joins regional peers in cutting jobs
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Weak prices push miner to rare loss
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Platinum miners defer projects
March 20 (Reuters) - Impala Platinum's IMPJ.J Zimbabwe
unit Zimplats ZIM.AX said on Wednesday it is offering
voluntary job cuts in a bid to protect the business from the
impact of a sharp fall in platinum group metal (PGM) prices.
Zimplats did not say how many of the 8,000 permanent and
contract jobs were targeted under the planned cuts.
The company, which swung to a rare $8.8 million loss in the
six months to December 2023, from a $159.6 million profit
previously, said it was "critically reviewing its business" amid
declining metal prices.
"Regrettably, labour optimisation initiatives must be
implemented urgently to secure the business, and the bulk of
jobs in the company," Zimplats said in a statement.
Southern African PGM miners, including Zimplats' parent
company Impala, Sibanye Stillwater SSWJ.J and Anglo American
Platinum AMSJ.J have scrambled to cut costs, and thousands of
jobs, after profits slumped as metal prices plunged over the
past year due to weak auto production and concerns about a
global economic slowdown.
Zimbabwe's other PGM mines, Unki mine, owned by Anglo
American Platinum, and Mimosa, a joint venture between Impala
and Sibanye Stillwater, are also implementing job cuts.
Mimosa has also halted its $100 million North Hill expansion
project, while Impala, which announced a 10-year $1.8 billion
expansion project at Zimplats in 2021, is deferring long term
schemes such as sulphur abatement and renewable energy.
Tharisa Plc THST.L has delayed by a year the commissioning
of its $361 million Karo platinum mine in Zimbabwe, which was
scheduled for June 2024, due to the low metal prices.
(Reporting by Nelson Banya
Editing by Ros Russell)
((Nelson.Banya@thomsonreuters.com;))