World number-two platinum producer Impala Platinum had “probably over used power in the past” and was currently working towards cutting consumption of Eskom electricity by “a significant” 40 to 45 MW, Implats CEO David Brown told Mining Weekly Online in an exclusive interview on Thursday after reporting a record 23% gross-profit increase to R17,7-billion.

Brown said that, besides striving to cut its electricity consumption by 40 to 45 MW, the company would simultaneously also be looking to concluding a power offtake agreement with an independent power producer.

“We are currently working with Eskom to look at savings somewhere in the region of 40 to 45 MW of power and, quite clearly, that’s quite a significant amount of power.

“In the past, we have probably over used power and we haven’t had to really think hard and long about savings,” Brown confessed.

“We might not be able to save all of it and obviously it might take a period of time, but I think what the power crisis has done for us is certainly focused our mind a lot better and, from my perspective I would like to drive savings even harder,” he said.

With regard to self-generation, Implats had looked at different combinations, including building a power station itself, but was concerned about enlarging the mining company’s carbon footprint and adding to global warming, aspects about which the company had to be “very sensitive”.

“The reality is when we started to look down at the ability to generate sufficient quantums of power utilising sources other than coal, we were very limited in our ability to do so, and therefore the approach that we are probably going to be taking is looking at trying to work with some independent power producer to look at some form of offtake agreement,” Brown disclosed.

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