As diversified metals miner and processor Jubilee Metals works to expand its platinum group metals (PGMs), copper and cobalt operational footprint, the company has reported a sharp increase in PGMs production to 21 140 oz for the six months ended June 30 – the first half of the company’s 2023 financial year.
This follows after its expanded Inyoni facility, in the Bushveld Complex in South Africa, achieved full design capacity in the months since its launch in March, with an annualised nameplate production capacity of 44 000 oz of PGMs and 1.2-million tonnes of combined chrome concentrate.
The Inyoni processing operations were expanded by about 45%.
The expansion stems from a R1.2-billion investment programme that Jubilee has implemented in the past 12 months to diversify and expand its PGMs, copper and cobalt operational footprint.
Jubilee has also reported a 34% reduction in PGM unit costs for the new Inyoni operations, compared with the prior, smaller setup that operated in the six months ended December 31, 2021.
The enlarged Inyoni facility delivered an increase in unit earnings per PGMs ounce of 12% in the six months under review, compared with the preceding six months, despite the realised PGMs basket price reducing by 3% over the period.
Moreover, the company’s Project Roan, in Zambia, which involves a new copper concentrator and ramp-up of operations, reached 80% of its design capacity during the first week of August, despite a delayed start owing to late equipment deliveries.
This puts the company on track to achieve its targeted 3 700 t of copper output for the six months ending December 31 and 10 000 t of copper output by the end of the financial year ending June 2023.
The increased production rates from this site are also expected to reduce Jubilee’s unit cost.
Jubilee aims to produce 12 000 t/y of copper through its Southern Copper Refining Strategy, which entails the integration of its Sable Copper and Cobalt refinery and the newly built Project Roan concentrator, in Zambia.
CEO Leon Coetzer says he looks forward to what the 2023 financial year holds as it poses major growth potential for Jubilee through full exposure of the enlarged South African operations and commissioning of the new copper and cobalt refining operations.