South African firm Tharisa Capital Plc says it remains optimistic about the fundamentals of the platinum group metals (PGM) market and will continue to optimise the development of its Karo platinum mine project in Zimbabwe.
Tharisa plans to invest US$391 million to complete phase 1 of the Karo platinum project.
Platinum is Zimbabwe's second largest mining export after gold.
Mining is strategically important to Zimbabwe, as it generates more than 75 percent of the country's export earnings.
Besides gold and platinum, other mineral exports include chrome, diamond, lithium and coal.
The group initially targeted bringing the first ore to the mill by the second half of 2024, but extended the project timeline to June2025 owing to the deterioration in global PGM prices.
Tharisa chief executive Mr Phoevos Pouroulis said in a fourth quarter and full-year production update that the group maintained the view that the PGM prices over the next 12-24 months would be stronger, fuelled by the continued evidence that the internal combustion engines will remain relevant for a much longer time to come.
"Thus, we continued to optimise our Karo Platinum project and have progressed with the plant construction, in line with capital availability, and we see this strategy continuing until we finalise the funding for the project," he said. Already, Karo has invested more than US$70 million in the project and completed a pilot mining project.
Its Mhondoro project is one of several multi-million-dollar initiatives that are at different stages of implementation in Zimbabwe.
Mr Pouroulis said at the moment PGM prices continue to be constrained by the latency of destocking of pipelines.
"While we see good demand and general realisation that the supply-demand balance is shifting given project cutbacks, production output shortcomings, and the need for new PGM metal by various industries.
"We maintain that the PGM price over the next 12-24 months will be stronger, fuelled by the continued evidence that the internal combustion engine will remain relevant for a much longer time to come and our firm view that hybrid drive trains are an integral part of the transportation mix," he said.
According to the trading update, the average annual PGM price decreased by 28 percent to US$1 362/oz, averaging US$1 370/oz for the quarter.
The company said production guidance for financial year 2025 was set at between 140 koz and 160 koz PGMs (6E basis) and 1,65 tonne to 1,8 tonne of chrome concentrates.
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The Karo project has since identified land for a 300 MW solar plant to supply the operation. Africa-focused transitional energy company Chariot Energy, in partnership with Total Eren, a leading renewable energy Independent Power Producer (IPP) based in France, is set to construct a US$40 million 30MW solar plant that will provide electricity for the Karo Platinum Project.
The solar project will start with a 30 MW plant under the first phase, with the potential to upscale to 300 MW expansion over time.
Total Eren and Chariot agreed to work together on the development, financing, construction, and operation of the solar photovoltaic (PV) project.
Zimbabwe currently has three platinum producing companies, namely Mimosa Mining Company, Unki Mine, and Zimplats, which engaged in different expansion initiatives.
