Bokoni Platinum to retrench more than 2600 employees
The company said the mine, owned jointly by Atlatsa Resources (51%) and Anglo American Platinum (49%), had no option but to lay off employees due to extreme financial losses.
LYDENBURG/BURGERSFORT – Challenging times for platinum miners in this job sector is lurking as Bokoni Platinum in Limpopo declared that it will retrench more than 2600 employees and place the Mine under a two-year care and maintenance programme.
The company said the Mine, owned jointly by Atlatsa Resources (51%) and Anglo American Platinum (49%), had no option but to lay off employees due to extreme financial losses.
In a statement, Atlatsa said notwithstanding various attempts since 2014 to restructure the Bokoni Mine through, inter alia, shaft closures and other measures in order to achieve profitability, Bokoni Mine’s operations remain cash negative after capital expenditure. The Mine has incurred negative cash flow of approximately R500million for the first six months of 2017.
“In recent months Atlatsa and Anglo American Platinum (“Bokoni Joint Venture Partners”), together with mine management, have continued to investigate a range of further mine re-configuration options. All of the options assessed demonstrate significant cash outflows in the short to medium term with material execution risk.
The immediate to medium term outlook for Bokoni Mine remains negative, given the current weak Platinum Group Metals (PGM) pricing environment which is expected to remain under pressure for the foreseeable future.
“During the care and maintenance period, the Bokoni Joint Ventures Partners will continue to review various alternatives in respect of the mine’s future sustainability and revisit its care and maintenance status, depending on future circumstances.”
