Platinum output is expected to decline in South Africa and Zimbabwe this year in the wake of mine closures.
According to Chris Griffith, CEO of Anglo American Platinum (Amplats), increased costs and low metal prices have led to the closure of several of the company’s mines. “Strategically we had to shut down a couple of mines where we were making a loss,” he said at a recent mining conference. “As prices have remained muted we don’t foresee any major expansion of our production in the coming months.”
According to the World Platinum Investment Council, platinum supply from South Africa – which has the world’s largest platinum reserves – Zimbabwe and Russia combined will decline by at least 2% this year.
