Itochu and the Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security have increased their investment in a Japanese consortium that holds a stake in South Africa’s Platreef platinum-group metals mine, with the goal of supporting its expansion, the companies said on Monday, according to Reuters.
JOGMEC invested $89.4 million in ITC Platinum Development, a consortium owned by Itochu, JOGMEC, and JGC Holdings. This consortium holds an 8% stake in the Platreef mine, while Itochu separately owns an additional 2% stake in the project.
In 2011, JOGMEC initially invested about 4.2 billion yen (approximately $26.3 million) in IPTD at Itochu’s request.
As funding requirements have increased with the advancement of phase 2 development, JOGMEC decided to make an additional investment.
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Itochu did not disclose the value of its new investment, but a company spokesperson noted that total capital expenditure for phase 2 is estimated at $1.2 billion.
The Platreef project is 64% owned by Ivanhoe Mines and 26% by a B-BBEE partner. The mine began producing concentrates containing platinum, palladium, nickel, rhodium, gold, and copper in November of last year.
Phase 2 development is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2027. Once completed, ore processing capacity is projected to increase significantly to 4.1 million metric tons per year from the current 0.8 million tons. A further phase 3 expansion planned for 2032 is expected to raise capacity to 10.7 million tons.
The platinum-group metals, along with nickel, gold, and copper produced at the mine, are considered critical materials for a wide range of industries. Itochu holds pro-rata offtake rights from the project and aims to help secure a stable supply of these essential metals for Japan.
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Image Credit: Kasi Economy
