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Tawanda Musarurwa Senior Business Reporter

European headquartered integrated resource group Tharisa Plc, says Phase 1 of its platinum joint venture project with Karo Resources has been completed.

Tharisa CEO Phoevos Pouroulis revealed this while commenting on the group’s full year results.

“We have focused our energy in the right places and have invested in both our workforce and machinery, which will ensure we have the right tools to achieve our targets,” he said.

“Extremely pleasing is our Zimbabwean development pipeline, especially with Karo Platinum completing phase one of the exploration programme with positive results apparent at this early
stage.”

The US$4,2 billion platinum project, located in Mhondoro, is believed to have significant resources that have the potential to double Zimbabwe’s current output from the country’s main three platinum mines, Zimplats, Mimosa and Unki.

The project, whose operations are located along the mineral rich Great Dyke, is eyeing to produce at least 1,4 million ounces of platinum group
metals by the year 2023, set up a 300 Megawatt solar power plant and a base metals refinery that will allow it to export finished products directly from Zimbabwe.

Meanwhile, the Tharisa group said its chrome output for the period under review, was below expectations.

The company is also developing a chrome project in Zimbabwe — Salene Chrome — along the Great Dyke area.

The firm produced 1,4 million tonnes (Mt) of chrome lower than the targeted to 1,5Mt.

Fourth quarter production came in at 341 900 tonnes taking actual production to the year to
1,29Mt.

The group’s platinum group metal (PGM) guidance for this year was put at 155 000 to 165 000 ounces with its Vision 2020 production of 200 000 oz being reached in the first quarter of 2021.

PGM production for the 2019 financial year was 139 700 oz after fourth quarter output of 38 000 oz, an 11 percent quarter-on-quarter increase.

“In the year under review Tharisa significantly reset its mining operations, with a revised pit layout, an improvement in waste stripping, and the de-bottlenecking of the production plants,” said the chief executive.

“Though this translated into lower production than last year’s record performance, the significant work done provides Tharisa with a clear path to delivering on our Vision 2020 strategy.

“The key remaining investment to achieve our production goal, the Vulcan plant, is under construction and remains firmly on track for commissioning in calendar Q4 2020.”