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Zimbabwe

Zimplats Mine

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Zimplats Mine

Location: 116 km SW from Harare, Zimbabwe

Address:

Ward 10 & 11 Between Growth Points Bumbe, Turf and Tyrone Kadoma District
P.O. Box 61
Selous
Zimbabwe

Contacts:

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Categories

Summary

Mine TypeOpen Pit & Underground
StatusActive
Commodities
  • PGM
  • Platinum
  • Palladium
  • Gold
  • Rhodium
  • Ruthenium
  • Iridium
  • Nickel
  • Copper
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
  • Room-and-pillar
Production Start... Lock
Mine Life... Lock
SnapshotZimplats comprises five underground mines - Bimha, Mupani, Rukodzi, Mupfuti and Ngwarati - and a concentrator complex at Ngezi. The Selous Metallurgical Complex (SMC), located about 77 kilometres north of the operations, includes a concentrator and a smelter.

The expansion of the Bimha and Mupani mines will replace depleted production from the Rukodzi, Mupfuti and Ngwarati mines. Bimha Mine, a new mine at Zimplats, reached full production. Mupani Mine – which provides replacement volumes for Rukodzi and Ngwarati mines on their depletion – remains on schedule to achieve design capacity of 3.6 million tonnes a year in FY2029.

To bolster near-term mined volumes, a short-term open-pit mining programme was initiated, with first ore generated in February 2025.

During FY2025, Zimplats successfully commissioned the first 35MW of its planned 185MW solar complex, and Phase 2A (45MW) received board approval. The commissioning of the 38MW smelter was also completed.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. 87 % Indirect
Zimbabwe Platinum Mines (Private) Ltd. (operator) 100 % Direct
Zimplats Holdings Limited is a subsidiary (87% shareholding) of Impala Platinum Holdings Limited (Implats). The remaining 13% is owned by independent shareholders. Zimbabwe Platinum Mines (Private) Limited is a majority owned operating subsidiary of Zimplats Holdings Limited.

Contractors

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SourceSource

Deposit type

  • Magmatic

Summary:

The Great Dyke of Zimbabwe developed as a series of initially discrete magma chamber compartments, which coalesced as the chambers filled.

The Great Dyke has been sub-divided into five sub-chambers, namely the Wedza, Selukwe (Shurugwi), Sebakwe, Darwendale and Musengezi sub-chambers. The stratigraphic units in each sub-chamber are classified into the ultramafic (lower) and th mafic (upper) sequence. The ultramafic ocks are dominated from the base upwards by dunite, harzburgite and pyroxenite, while the mafic ocks consist mainly of gabbro and gabbronorite. Thin layers of chromitite occur at the bottom of cyclic units throughout the ultramafic sequences.

The PGM-bearing horizon is known as the Main Sulphide Zone (MSZ), which is part of the lower sequence and is located below the contact with the mafic sequence. The MSZ is located in the P1 pyroxenite, from 5m to about 50m below the ultramafic/mafi contact. The MSZ is a continuous layer, 2m to 10m thick, and forms an elongated basin. The zone strikes north-northeast, dips between 5° and 20° on the margins, and flattens towa ds the axis (centre) of the basin. Peak base metal and PGM values are offset vertically, with palladium peaking at the base, platinum in the centre and nickel towards the top.

Mining occurs in areas where the dip is less than 9°, referred to as the MSZ ‘Flats’, and areas with dips between 9° and 14°, which are referred to as the ‘MSZ Upper Ores I’ areas (UOR I). No mining takes place in areas with a dip above 14°, which are referred to as the ‘MSZ Upper Ores II’ (UOR II).

Zimplats operation cuts obliquely across the 2m to 10m thick platinum-bearing MSZ orebody with an approximate north-northeast strike distance of 16km at Ngezi in the south, where the Mupani, Bimha, Mupfuti, Rukodzi and Ngwarati portals are located. Further to the north, at the Hartley Complex, the MSZ orebody extends over a 9km north-northeast strike distance. It is evident on the schematic that the MSZ orebody is a continuous layer within the Great Dyke. East-west striking fault structures form natural boundaries between the portal areas at Ngezi. The MSZ lithologies dip at between 5° and 20° near the margins and flatten towards the central part of the Great Dyke to form a flat-lying floor. The general mining infrastructure at Ngezi is located on the western side of the Great Dyke, where the orebody is accessed by portals. East-west striking fault structures form natural boundaries between the portal areas at Ngezi.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Heavy Mobile Equipment

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AV - Autonomous

Comminution

Crushers and Mills

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Processing

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Commodity Production

Production of 6E (Pt, Pd, Rh, Au, Ir, Ru) includes 6E ounces in concentrate.
CommodityUnits20252024202320222021202020192018201720162015
6E (Pt,Pd,Rh,Au,Ir,Ru) koz  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe580 578 602 617 406 
Platinum koz  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe270271281290190
Palladium koz  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe223223233236155
Gold oz  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe32,55529,20729,21130,57821,692
Rhodium koz  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe2424252617
Ruthenium oz  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe20,50920,78022,26522,710
Iridium oz  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe9,7629,68710,72910,625
Nickel t  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe5,2954,9315,1115,4343,887
4E (Pt, Pd, Rh, Au) oz 549,320546,915568,634583,171383,962
All production numbers are expressed as metal in matte. ^ Guidance / Forecast.

Operational metrics

Metrics20252024202320222021202020192018201720162015
Annual processing capacity  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe6.4 Mt
Ore tonnes mined  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe6,682,896 t6,800,518 t7,017,169 t6,579,686 t5,234,507 t
Waste UG  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe
Tonnes milled  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe6,485,512 t6,569,817 t6,715,963 t6,406,187 t5,163,499 t

Production Costs

CommodityUnits202520242023202220212020201920182017
Cash costs 6E (Pt,Pd,Rh,Au,Ir,Ru) USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 600 / oz   615 / oz   583 / oz  
Cash costs Platinum USD  ....  Subscribe 1,288 / oz   1,313 / oz   1,249 / oz  
Cash costs Platinum USD -329 / oz **   -14 / oz **   271 / oz **  
All-in sustaining costs (sold) Platinum USD 216 / oz **   418 / oz **  
^ Guidance / Forecast.
** Net of By-Product.

Operating Costs

Currency202420232022202120202019201820172016
Total operating costs ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe

Mine Financials

Units202520242023202220212020201920182017
Capital expenditures (planned) M USD
Sustaining costs M ZAR  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 1,182  
Capital expenditures M  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 1,628  ZAR 135.7  USD 63.3  USD
Revenue M  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 8,954  ZAR 7,485  ZAR 7,038  ZAR
Gross profit M  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 2,662  ZAR 2,045  ZAR 1,285  ZAR
Pre-tax Income M  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe
After-tax Income M  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 1,899  ZAR 40  ZAR 576  ZAR
EBITDA M  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 4,015  ZAR 2,992  ZAR
Operating Cash Flow M  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe

Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
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Workforce

EmployeesContractorsTotal WorkforceYear
...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required ...... Subscription required 2025
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Aerial view:

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