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Impala Platinum

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Impala Platinum Holdings Limited
Company typePublic
IndustryPlatinum
Founded1966
HeadquartersJohannesburg, South Africa
Key people
Thandi Orleyn (Chair)
Nico Muller (CEO)[1]
RevenueR35.9 billion (2018) ZAR
Number of employees
40,000
Websitewww.implats.co.za

Impala Platinum Holdings Limited or Implats is a South African holding company that owns several companies which operate mines that produce platinum and platinum group metals, as well as nickel, copper and cobalt. Its most significant mine is the Impala mine in the North West province of South Africa. The company also owns or has interest in the Two Rivers mine and the Marula mine in the South Africa Bushveld Igneous Complex and the Mimosa mine and Zimplats in Zimbabwe, as well as the Impala Refining Services which smelts and refines metals for other companies. In December 2019, Impala Canada was formed, owned by the holding company, out of the acquisition of North American Palladium and its mine in Ontario, Canada.

History

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Implats was formed in 1966 as a subsidiary of Union Corporation, which established a platinum mine in Rustenburg with an initial capacity of 100,000 oz per year.[2] It received technical advice from Canadian company Inco, while British bank Hambros provided financial advice.[3] The two, along with South African state-owned Industrial Development Corporation, each took a 10% share in the company.[4] In 1968, Implats entered into a prospecting accord with the Bafokeng tribe (now the Royal Bafokeng Nation) and obtained a lease for 12,000 ha of land, with production kicking off in July 1969.[5]

During the 1970s, legislation introducing new vehicle emission standards worldwide, including those introduced and pursued in the U.S. by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), increased global demand for platinum.[6] In 1974, Implats began supplying major motor manufacturer General Motors with up to 300,000 t oz of platinum and 120,000  t oz of palladium a year for devices to reduce exhaust pollution.[7]

On 26 January 1973, Bishopsgate Platinum Limited, of which Implats was a wholly owned subsidiary, was listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). On 19 October 1978, Bishopsgate changed its name to Impala Platinum Holdings Limited (Implats).[8]

In 1990, Implats acquired an effective interest in Western Platinum and Eastern Platinum (collectively Lonhro Platinum Division, or Lonplats).[9] A full merger agreement with Lonplats was attained in 1995, but was subsequently blocked by the European Union in 1996.[10]

Between 2000 and 2004, Implats gained mineral rights to establish Marula Platinum and also acquired strategic stakes in Zimbabwean operations Zimbabwe Platinum (Zimplats) and Mimosa Mining Company. It entered into a joint venture with Anglovaal Mining (Avmin) to develop the Two Rivers Platinum project, and sold its stakes in Barplats Mines and Lonplats.

In 2003, Implats' parent company Gencor completed its "unbundling" after having amalgamated with Gold Fields in 1998.[11] Shareholders were given 8.8 Implats shares for every 100 Gencor shares they held.[12]

In March 2011, the government of Zimbabwe implemented laws which required local ownership of mining companies. Following this news, there were falls in the share prices of companies with mines in Zimbabwe, including Implats.[13]

In late January 2014, thousands of employees belonging to Impala Platinum and other platinum mines in South Africa went on strike, demanding a basic salary of R 12,500 (1,180$).[14]

The strike, the longest in the history of South Africa, ended in late June 2014 when the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) signed a  three-year settlement deal with Impala Platinum and other platinum mine owners, which saw workers earning less than R 12,500 get a wage increase of R 1,000 ($95) per month for two years and R 950 ($90) per month in the third year.[citation needed]

In October 2019, Implats announced it would acquire the outstanding shares in Canadian-based North American Palladium Limited for $758 million.[15][16]

North American Palladium Ltd. was purchased by Johannesburg-based Impala Platinum Holdings Limited for CA$1 billion in 2019.[17] Under the terms of the deal, Brookfield Business Partners was paid $570 million for its 81% stake in the company and minority shareholders were paid $19.74 per share.[18] From that point on, the Lac des Iles mine would be operated by the new company called Impala Canada Limited.

Management

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Since August 2018, Impala Platinum has been led by company directors Nico Muller (CEO) and Meroonisha Kerber (CFO). Kerber joined the company in August 2018 after her predecessor Brenda Berlin, who had served as CFO since 2011, resigned in February.[19][20]

Safety incidents

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In 2007, two Implats employees were killed in a blast at the Clapham Shaft.[21]

In 2009, nine Implats employees were killed in a fall-of-ground incident at the Impala 14 Shaft at its Rustenburg mine.[22][23]

In 2012, Implats was charged with culpable homicide over the death of one of its workers five years prior. The charge was based on the report of a mining inspector, who claimed that mine bosses had not taken proper measures to ensure that the worker was safe when he was sent to install support bars under the overhang that collapsed on him.[24][25]

In 2016, four Implats employees were killed in a fire at the Rustenburg mine. Rescue teams were present, but the four had been overcome by smoke and never managed to escape.[26]

In 2020, the CEO of Impala Rustenburg, Mark Munroe was arrested for recalling employees too early, in violation of South Africa's Covid-19 lockdown restrictions.[27] Munroe was later released on bail, and the charges against him were eventually dropped. For his decision to reopen the mines, Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, Gwede Mantashe became the target of the National Union of Mineworkers.[28]

In 2021, three Implats employees were killed in a mud-rush at the Impala Rustenburg 6 Shaft, and two were hospitalized.[29]

In November 2023, 11 employees lost their lives in the Impala Platinum mine shaft accident when a cage carrying miners fell 200m down the shaft. Seventy-five were injured.[30]

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In 2012, what started as a peaceful protest resulted in a massacre. The Marikana massacre[31] was the killing of thirty-four miners by the South African Police Service (SAPS) on 16 August 2012, during a wildcat strike at the Lonmin platinum mine in Marikana, Rustenburg, North West province, South Africa. The violence started because of a history of antagonism and violence between the African National Congress-allied National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and its emerging rival, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU). At the Marikana platinum mine, operated by Lonmin at Nkaneng near Rustenburg, 3,000 workers walked off the job on 10 August after Lonmin failed to meet with workers.[32] On 11 August, NUM leaders allegedly opened fire on striking NUM members who were marching to their offices.[33][34][35] The killing of two miners was reported in the South African media as a central reason for the breakdown in trust within the union amongst workers.[33][36] Despite earlier contradictory reports, the clashes on the 11th are now acknowledged to be the first incidents of violence during the strike.

According to the Bench Marks Foundation, the violence erupted against a backdrop of a lack of employment opportunities for local youth, squalid living conditions, unemployment and growing inequalities.[37] It claimed the workers were exploited and this was a motivation for the violence. It also criticised the high profits when compared with the low wages of the workers.

Impala Platinum declared the strike "illegal" and fired 13.000 workers that had participated, almost half of 30.000 employed in the town.[38]

In 2014, a five-month-long platinum strike had resulted in the deaths of four people,[39] six stabbings,[40] and 24 billion rands ($2.25 billion) in lost revenue for the South African platinum industry. The GDP of South Africa contracted in the first quarter of 2014, pulled down by the steepest drop in mining production (25% of which 19% was directly attributable to the strike) in 50 years.[41][42] It was the first contraction since 2009.[43] Workers, most of whom already lived in poverty, lost around 11 billion rands ($1 billion) in wages.[44]

In 2017, an AMCU treasurer was shot and killed outside an Implats platinum mine in Rustenburg.[45]

Carbon footprint

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Impala Platinum Holdings reported total CO2e emissions (direct and indirect) of 3,645 kilotons on 30 June 2020 (-185 /-4.8% y-o-y).[46]

Impala Platinum Holdings's Total CO2e emissions (Direct + Indirect) (in kilotonnes)
Jun 2014 Jun 2015 Jun 2016 Jun 2017 Jun 2018 Jun 2019 Jun 2020
3,038[47] 3,236[48] 3,494[49] 3,587[50] 3,443[51] 3,830[52] 3,645[46]

References

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  1. ^ "Implats Distinctly Platinum | Leadership | About Implats". www.implats.co.za. Retrieved 2020-08-22.
  2. ^ Black, William (2000-05-08). The Platinum Group Metals Industry. Elsevier. ISBN 9781845699215.
  3. ^ Black, William (2000-05-08). The Platinum Group Metals Industry. Elsevier. ISBN 9781845699215.
  4. ^ "Mining Weekly - The fascinating early days of a highly-successful platinum play". www.miningweekly.com. Retrieved 2019-06-13.
  5. ^ Comaroff, John L.; Comaroff, Jean (2009-09-15). Ethnicity, Inc. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 9780226114736.
  6. ^ Hsu, Tiffany (2018-12-13). "This Metal Is Worth More Than Gold, and It Scrubs Your Car's Exhaust". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-10-08.
  7. ^ Relations, South African Institute of Race (1973). A Survey of Race Relations in South Africa. University of California Press. ISBN 9780869820407.
  8. ^ "Impala Platinum Holdings Limited (IMPLATS) - AGE (African Growing Enterprises) File". Institute of Developing Economies. Retrieved 2019-06-13.
  9. ^ "Impala Platinum Holdings Limited (IMPLATS) - AGE (African Growing Enterprises) File". Institute of Developing Economies. Retrieved 2019-10-08.
  10. ^ "European Commission - PRESS RELEASES - Press release - THE COMMISSION OPPOSES THE MERGER OF THE PLATINUM OPERATIONS OF GENCOR ANDLONRHO". europa.eu. Retrieved 2019-06-13.
  11. ^ Newswires, Dow Jones. "Gold Fields, Gencor Announce Plans to Merge Gold Operations". WSJ. Retrieved 2019-06-13.
  12. ^ "South Africa: Gencor Discloses the Terms of Impala Platinum Unbundling".
  13. ^ "Impala Platinum earnings leap 41% but Zimbabwe concerns linger". 25 August 2011.
  14. ^ "SPECIAL REPORT: Platinum strike — an industry teetering on the precipice". BusinessLIVE. Retrieved 2019-06-13.
  15. ^ "South Africa's Impala Platinum to acquire North American Palladium for $758 million". Reuters. 2019-10-07. Retrieved 2019-10-08.
  16. ^ "Impala Platinum Holdings announces acquisition of North American Palladium". CBC. Retrieved 2019-10-08.
  17. ^ "Implats to buy North American Palladium". Mining Journal. October 7, 2019. Retrieved January 26, 2020.
  18. ^ Friedman, Gabriel (October 8, 2019). "South African rival to buy North American Palladium". Vancouver Sun. p. B1.
  19. ^ "South Africa's Implats appoints new CFO". Reuters. 2018-06-27. Archived from the original on 2019-06-16. Retrieved 2019-06-16.
  20. ^ "Impala Platinum CFO Brenda Berlin to Leave at End of February 2018". Dow Jones Newswires. 2017-11-21. Retrieved 2019-06-16.
  21. ^ "UPDATE 1-Implats shuts Clapham shaft at Marula after death". Reuters. 2007-11-23. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  22. ^ "Implats shuts more S.Africa shafts after accident". Reuters. 2009-07-22. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  23. ^ Tau, Poloko. "Implats' killer shaft". Citypress. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  24. ^ "Implats charged with culpable homicide over miner's death". Reuters. 2012-04-11. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  25. ^ Staff Writer (2012-04-09). "Implats in death scandal - Sunday Times". Miningmx. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  26. ^ "Four workers killed in fire at South Africa's Impala Platinum". Reuters. 2016-01-24. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  27. ^ Khumalo, Sibongile. "Criminal charges dropped against top Implats executive for lockdown violation". Fin24. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  28. ^ Tau, Poloko. "Gwede Mantashe under fire over controversial plan to reopen mines". Citypress. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  29. ^ Mthethwa, Cebelihle. "3 mineworkers found dead, 2 others hospitalised after underground mud rush". News24. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  30. ^ Stoddard, Ed (28 November 2023). "Implats says 11 miners killed, 75 in hospital after conveyance cage tragedy in Rustenburg". Daily Maverick.
  31. ^ "South Africa's Marikana mine closed by 'intimidation'". BBC News. 2012-08-27. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  32. ^ "NUM: Lethal force ahead of Marikana shootings was justified". Mail & Guardian. 22 October 2012. Retrieved 23 October 2012.
  33. ^ a b Sacks, Jared (2012-10-12). "Marikana prequel: NUM and the murders that started it all". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  34. ^ "South Africa: Marikana massacre – a turning point?". Links. 27 August 2012.
  35. ^ "NUM shot at us – witness". Independent Online. 2 October 2012.
  36. ^ "Marikana 20 years in the making". Business Report. 21 October 2012. Retrieved 23 October 2012.
  37. ^ "Lonmin an example of exploitation". www.iol.co.za. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  38. ^ "Mining company fires 13,000 after strike". France 24. 2012-02-02. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  39. ^ "South Africa: 3 miners killed during strike". Taiwan News. 2014-05-13. Archived from the original on 2022-02-07. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  40. ^ "Three workers killed amid platinum belt strike - NUM". The Mail & Guardian. 2014-05-12. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  41. ^ "Union says wage deal to end South African platinum strike is imminent". Reuters. June 13, 2014. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
  42. ^ "Marcus warns on mine strike". Business Report. IOL. June 10, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  43. ^ "South Africa hit by engineering strike". BBC News. 2014-07-01. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  44. ^ Maylie, Devon (2014-06-23). "South African Platinum Miners Agree to End Strike". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  45. ^ "Amcu member shot and killed in front of 6-year-old daughter". News24. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  46. ^ a b "Impala Platinum Holdings's Sustainability Report for 2020Q2" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on January 18, 2021. Alt URL
  47. ^ "Impala Platinum Holdings's Sustainability Report for 2018Q2" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 27, 2021. Alt URL
  48. ^ "Impala Platinum Holdings's Sustainability Report for 2019Q2" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 1, 2021. Alt URL
  49. ^ "Impala Platinum Holdings's Sustainability Report for 2020Q2" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on January 18, 2021. Alt URL
  50. ^ "Impala Platinum Holdings's Sustainability Report for 2020Q2" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on January 18, 2021. Alt URL
  51. ^ "Impala Platinum Holdings's Sustainability Report for 2020Q2" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on January 18, 2021. Alt URL
  52. ^ "Impala Platinum Holdings's Sustainability Report for 2020Q2" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on January 18, 2021. Alt URL
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