Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. is said to have postponed the planned 13,000 job cuts at its Rustenburg operation in South Africa by 2021, Reuters reported Sept. 4, citing two sources with direct knowledge of the matter.
The company will delay shutting down Rustenburg's shaft 12 by a year and shaft 9 by about six months as a result of operational improvements and an increase in revenue on the back of higher commodity prices.
In early August, Implats' board approved a strategic turnaround at Rustenburg to reduce the workforce by 2021 to 27,000 people from 40,000 people as part of a 2.7 billion South African rand operational overhaul.
One of the sources said that revenue for the mines that were previously going to halt operations is now up.
Implats recently forecast full-year headline EPS of between 406 South African cents and 440 cents, compared to a year-ago loss of 171 cents per share, which included 9.70 billion rand in impairments.
The company attributed the guidance to a higher realized rand basket price for its platinum group metal products, a weaker rand, and stronger dollar pricing for rhodium and palladium, with earnings expectations partially offset by a weaker platinum price in dollar terms.
The newswire wrote, citing a company presentation, that half of the shafts at Rustenburg, including the ones set to close down, have turned a yearly profit compared to losses in the prior year.
The company has already axed about 2,000 jobs, according to the sources, but is mulling to hire additional contractors to mine some shafts.
