Mining company Impala Platinum said on Thursday that it had raised its metals production forecast for the 2023/2024 full year, as it draws benefits from recent asset acquisitions from Royal Bafokeng Platinum.
Those acquisitions are expected to “materially alter” the company’s production profile, as it forecasts an increase in platinum-group metals output to between 3.3 million and 3.45 million ounces.
Impala Platinum bolstered its output forecast even as its earnings have been impacted by the challenges in its home market, including electricity outages, and as prices of palladium and rhodium have retreated from record highs amid demand outlook uncertainty.
“The recent material decline in dollar platinum-group metals pricing heralded a period of rapid margin compression across the sector,” the Johannesburg-based company said in a statement, cited by Reuters.
Impala Platinum reported a 4% decline in its platinum metals output to 2.9 million ounces in the year ending June 30th.
Meanwhile, the company’s full-year earnings shrank 41% to ZAR 18.8 billion.