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Zambia's South Africa-developed mining cadastre licensing system portals have been reactivated, the Ministry of Mines and Mineral Development has confirmed.

"The disruption was due to the expiration of contractual obligations with Spatial Dimension, the South Africa-based system developer. The Ministry has taken interim measures to reopen the platform while finalising contractual arrangements to ensure the system's continued management," Ministry principal public relations officer Shamwinda Tembo has stated in a release accessed by Mining Weekly.

Clients can now access all services provided by the mining cadastre department through themining cadastre map portal https://portals.landfolio.com/Zambia/ and the online transactional portal https://portal.miningcadastre.com

However, some are still querying the lack of reference to the 'must be hosted in Zambia' requirement, which was said to be mandatory under data privacy law. The implementation of this resulted in the temporary ousting of the Trimble Landfolio System - the Spatial Dimension system - would be closed.

A screenshot Spatial Dimension's notice stated: "After almost two decades of supporting the Zambian mining cadastre, Spatial Dimension no longer has the contractual ability to provide access to the service."

A subsequent notice was then put out by Spatial Dimension to explain that "This system is not available at the present time. Please contact the Ministry of Mines and Mineral Development for more information."

No insight has been provided into First Mining DRC-Zambia's report that the locally-hosted ZIMIS system was intended to accelerate the issuance of mining rights, supporting the nation's ambition to hit 3.1-million tonnes of annual copper production by 2031. However, within weeks of launch, the Ministry issued a March 17 press release confirming that ZIMIS had suffered technical challenges, the publication stated.

Meanwhile, hopes are high that the initial launch of South Africa's own new cadastre system in the Western Cape on July 1 will be successful amid concern about the introduction of grids, which some fear may make insight difficult.

In an update on the introduction of the absolutely essential but extremely long-awaited South African cadastral system, DMPR deputy director general Tseliso Maqubela disclosed that the department had once again found itself at risk of repeating what had taken place with the introduction of the troublesome prior mining licensing system on 1 October 2013, which is now a business school case study on how not to roll out a project owing to its collapse soon after being launched.

On the way now is avoidance of introducing the new cadastre all at once nationally. Instead the new licensing system is going to be implemented regionally. "There won't be one roll out nationwide," Maqubela revealed.

"We've decided that we'll start with the Western Cape. We're still targeting completion in June 2025, as we had committed," said Maqubela on the grounds that the Western Cape is a manageable jurisdiction with the highest number of operational mines, no backlog and a limited number of outstanding appeals.

"So, we'll be able to test the efficacy of the system using that jurisdiction, which will soon be followed by Eastern Cape, and then all the other regions will follow after that.

"We know that there are regions with complexity that we're going to have to deal with, and we don't want any comebacks, so currently we're doing data migration, particularly for the region where we're going to start validation of that data, making sure that it is audited.

"Come the 1st of July, you won't be able to use Samrad to apply in the Western Cape, you will have to apply using the new cadastral system.

"One key feature is that we've introdu...

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In a step to accelerate South Africa's just energy transition and establish the country as a global green hydrogen leader, R656-million has been committed to a green hydrogen fund.

South Africa's state-owned Public Investment Corporation (PIC) asset manager, the State-owned Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa (IDC), and the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) have committed the equivalent of $37-million to South Africa's SA-H2 green hydrogen fund, also known as CI3 South Africa.

The pioneering blended finance SA-H2 facility has been designed to stimulate the energy transition with a core focus on the green hydrogen value chain, support inclusive economic growth, and drive job creation.

The fund is managed by a partnership between leading climate finance investor, Climate Fund Managers, and a Dutch development finance institution, Invest International.

The announcement was made on the first day of South Africa's Green Hydrogen Summit in Cape Town on June 12, at which SA-H2 also announced its first investment: $20-million in development funding for the Hive Hydrogen Coega Green Ammonia Project at Nelson Mandela Bay, in the Eastern Cape.

Hive will become South Africa's first large-scale green ammonia production plant, producing a million tonnes of green ammonia a year for export. The project will ensure that an annual 2.6-million tonnes of COe does not pollute our planet and create more than 20 000 jobs during construction and operations.

The Development Funding Agreement will cover engineering, procurement, and construction selection; front-end engineering and design; and the completion of advanced stage permitting, environmental and social impact assessments; leading to offtake finalisation and financial close preparation. It also secures SA-H2's right to invest up to $200-million in construction funding. Financial close is targeted for the second half of 2026, with commercial operations expected in 2029.

SA-H2 blends public and private capital within a single platform, made up of the:

Development Tranche, providing early-stage risk capital and technical assistance to prepare projects for financial close. SA-H2 secured its initial commitments in 2024, raising R1.4 billion ($80-million) from Invest International and the European Commission.

Blended Equity Tranches, to finance construction of projects through a tiered capital structure: The Tier 1 first loss tranche designed to absorb construction-stage risk; the Tier 2 Junior Equity tranche offering enhanced returns, supported by the other tiers; and the Tier 3 Senior Equity tranche, supported by risk mitigation instruments offering moderate risk-adjusted returns.

Accordingly, the IDC and DBSA have each committed R178-million ($10 million) to the second close of the development tranche, enabling it to achieve its fundraising target. The PIC, on behalf of the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF), has committed an initial R300-million ($17-million) to the equity tranche as the anchor commercial investor in Tier 2. An additional allocation may be considered for the second close, subject to the PIC's approval processes.

Climate Fund Managers CEO Andrew Johnstone described the commitments of PIC, DBSA, and IDC as signalling what he said was strong market confidence in South Africa's energy transition and green hydrogen potential.

"These institutions are backing a new generation of infrastructure, such as the Hive Green Ammonia Plant, that will decarbonise the economy, create green jobs, and enhance long-term competitiveness. SA-H2's blended finance model unites local and international partners across public and private sectors to deliver the energy transition at scale," Johnstone explained.

PIC CIO Kabelo Rikhotso spoke of SA-H2 offering ...

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South Africa witnessed Pan African build the Mogale Tailings Retreatment (MTR) gold project on Johannesburg's West Rand ahead of schedule and below budget.

Now Australia is witnessing this Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed mid-tier company perform with similar aplomb in its Northern Territory.

Last month's timely and on-the-dot monetary delivery of only such processing plant the region Pan African's Tennant Mines region has provided a guided 46 000 oz to 50 000 oz production, close to 1 700 km2 of prospective exploration ground.

"I believe the group has never been better positioned to take advantage of record gold prices," Pan African CEO Cobus Loots stated in a Vault Exchange update to Mining Weekly of record half-year gold production, lower gearing and a share buyback programme.

"Increased cashflow generation and de-gearing is allowing our business to continue to invest and grow, whilst also increasing cash returns to shareholders. The share buyback programme approved by our board demonstrates our confidence in the group and its prospects.

"We look forward to reporting our final results for the year ended June 2025 on 10 September, where additional details on progress with our growth projects and sustainability initiatives will be presented," added Loots.

Hold thumbs now that this September's feasibility study on the Soweto Cluster gold recovery project gives the go-ahead to something similar to the budget-beating and schedule-outstripping MTR, which is also located less than an hour's drive from Pan African's corporate office in Rosebank.

The Soweto Cluster study is also focusing on the option of constructing a new processing plant for a stand-alone 50 000 oz/y operation, amid MTR's guiding of 52 000 oz to 54 000 oz for financial year 2026 (FY26).

Surface assets also on track to achieve full-year production guidance are Evander's Elikhulu, with 49 000 oz to 51 000 oz, and Barberton Tailings Retreatment Plant, with 13 000 oz to 15 000 oz.

Additionally, all of the company's underground mines put in better second-half performances, with Evander underground guiding 46 000 oz to 50 000 oz and Barberton Mines underground guiding 69 000 oz to 72 000 oz.

This takes the total FY26 production forecast to a 40%-higher 275 000 oz to 292 000 oz at all-in sustaining costs (AISC) of between $1 475/oz and $1 525/oz.

AISC for the second half of FY25 are estimated at a higher $1 525/oz and $1 550/oz, with full FY25 AISC expected to be between $1 550/oz to $1 575/oz at an average exchange.

Sad news is the accidental death on June 6 of an auto electrician, who succumbed to injuries sustained while on duty at Barberton's Sheba Mine. "The group will continue its focus on various safety performance initiatives in order to improve safety statistics and strive for zero harm," said Loots.

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The immediate target of new Copper 360 CEO Graham Briggs is 5 000 t of copper in six to 12 months.

Based on current assessments, Briggs is of the firm belief that, within that period, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange AltX-listed Copper 360 can be at a level of 40 000 t of copper ore a month at a grade of 1%, which implies the annualised 5 000 t production level.

"This is where the CEO makes these promises and everyone in the organisation is either glad or worried about what I'm saying. But I think we all agree on this, that sort of progress in the next six to 12 months, we need to get to that 40 000 t of ore at 1%. Yes, there's huge potential beyond that - but that requires more planning. For now it's 5 000 t of copper in six to 12 months," Briggs outlined to Mining Weekly in a Zoom interview on Tuesday, June 10. (Also watch attached Creamer Media video.)

Meanwhile, the former Harmony Gold Mining Company CEO is over the moon about Copper 360's very distinctive multi-asset resource base, which has surprised him on the upside.

"It's got a suite of very promising orebodies. When I look at them, I'm actually surprised how great these orebodies are.

"There's also the metallurgical capacity and the multi-mine operational model strategy. We're not just here to mine - we're here to grow smartly, build sustainably, and deliver value to our investors. This is a new chapter for Copper 360. We have work to do - but the vision is clear, and the opportunity is real," an upbeat Briggs enthused.

Copper 360 is currently advancing the Rietberg mine - operating one metallurgical plant, while two others remain near complete - and is intent on bringing at least two additional orebody projects into production to establish sustainable operational momentum.

The well-progressing Rietberg core asset is set to enable Copper 360 to reach its immediate target levels.

The two additional plants and the two additional projects are earmarked to provide advantageous flexibility that the multi-mine operational model enables.

"I'm very aware that many of our stakeholders - investors, partners, communities, and the broader public - are both curious and, in some cases, concerned about the company's future.

"There's been commentary portraying Copper 360 as a struggling or failing mining company. Let me be clear: this is not an accurate reflection of who we are in Copper 360 because we're a resource-rich, lightly-capitalised exploration company that has only recently begun its transition to production, starting with the development of the Rietberg mine.

"Copper 360 mines are unlike a typical South African view of a mine. We're not built on a single, massive orebody with decades-long mine life and deep-shaft infrastructure. Instead, we hold multiple well-drilled, high-potential, much smaller copper orebodies," Briggs explained.

Mining Weekly: What sort of growth pattern is Copper 360 likely to have under your leadership?

Briggs: The vision is actually quite clear. It's actually been talked about in the past, but not well conceptualised. It's really a multi-mine strategy. We've got a series of small to medium-sized mining operations that feed into a centralised processing facility. Some of these were mined in the past, so we know a lot about the orebodies. They've been accessed via adits and declines. In some cases, openpits are a possibility. They're going to be flexible. We're going to end up with relocatable infrastructure and a model that's well suited to our terrain and certainly the distribution of the orebodies. They're well distributed around the region.

The individual mines will have shorter life spans than we're used to but we may extend their orebodies either laterally or down dip. But the model provides us agility, scalability and we nee...

Mining Weekly Editor Martin Creamer unpacks Mintek’s significant milestone in sustainable metallurgy; Bulgaria being keen on hydrogen collaboration with South African stakeholders; and Wilo’s green hydrogen generation through electrolysis.

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Diversified mining company Jubilee Metals has decided to dispose of its chrome and platinum group metals (PGM) business in South Africa to focus fully on Zambia, where the directors believe there are material opportunities to deliver growth at the existing sites by expanding the portfolio of copper producing assets.

This follows the receipt by the Johannesburg AltX- and London AIM-listed of a conditional binding offer from a private mining and metals trading company to acquire the group's chrome and PGM operations in South Africa for up to $90-million, payable through a combination of upfront cash and deferred cash over three years.

"The South African business has reached a stage of maturity that would require a large capital outlay to achieve any step change in production going forward. On the other hand, in Zambia, the potential capital returns and earnings growth offered from our exciting suite of assets could not be more evident," Jubilee CEO Leon Coetzer commented in a release to Mining Weekly.

In addition to Zambia's Roan now being fully operational, growth is also beckoning at the Central African country's Munkoyo and Project G near-surface opportunities.

"The staggered nature of the proposed acquisition consideration, along with funds from the expected sales of non-core assets in Zambia, and project specific funding discussions, align with our future capital growth plans in the country," added Coetzer.

Jubilee expects copper demand to remain high amid its ability to recover copper from shallow transitional reefs successfully and trials confirming the Roan concentrator's capability to maintain run-of-mine feedstock production at between 35 000 tonnes per month (tpm) and 40 000 tpm.

Of Munkoyo's 80 000 tpm mine rate, 3 500 tpm of high-grade material is delivered to Jubilee's nearby Sable Refinery, while at Project G work on the design of an opencast expansion is under way.

Next year's planned introduction of a second tank-house at Sable will increase the capacity to about 14 000 tonnes a year will accommodate production from Munkoyo and Project G's nearby modular units.

At the Large Waste Project, Jubilee reports that it has entered into negotiations with various parties to potentially invest into the construction of the targeted modular processing units for this project.

The targeted companies are described as offering more attractive investment terms under a partnership agreement approach than offered previously by the Abu Dhabi-based investment firm.

The refinery expansion was delayed over the past quarter to prioritise investment into these mining operations and the completion of the processing trials at Roan. Completion of the Sable expansion is scheduled in the first quarter of next year.

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Bulgaria is particularly enthusiastic about establishing hydrogen collaboration with stakeholders from South Africa - and is fully prepared to initiate cooperation 'right away'.

Research secondments, doctorate opportunities, joint research activities are also on offer from this Balkan state, which is developing a master's programme in hydrogen technologies in cooperation with its European partners.

Although Centre of Excellence in Hydrogen Technologies in Stara Zagora (H2START) is newly opened, its first laboratories, combining education and hands-on training, are expected to open within a year and a warm welcome is being extended to South African students.

Interestingly, Bulgaria's green hydrogen valley in Stara Zagora (ZAHYR Valley) has opted for platinum-catalysed proton exchange membrane (PEM) technology, which is music to South Africa's ears owing to PEM's use of platinum group metals.

Bulgaria's March-launched Centre of Excellence in Hydrogen Technologies in Stara Zagora (H2START) aims to boost hydrogen education, research, and industry partnerships launched in March will be equipped to research hydrogen production, storage and transportation.

An industrial and logistic centre on the Balkan Peninsula, Stara Zagora is transitioning away from coal, making it a perfect place to showcase the industrial and socially transformative potential of green hydrogen as a zero-carbon fossil fuels alternative.

Bulgaria is intent on developing the entire hydrogen value chain - from production to local distribution and application.

The ZAHYR Valley is set to be completed by 2028 and will be at the centre of Bulgaria's hydrogen production, contributing to overall development of the hydrogen economy. Thus, in the next decade, Bulgaria is set to become an export hub for green hydrogen, which would solidify its role in the EU Southeast Hydrogen Corridor.

Meanwhile, H2START is a teaming project between Trakia University - Stara Zagora, the Bulgarian Association for Hydrogen, Fuel Cells and Energy Storage, the Polytechnic University of Turin and the Institute for Advanced Energy Technologies at the National Research Centre of Italy.

Importantly, Bulgaria's solar power capacity, which has grown over the past three years from 1.2 GW to 4.5 GW, has potential to hit the 40 GW amid latent offshore and onshore wind energy opportunity also existing.

The 250 km hydrogen pipeline under feasibility study from Greece to Bulgaria and likely also Romania would provide capacity for large-scale hydrogen demand should it be developed.

Institutionally, Bulgaria's broad-based developmental and technology framework is providing stimuli for green hydrogen application in industry, transport and energy, complemented by enhancing scientific research, skilling the green hydrogen economy through educational and cross-sectoral collaboration and encouraging international partnerships.

On the educational front, Bulgaria is going to the extent of preparing a "Teach the Teacher" programme to ensure effective implementation of hydrogen curricula from the beginning.

Very generously, it has been made clear that interested schools and universities would be well received and by way of initial contact, has requested that institution names, contact persons and email addresses be made known through the Bulgarian Embassy.

This comprehensive insight has been provided to Engineering News & Mining Weekly the Bulgarian Ambassador to South Africa, Maria Pavlova, as well as the Bulgarian Hydrogen, Fuel Cells Committee and Energy Storage Association chairperson, Prof Dr Daria Vladikova, who is also Professor at the Institute of Electrochemistry and Energy Systems at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Head of Department of Hydrogen Technologies in the Institute of Susta...

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Wilo, a global name in pump manufacturing, now has solar panels on the roofs of all of its buildings to enable green hydrogen generation through electrolysis.

The stored hydrogen is then used as needed by passing it through platinum-catalysed fuel cells, which turn the hydrogen passed through them into green electricity to run Wilo's operations.

The H2Powerplant is offered in four sizes, with the capacity to produce power equivalent to the yearly consumption of three, five, or 20 households.

Fuel Cell Works reports that this technological approach is enabling companies to accelerate the migration to clean energy from existing infrastructure without having to start from scratch.

Hydrogen, which can be stored for prolonged periods, is now being increasingly recognised as the superior energy storage option amid supply chains of raw materials such as platinum group metals (PGMs) also being increasingly also being elevated to the rank of decarbonising champions.

Key contributors are platinum-based proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells, which are platinum catalysed amid green hydrogen generation and demand rising significantly in particularly China.

What is seen as urgent is that the hydrogen fuel cells industry uplifts itself fast to enable it to progress more rapidly into the mass market.

The peaks and valleys of renewable energy supply are best balanced out by stored hydrogen or hydrogen compounds, Heraeus Precious Metals executive vice-president business line systems Dr Philipp Walter spelt out during a Zoom interview with Mining Weekly. (Also watch attached Creamer Media video.)

"I believe every time it comes to dealing with hydrogen, platinum group metals have an advantage," Walter added.

Heraeus' virtual hydrogen talks involved inputs from Ulm and TU Wein University professor Dr Christian Mohrdieck, Freudenberg e-Power Systems Clean Energy Consulting's Dr Manfred Stefener and UFI Hydrogen's Marco Lazzaroni amid an important spotlight being shone on the extent to which platinum-catalysed fuel cells will drive future hydrogen demand.

The Germany-based precious metal and technology company Heraeus has had a long-standing association with South Africa, where its local entities include a marketing and sales office in Boksburg and a platinum group metals chemical compounds production and refinery site in Gqeberha.

Mining Weekly can report that the group's sales of PGM-based electric catalysts for hydrogen generation, which peaked in 2023, are back up again in 2025 owing to increased demand.

A hydrogen price of €5/kg to €6/kg was regarded as a tipping point by the panel, which sees no way around hydrogen owing to its versatile usage and water being the feedstock raw material for making hydrogen, which can be stored for a day, a week, a month, a year or more.

The amount of water needed for green hydrogen production is similar to that required for grey hydrogen, averaging about 10 to 19 litres per kilogram.

It's important to understand that the market for green hydrogen is already there because the world is consuming 100-million tons of hydrogen a year that are "polluting like hell", the French company Lhyfe has emphasised.

Lhyfe founder and CEO Matthieu Guesné is adamant that "there's nothing that's easier to do when decarbonising a customer, a plant, an industrial player, than switching from grey hydrogen to green hydrogen", so that's what this publicly listed company is doing.

Mining Weekly: Why is hydrogen seen as the superior energy storage option?

Walter: If you have renewable energy, you have ups and downs, peaks and valleys in terms of supply, and the best way to store energy, in this respect, is hydrogen, or compounds of hydrogen. You need chemical energy storage for these kinds of intermittent energy ...

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South Africa's national mineral research organisation Mintek has achieved a significant milestone in sustainable metallurgy by demonstrating production of manganese ferroalloys using carbon-free reductants.".

This new cutting edge method, called the HAIMan process, uses hydrogen and aluminium instead of traditional carbon-based materials, eliminating carbon dioxide (CO) emissions and generating zero waste. At the same time, it converts manganese-rich waste into valuable products, making the process both cleaner and more efficient.

With industries worldwide facing increasing pressure to reduce waste, cut energy use, and lower carbon emissions, Mintek is putting South Africa at the forefront of green metallurgy.

Traditionally, making ferromanganese alloys required extremely high temperatures in electric furnaces, leading to large amounts of CO emissions.

The HAIMan process changes this by replacing carbon-based reductants with hydrogen and aluminium, which burns cleanly and produces only water instead of harmful gases.

HAIMan consists of two steps, the first being the pre-reduction step and the second the smelting step.

The pre-reduction step utilises hydrogen gas as reductant, and the smelting step utilises aluminium metal as reductant aluminium metal.

By eliminating CO emissions, HAIMan not only transforms waste materials into valuable resources but also achieves a remarkable zero waste outcome.

Furthermore, the slag generated during the smelting phase is effectively recycled, allowing for the recovery of alumina, grey mud, and residues that can be repurposed in cement manufacturing.

"This method stands at the forefront of sustainable practices, significantly reducing environmental impact while enhancing energy efficiency. The HAIMan process promises a cleaner, greener future for alloy production, showcasing that innovation can meet industrial needs without compromising our planet," Mintek, located on Malibongwe Drive, in Randburg, Gauteng, stated in a release to Mining Weekly.

"Ferromanganese alloys are critical to South Africa's economy, as they are widely used in iron and steel production and the welding industry. The country holds 74% of the world's identified land-based manganese ore resources, yet the local ferroalloys industry has struggled due to rising ore prices that have rendered production unprofitable. Recognising the urgent need to revitalise this sector, Mintek has partnered with leading organisations from Europe and South Africa, with support from the European Union's Horizon programme, to implement the HAIMan process. This initiative aims to introduce the most energy-efficient production methods while significantly cutting CO emissions," the State-owned organisation explained.

Mintek pyrometallurgy division executive manager Dr Elias Matinde shared positive results from the latest HAIMan tests: "This testing successfully demonstrated carbon-free production of manganese ferroalloys with a manganese content exceeding 70%.

"Our environmental evaluations further confirmed negligible CO emissions, highlighting the HAIMan process's potential to significantly contribute towards decarbonising the production of manganese ferroalloys. We are extremely proud of the progress we are making in pyrometallurgy as we continue to showcase our expertise," Matinde added.

Mintek CEO Dr Molefi Motuku emphasised that revitalising the ferromanganese industry is one of Mintek's key strategic programmes.

"South Africa has an abundance of manganese, yet the country is not fully benefiting from its ferroalloy resources. Industry players, government, and researchers all agree that more must be done to develop local capacity, improve competitiveness, and unlock greater economic value.

"Mintek is committed to revitalisin...

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SFA Oxford Platinum Lectures 2025 attracted the broadest spectrum of platinum interest amid the highest attendance ever, with a similar top-notch turnout evident at the London Platinum Week that followed.

"We had good representation across the board," an upbeat SFA Oxford CEO Henk de Hoop told Mining Weekly in a Zoom interview. (Also watch attached Creamer Media video.

Moreover, the platinum jewellery component presentation in London had twice as many people as it did in 2024, with jewellers in China starting to restock platinum amid fading gold momentum.

That was among the themes coming through, too, from the presentations of the World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) on the outlook for China.

"WPIC covered all the aspects in the Chinese market, also automotive, but particularly standing out is that WPIC is becoming quite optimistic that the jewellers are starting to restock platinum, with the biggest driver being the difference between gold and platinum pricing and the gold momentum is starting to fade a bit in China from a momentum of buying volume.

"It needs only a small proportion of that gold market to look at white gold and platinum particularly as an alternative to have a potentially large impact on the platinum market, which is much smaller than the gold market," De Hoop noted.

Ostensibly resurging, too, in addition to jewellery demand, is also China's investment demand, which is poised to help the platinum market in particular.

Mining Weekly: How important is it that China's platinum jewellery stores are now including platinum investment bars in their offerings?

De Hoop: It's a very important development, because there are excess savings in China. The property market is not providing the returns anymore. Gold markets provided great returns, and that's stalling now. What we do need is a bit of price momentum and platinum, and you can show them there's actually momentum building there, and there is a supply deficit, and the stocks are starting to deplete, it could become a very important story. The reason as well is that China is such a large savings market, there's only a tiny percentage of that money that needs to flow into investment bars for it to make a huge difference to the platinum market, so it is very exciting. It will hopefully suck up some platinum and hopefully move the platinum price upwards in that process as well.

Platinum supply is down even though demand is robust. Why is this supply/demand paradox continuing?

We had a CEO's panel, and remember a basket is being mined and although the enthusiasm to its platinum is increasing, and the deficits are there, the price hasn't moved realistically, except for last week, where it popped up by about $150. But the net impact of the collapse in the rhodium and palladium prices over the last two or three years is that there hasn't been much money going into the ground, and it hasn't been happening for a couple of years. The confidence in the longer term future is weak, partly because of the battery electric vehicle penetration concerns that people have, and there are very few alternatives out there at the moment, in the sense that the fuel cell boom that people are hoping to come, is not as clear-cut as what one would need to have confidence to spend billions in the ground to expand the production.

The lack of investment in the industry means that naturally in mining, you will start to fade a bit from a volume perspective. South Africa has a particular problem as well, that a lot of the bulk of the production comes from very deep old mines, and those are aging and replacing that production is particularly challenging because of the depth they're mining at. It just takes too long to sink deep shafts, so you will see a naturally declining profi...