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Tharisa plans on spending $547 million for underground platinum mine project

Tharisa Plc, a South African company, announced on Friday that it plans to invest $547 million in an underground mining project for platinum group metals over the next decade. The company is betting on these metals as being essential to the global switch to cleaner energy technologies.

It said that the company plans to convert its Tharisa open pit PGM and Chrome co-producing mine in South Africa's Bushveld Complex from an open pit mine to underground mining by 2020.

Phoevos Poullis, CEO of the company, said in a conference call that the underground project was a natural progression. It has been set up to enhance the mine life and access multi-generational minerals resources.

He said that PGMs were "critical metals that the world is now aware are necessary for a transition to a new world".

The metals can be used to produce clean hydrogen and fuel cells.

Pouroulis stated that Tharisa’s mechanised underground operation, which is expected to begin delivering ore in the second quarter 2026 from the first two shafts, will increase efficiencies, reduce costs, and increase output.

The underground operations will deliver at least 200,000 pounds of PGMs annually and 2 million tons of chrome concentrate. Tharisa's 2025 financial year is expected to produce between 140,000-160,000 ounces PGMs, and 1.65-1.8 million tons chrome concentrates.

It is developing two new greenfield mining projects, including Ivanhoe Platreef in South Africa and the Karo open pit platinum mine, which produces 226,000 ounces of platinum per year.

South African Platinum miner Northam said that the number of PGM mines had fallen from 81 to 53 in 2008 due to the advancement of electric vehicles. Reporting by Nelson Banya, Editing by Mark Potter

(source: Reuters)