HARARE, April 30 (Reuters) – Impala Platinum’s
Zimbabwe unit Zimplats reported a 170 percent jump in
third-quarter profit on Monday, buoyed by higher platinum
prices.
Zimplats said January to March operating profit rose to $52
million from $19 million the previous quarter. Revenue, at $128
million, was 32 percent higher than the last quarter.
The company said production dropped by two percent to 90,557
ounces after an illegal strike by some workers and electricity
cuts, which affected operations at the mine’s platinum matte
furnace.
A planned maintenance shutdown reduced ore milled by 4
percent to 1.1 million tonnes.
Implats, which owns 87 percent of Zimplats, said in March it
had agreed to a deal that would see it comply with Zimbabwe’s
requirement that 51 percent of shares in Zimplats be held by
locals.
(Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe, Editing by David Cowell)
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