Tharisa PLC (LSE:THS, JSE:THA, OTC:TIHRF) said it delivered operationally as planned in the third quarter with improved mining and plant recoveries resulting in overall platinum group metal (PGM) and chrome concentrate production increases.
The South African miner increased PGM output to 36,900 ounces, up from 35,300 ounces in the previous quarter. The average price for PGMs stayed steady at $1,391 per ounce, compared to $1,343 per ounce in the second quarter. Chrome production also rose to 410,200 tonnes from 402,700 in the previous quarter.
The company’s targets for the full year remain between 145-155,000 ounces of PGMs and 1.7 -1.8 million tonnes of chrome concentrates.
In its update, Tharisa reported strong prices for its metallurgical grade chrome concentrate, which increased by 8% to $309 per tonne from $286 per tonne in the second quarter.
Its cash on hand rose to $189.9 million, up from $184.6 million at the end of March 2024. The company also reduced its debt to $97.7 million from $114.0 million.
In the update, Tharisa said its $5 million share repurchase program is progressing well.
The lost time injury frequency rate (LTIFR) per 200,000 man-hours worked was 0.03 at Tharisa Minerals and 0.10 at Karo Platinum.
CEO Phoevos Pouroulis said: "The focus on sustainable mining and the structural improvements achieved in this year to date positions us for a strong last quarter, with further improvements in the mining performance, providing the sustainable foundation for the medium to long-term plans for the mine."
He added that "positive progress" has been made with plans for transitioning to underground development in the west pit in parallel with the continued optimisation of open-pit mining at Tharisa Minerals operation. The Karo Platinum Project, meanwhile, is "progressing safely and well".
"Our vision for Tharisa remains firmly intact, with sustainable mining complemented by maximising the output from our ore bodies, coupled through our various beneficiation initiatives for both chrome and PGMs together with the continued progress we are making in the renewable energy field with Redox One, and the 40MW solar project," added Pouroulis.