Billionaire Robert Friedland’s Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. (IVN) gained the most in 17 months after overcoming local opposition to get final approval to build one of the world’s biggest platinum mines in South Africa.
The country’s Department of Mineral Resources signed off on the license to produce platinum-group and base metals at the $1.6 billion Platreef project in the northern Limpopo province for a renewable 30-year period, the Vancouver-based company said in a statement today.
The authorization “signals the South African government’s determination to grow our country’s economy,” Mines Minister Ngoako Ramatlhodi said, according to the statement. “The Platreef Project will attract foreign capital, create much needed jobs and contribute significantly to socio-economic development in areas surrounding the project.”
The approval means Ivanhoe’s local unit, Ivanplats, will scrap a plan to cut jobs at Platreef, it said. The company had initiated the process because it said it didn’t have a definite date to start mining.
Ivanhoe jumped the most intraday since May last year, climbing 15 percent to trade at 93 Canadian cents by 10:29 a.m. in Toronto.
Local Prosperity
Platreef plans to exploit part of the world’s largest platinum-bearing geological feature, known as the Bushveld Complex. It’s next to Anglo American Platinum Holdings Ltd.’s Mogalakwena mine, the biggest and most profitable mine owned by the world’s largest producer. When Platreef starts production in 2020, it’s projected to become the lowest-cost platinum-group metal producer in Africa, according to the company. South Africa accounts for about three-quarters of world production of platinum.
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