Mr. Chris Griffith

Anglo American Platinum says Rustenburg Platinum Mines Limited, its wholly owned subsidiary has entered into a Sale and Purchase Agreement with Sibanye Gold Limited to sell its Rustenburg mining and concentrating operations for at least R4.5 billion.

 
The deal is an upfront payment in cash or Sibanye shares of R1.5 billon and deferred consideration calculated as being equal to 35% of the distributable free cash flow generated by the Rustenburg Operations over a defined period with a minimum amount payable of R3.0 billion.

 
The move follows Anglo American Platinum in 2012 to embark on a portfolio review in response to the structural changes taking place in the platinum industry. The outcome of the review was to restructure the business to remove loss making ounces and align production with market demand.

 
This resulted in the consolidation of Rustenburg from five to three mines and Union from two to one mine, removing 350koz of unprofitable platinum production. A further cost and capital prioritisation programme was implemented which resulted in revised operational mine plans, cost savings and revenue enhancements with a total benefit of R4.2 billion.

 
CEO of Anglo American Platinum, Chris Griffith said the Rustenburg operations are quality assets with long-term and sustainable potential under Sibanye’s control, given their proven and successful track record of operating conventional mines in South Africa.

 
“Our focus from the outset has been to identify the right option for the business, its stakeholders and shareholders and we believe we have concluded a beneficial transaction for both parties, whilst also securing a sustainable future for the Rustenburg Operations,” he said.  Griffith added that they remain committed to pursuing their strategy, continuing to reposition Anglo American Platinum as a high quality, largely mechanised operator yielding high margins.
“We are focusing on our core assets and exiting those assets we have identified as non-core in a responsible manner, consistent with the objectives of the Mining Charter.”