PLA Moving to Owner Operator Mining at Smokey Hills

Platinum Australia Limited has initiated a transition from contractor underground mining at Smokey Hills Mine to Owner Operator mining.

The transition process is being completed with the full cooperation of the current mining contractor, JIC Mining Services (Pty) Ltd (“JIC”), and is scheduled to be completed by the end of February. The decision to move to Owner Operator is the result of extensive planning and evaluation work completed over a number of months to determine the most effective operational model for the Smokey Hills Mine. PLA believes it will be in a stronger position to meet its production targets and will benefit from cost savings of 10 to 15% to be achieved over the next three months with the removal of a number of duplicated management positions and the contractors’ overheads and profit. There is expected to be minimal disruption to production during the transition and no significant additional expenditure will be required