Acquisition:
2022 / 08 / 15
Agreement:
Stream
Terms:
37.5% Au @ $100/oz until 131,250 oz are delivered; then
30% Au @ $100/oz until 256,980 cumulative oz are delivered; then
1.875% Au @ 80% of spot thereafter if certain conditions are met
Ongoing Payment:
$100/oz
The Platreef Project is located in northeast South Africa, within the Bushveld Igneous Complex’s northern limb, the world’s largest source of platinum group metals (PGM). Platreef is a development-stage project which contains a large new discovery of PGM, nickel, copper and gold. The project is owned by Ivanhoe Mines (64%), a Japanese consortium of Itochu, JOGMEC and Japan Gas Corporation (10%), and a group of local communities organized through the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Initiative (26%). The deposit currently ranks as one of the largest precious metals deposits being developed in the world.
The Platreef deposit contains current reserves of 129.7 Mt with an average 4.22 3PE+Au (Pt + Pd + Rh + Au), 0.16% Cu, and 0.33% Ni (as of February 14, 2025, based on a variable NSR cut-off grade of $155 – $80/t). Indicated exclusive resources contain an additional 346 Mt with an average grade of 3.77 g/t 3PE+Au, 0.16% Cu and 0.32% Ni (based on a cut-off grade of 2.0 g/t 3PE + Au). The deposit remains entirely open for expansion to the south and west, indicating there is excellent potential for additional resource expansion.
Ivanhoe recently announced an optimized development plan for Platreef which de-risks initial production and accelerates Phase 2 expansion by up to three years. Under the revised development plan, Ivanhoe will re-purpose ventilation Shaft #3 for hoisting at a rate of 3 Mtpa and increase the size of the initial Phase 2 concentrator to 3.3 Mtpa (previously 2.2 Mtpa), bringing site-wide processing capacity to 4.0 Mtpa. Shaft #3 is expected to be ready for hoisting in the first quarter of 2026. Positive results from the Feasibility Study on the Phase 2 expansion were announced in February 2025.
In addition, Ivanhoe completed a Phase 3 Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) that outlines further expansion, which would increase total processing capacity to approximately 10.0 Mtpa. The PEA delivered an after-tax NPV (8%) of $3.2 billion and an IRR of 25% over a 29-year mine life, reinforcing Platreef’s position as a multi-generational, world-class asset.
