Zimplats Holdings Ltd. saw its gold output collapse by 57% in the three months through March, the sharpest decline among a suite of platinum group metals, as a prolonged smelter maintenance shutdown reduced final metal production to less than half of year-ago levels, Mining Zimbabwe can report.
By Rudairo Mapuranga
Gold production fell to 3,863 ounces in the March quarter, equivalent to roughly 109.5 kilograms, from 9,049 ounces in the December quarter, according to the company’s latest production report. Compared with the same period last year, gold output dropped by 48% from 7,368 ounces, or 209 kilograms.
The decline was mirrored across all six platinum group elements tracked by the Zimbabwean miner. Total 6E production, comprising platinum, palladium, gold, rhodium, ruthenium, and iridium, tumbled by 56% quarter-on-quarter to 76,340 ounces, or about 2,164 kilograms, down from 174,229 ounces in the prior quarter and 139,506 ounces a year earlier.
Platinum output fell to 35,525 ounces, or 1,007 kilograms, a 56% drop from the December quarter’s 80,463 ounces and 45% below the 65,163 ounces produced in the March quarter of 2025. Palladium followed the same trajectory, sliding 56% to 29,694 ounces (842 kilograms) from 67,934 ounces, and 45% lower than 53,943 ounces a year ago.
Rhodium production was 3,215 ounces (91 kilograms), down 56% sequentially and 44% year-on-year, while ruthenium fell by 57% to 2,748 ounces (78 kilograms) and iridium dropped by 56% to 1,295 ounces (37 kilograms). Silver suffered the steepest decline among by-products, falling by 65% from the prior quarter to 6,485 ounces (184 kilograms), while nickel tumbled by 61% to 684 tonnes, copper fell by 58% to 559 tonnes, and cobalt slumped by 76% to just 4 tonnes.
The production route was triggered by maintenance on the smelter carried out in February 2026, which halted matte tapping until March. Zimplats said accumulated concentrate stocks of about 63,000 ounces of 6E remain to be processed and are expected to be turned into final metal by the end of fiscal 2026.
Mining operations showed mixed results. Ore mined totalled 2.094 million tonnes, down 1% from the previous quarter due to two fewer operating days but up 17% year-on-year, helped by higher open-pit volumes and improved underground fleet performance. The 6E head grade edged lower to 3.28 grams per tonne from 3.29 grams in the December quarter and 3.36 grams a year earlier, reflecting higher throughput of open-pit ore and internal dilution during re-establishment across geological structures.
Processing volumes also took a hit. Ore milled fell by 6% quarter-on-quarter to 1.926 million tonnes following mill rise shutdowns at all concentrators, though improved ore generation underpinned a 15% year-on-year increase in milled throughput. Concentrator recoveries remained stable at 78.5%, nearly unchanged from both the prior quarter and the same period last year. As a result, 6E metal in concentrate production declined by 6% sequentially to 159,379 ounces, though that was still 18% higher than a year earlier.
The smelter outage meant that, despite higher concentrate output year-on-year, final metal deliveries collapsed, leaving the company with a large inventory buildup.
