(Reuters) -South African miner Sibanye Stillwater has struck a $500 million streaming agreement with Franco-Nevada Corp, Sibanye said on Thursday, as it seeks to boost its finances after a slump in platinum group metal (PGM) prices.
Sibanye has said it will pursue metals streaming and prepayment arrangements, which involve selling future metals production in return for an upfront cash payment, to bolster its balance sheet. This is after its earnings plunged due to the slide in PGM prices.
“The group’s financial position has been reinforced at a competitive cost of capital,” Sibanye CEO Neal Froneman said in a statement.
Prices of PGMs, which are used to curb emissions in vehicles, fell sharply in 2023 amid high inventory levels and concerns that the growth of battery-powered electric vehicles, which do not use PGMs, would reduce future demand.
Sibanye will receive the cash in exchange for gold and platinum from its South African operations, the diversified miner said.
In August, Sibanye concluded a 1.8 billion rand ($98.7 million) gold prepayment deal to raise cash to help repay loans, taking advantage of a price rally for that precious metal, which reached record highs this year.
Sibanye plunged to a $2 billion loss in the 2023 financial year on the back of the PGM price rout. It reported a further $394 million loss in the first half of 2024 as weak PGM prices persisted.
($1 = 18.2361 rand)
(Reporting by Aby Jose Koilparambil in Bengaluru and Nelson Banya in Harare. Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala and Mark Potter)
