JSE-listed Impala Platinum (Implats) has concluded a series of agreements, facilitating the implementation of a broad-based black economic empowerment (BBBEE) transaction at its Impala Rustenburg and Impala Bafokeng assets.

The transaction will result in 13% BBBEE ownership at both Implats, which owns the Impala Rustenburg and Impala Refineries assets, and Impala Bafokeng through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Impala Bafokeng Resources (IBR).

Equity ownership in Impala and IBR will take place through an employee share ownership trust, a community share ownership trust and a strategic empowerment consortium, with ownership of 4%, 4% and 5%, respectively.

Implats has partnered with Siyanda Resources, which will lead the participation of the strategic empowerment consortium.

The three components of the transaction will be facilitated through loans provided by Impala and IBR, with dividend flow used to service interest and capital repayments.

“We are pleased to announce the details of this empowerment transaction, which reaffirms our commitment to meaningful and sustainable economic empowerment across our operations and increases broad-based ownership in the platinum group metals (PGM) sector,” says Implats CEO Nico Muller.

“The transaction demonstrates the group’s confidence in our business, the PGM sector and South Africa.

“While the transaction was initially conceived as part of our commitments related to acquiring Impala Bafokeng, the intention was clearly focussed on enabling broad-based participation in the resulting entity — a stronger, longer-life and more sustainable Rustenburg asset base — and meaningful empowerment ownership in the group’s South African mining, smelting and refining assets,” he adds.

Muller avers that this provides a foundation for sustainable and lasting benefits for the beneficiaries of the transaction and expands ownership across the South African PGM sector.