South Africa is pressing Zimbabwe to settle more than US$228 million owed to platinum producers, as delays under the foreign currency retention system put pressure on major mining companies operating in the country. The post South Africa demands Zimbabwe pay US$228m owed to platinum miners appeared first on Nehanda Radio .
South Africa has demanded that Zimbabwe repay more than US$228 million owed to platinum group metals (PGM) producers under the country’s foreign currency retention system, as payment delays continue to weigh on one of Zimbabwe’s most important export industries.
South African Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe said his government was engaging Zimbabwe over the money deducted from PGM producers and retained in local currency without being paid back to the mining companies.
“What I’m discussing with the Zimbabwean government is the payment of 30% that is deducted in local currency and never given back to PGM producers. I want them to pay back the money,” Mantashe said while speaking to the media two days ago.
Zimbabwe requires exporters to surrender 30% of their export proceeds through government channels, with the amount converted into local currency. However, delays in reimbursing exporters have left mining companies carrying substantial outstanding balances.
The issue has increasingly become a source of concern for South African mining companies with major investments in Zimbabwe’s platinum sector.
At a mining conference in Victoria Falls in June, Platinum Producers’ Association chairman Alex Mhembere said PGM producers were owed more than US$228 million as of May 2026.
“These engagements have not resulted in significant change to the situation, with latest statistics showing that PGM producers are owed more than $228 million as of May 2026,” Mhembere said.
The Finance Ministry has acknowledged the debt, attributing the delays to revenue constraints.
The outstanding payments come at a difficult time for Zimbabwe’s platinum industry, which has been recovering from a prolonged price slump while also dealing with high operating costs and unreliable electricity supplies.
Zimbabwe is the world’s third-largest producer of platinum group metals after South Africa and Russia, making the sector strategically important to both countries’ mining interests.
South African mining companies have significant exposure to Zimbabwe’s PGM industry.
Valterra Platinum, formerly Anglo American Platinum, said in February that it was owed about US$100 million in export proceeds from its Unki mine in Zimbabwe in 2025.
Impala Platinum, which owns Zimbabwe’s largest platinum producer, Zimplats, has separately reported that the Zimbabwean Government owes it about US$78 million.
PGM producers in Zimbabwe owned by South African mining companies, including Sibanye-Stillwater, generated combined export revenue of about US$1.8 billion in 2025.
The dispute centres on Zimbabwe’s broader foreign currency retention policy, which authorities say is necessary to secure foreign exchange for critical imports, capital projects and servicing external obligations.
For mining companies, however, delayed payments have created a cash-flow strain, particularly as a significant portion of their export earnings is converted into local currency.
PGMs are Zimbabwe’s second-most valuable mineral export after gold and are used in applications including vehicle catalytic converters that reduce harmful emissions.
The sector’s payment crisis has also raised broader concerns about Zimbabwe’s investment environment, with mining companies requiring predictable access to their export earnings to finance operations, repay debt and fund expansion projects.
Gold producers have similarly criticised the foreign currency retention framework, arguing that converting part of their export proceeds into local currency at an unfavourable rate reduces the value of their earnings.
Mantashe’s intervention has added pressure on Harare to clear the outstanding payments, particularly given the significant role played by South African companies in Zimbabwe’s platinum industry.
Experts have indicated that the US$228 million obligation highlights a wider policy dilemma for Zimbabwe.
While the Government needs foreign currency from exporters to support the economy, delays in returning the equivalent value to producers risk undermining the financial stability of the very companies generating the foreign exchange.
