Zimbabwe’s third-largest platinum group metals (PGM) producer, Unki Mine, recorded a 12% year-on-year decline in production for the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, weighed down by localized operational hurdles and scheduled engineering work.
The Shurugwi-based mining operation produced 50,600 ounces of PGMs during the three-month period, a drop from the 57,500 ounces extracted during the same quarter last year.
According to parent company Valterra Platinum, the output retreat stems from the mine’s scheduled progression into lower-grade areas of the orebody, which introduced higher internal waste dilution.
Operations were further restricted by lower milling throughput driven by planned maintenance at the Unki concentrator plant.
The drop at the Zimbabwean unit mirrors broader headwinds for Valterra Platinum, which recorded a 10% general decline in group-wide PGM production to 990,400 ounces. Refined PGM sales for the group dropped even sharper by 27% to 683,300 ounces.
However, this slide was partially offset by a drawing down of existing refined inventory and a 15% increase in the average realized PGM basket price, which climbed to R38,815 (US$2,383) per ounce.
Despite the softer quarterly volumes, Valterra Platinum has maintained its full-year 2026 production guidance at 3.0 million to 3.4 million ounces for both mined and refined PGM output.
The company noted, however, that cash operating costs are pacing toward the upper boundary of its guidance range of R19,000 to R20,000 per ounce.
Management attributed the rising financial pressures to macro-inflationary forces hitting key inputs including fuel, drill steel, chemicals, and explosives alongside localized production halts stemming from safety stoppages. 
