Top 10 Platinum Mines in South Africa by Owner and Output

The largest platinum mine in South Africa by latest reported output is Impala Rustenburg, with about 1.74 million ounces of six platinum group metals in the year to June 2026 (Implats, 2026). Mogalakwena and Amandelbult, both owned by Valterra Platinum, follow it among the mines with a single-mine figure on this page. Sibanye-Stillwater’s Marikana, Rustenburg and Kroondal complete the top 10 below.

This page lists each mine with its owner, its output and the basis of that number, because owners do not measure output the same way. It also covers the companies behind the mines, the new projects that could change the order, and a calculator for testing a block of ground of your own.

Top 10 platinum mines in South Africa

How we chose: we took the latest output each owner published in 2026 or, for Sibanye-Stillwater, in its 2025 annual report. Seven mines have a single-mine figure here and are ordered by it. Sibanye’s three operations are shown together because the figure we cite is one combined total, so they are not ranked against each other or against the other seven.

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South African mines with a single-mine output figure

Thousand ounces a year. Metal bases differ; Valterra mines are June 2026 quarter x 4

The yearly rates for Mogalakwena and Amandelbult are our own simple sums (one quarter times four), not company figures. One quarter can mislead, so read them as a guide to size only.

A few terms matter here. PGMs are the platinum group metals. 4E counts platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold; 6E adds ruthenium and iridium, so a 6E figure reads higher than a 4E figure for the same ore. 5E+Au, the measure Valterra uses, is five platinum group metals plus gold. All of these totals include more than platinum, so none of them is a platinum-only figure.

Mine by mine: what each one is

Impala Rustenburg

Best for: understanding scale. Implats folded Impala Bafokeng into Impala Rustenburg as its North Shafts. The combined mine now reports the South and Central shafts (1,310,300 ounces, stock-adjusted) with the North Shafts (510,600 ounces in concentrate). These two parts use different stages, so they do not add up to the 1,744,300 total (Implats operating statistics, 2026). Tonnes milled reached about 15.07 million. The merger is the main reason it stands so far ahead of the others, so older lists that show the two mines apart are out of date.

Mogalakwena

Best for: a large open-pit comparison. Most South African platinum comes from deep, narrow reefs, but this mine near Mokopane in Limpopo is worked from open pits. Output fell 2% to 228,900 ounces in the June 2026 quarter, after a leased concentrator contract ended in late 2025 (Valterra, 2026).

Amandelbult

Best for: a recovery story. Heavy flooding cut output in 2025. By the June 2026 quarter production had risen 116% to 151,300 ounces, with better mining, concentrator results and grades (Valterra, 2026).

Booysendal

Best for: mechanised growth. Output rose 3.8% to 531,668 ounces and passed its planned steady state in the year to June 2026, according to Northam’s production update. Its chrome concentrate output also rose, to 873,764 tonnes.

Zondereinde

Best for: a deep mine under renewal. Northam reported 333,050 ounces against 330,769 the year before, and says this came ahead of commissioning its 3 Shaft.

Two Rivers

Best for: joint venture reading. Output slipped 1% to 286,590 ounces at a grade of 3.00 grams per tonne (g/t, the weight of metal in each tonne of ore), as geological structures limited mining flexibility (ARM results, 2026).

Modikwa

Best for: comparing two owners’ reports. ARM gives 273,671 ounces for the year, while Valterra counts half of the mine as its own output. ARM says recovery was hit for a time by blending open-pit ore into plant feed.

Marikana, Rustenburg and Kroondal

Best for: the western limb in one group. Sibanye-Stillwater bought Marikana through its 2019 purchase of Lonmin, and its 2025 annual report figure is about 1.7 million 4E ounces across its South African PGM operations. Kroondal moved to a 4E toll arrangement with Valterra from September 2024 (Anglo American results, 2025).

Two more with their own figures

Mototolo produced 58,700 ounces in the June 2026 quarter, after a safety stoppage of about 14 days. Marula produced 186,000 ounces of 6E in the year to June 2026, down 7.9%, at a head grade of 4.02 g/t. Eland, Northam’s third mine, is smaller but growing: 91,205 4E ounces including surface sources, up 25.9%.

Largest platinum mining companies in South Africa

The mines above belong to a small group of companies. Anglo American Platinum no longer exists under that name: it became Valterra Platinum and was demerged from Anglo American in May 2025. Any list still showing Amplats as the top company is stale.

Do not rank these companies from this table alone: the bases, the periods and the countries differ. Implats’ group total (Implats, 3 September 2026) also reports 53.8 million 6E ounces of mineral reserves. For a wider view that goes beyond South Africa, see our guide to the largest platinum mining companies worldwide.

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Why South Africa dominates platinum mining

South Africa mined about 120,000 kilograms of the world’s 170,000 kilograms of platinum in 2025, or roughly 71%, by USGS estimates. It also holds about 63 million kilograms of the world’s more than 76 million kilograms of PGM reserves. Palladium is more evenly shared, with Russia ahead of South Africa at 84,000 kilograms against 70,000.

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Platinum mine production by country

Kilograms, 2025 estimate, selected countries

The reason is geology. The Bushveld Complex holds the largest PGM resources and reserves, according to USGS. Two ore layers carry most of the metal: the Merensky Reef and the UG2 Chromitite. A USGS deposit study puts UG2 at about 5 g/t and Merensky at about 6 g/t in the west and 4.2 g/t in the east. Both can be traced along the full eastern and western limbs of the complex. If you want the background on how layered deposits differ from other ore bodies, read our guide to types of ore deposits.

How output at these mines has changed

Results over the past year were mixed. Eland and Booysendal grew, Zondereinde held steady, and Marula, Two Rivers and Modikwa fell. These changes matter more to a reader than a single ranking, because a mine’s position can move with one flood, one safety stoppage or one lease ending.

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Output change at selected mines

Thousand ounces, year to June. 4E for Northam mines, 6E for the others

National data shows the same swings. Statistics South Africa reported PGM production down 22.5% year on year in August 2026, and PGMs carry a weight of 27.11 in its mining index.

Chrome is a second income at many UG2 mines. Northam produced 1,690,495 tonnes of chrome concentrate in the year to June 2026, a group record. When you compare mines, check whether the owner’s figures include this by-product.

New platinum mines and projects to watch

• Platreef (Ivanhoe Mines, TSX: IVN): produced first concentrate on 18 November 2025 near Mokopane. Ivanhoe’s January 2026 update targets about 450,000 ounces a year of platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold after its Phase 2 expansion.
• Bokoni (African Rainbow Minerals): the ARM board approved a 180,000 tonne-per-month project after a definitive study finished in June 2026. Steady-state output is put at about 350,000 to 400,000 6E ounces a year, with first output from a refurbished concentrator planned for the first half of ARM’s 2028 financial year and a new concentrator due in the second half of its 2030 financial year.
• Tharisa: the group states a near-term target of 200,000 ounces of PGMs and 2.0 million tonnes of chrome concentrate, and says Valterra will buy half of the Tharisa mine’s PGM concentrate from 1 January 2027 (Tharisa’s site).

Both Platreef and Bokoni could enter the top 10 if those targets are met. Targets are not results, so read each one as the owner’s plan.

Platinum price and what it means for these mines

Platinum was about US$1,526 per troy ounce on 5 November 2026 (Trading Economics; Kitco showed a similar bid), down about 10.7% over the month. USGS gives yearly averages of about US$961 for 2024 and US$1,200 for 2025. ARM reports an average of US$1,796 across its financial year to June 2026, up 81%.

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Average platinum price by year

US$ per troy ounce, 2025 is an estimate

Higher prices have helped, but they have not produced a supply surge. World Platinum Investment Council analyst comments reported by Miningmx expect South African output up only about 1% in 2026, after a 19% rise in the first half. The WPIC Platinum Quarterly forecasts a 265,000-ounce surplus for 2026 after a deficit above 1.4 million ounces in 2025.

What to check before relying on a mine ranking

1. Metal basis. 2E, 4E, 5E+Au and 6E are different counts. Convert or compare like with like.
2. Stage. Metal in concentrate, refined and sold are three separate numbers.
3. Ownership share. A joint venture can appear in two owners’ reports. Modikwa is one example.
4. Financial year. Implats, Northam and ARM close in June, while Valterra and Sibanye report on calendar periods.
5. Corporate changes. Merged mines and renamed owners make old lists wrong.
6. Licence status. If you are looking at ground of your own, read our guide to the mining licence process in South Africa.

Testing your own block of ground

Licence holders and consultants usually start with a simple sum: tonnes of ore, grade, recovery and price. The calculator below does this. It gives contained metal value only, not profit, and it is no substitute for drilling.

Before drilling, some owners screen ground with satellite imagery to narrow where to look. Farmonaut offers satellite-based mineral detection for this early step, and its results are exploration targets that sit ahead of a resource estimate. You can ask about your own area through the mining query form or the contact page. For small-scale collectors rather than licence holders, our page on platinum nugget value and prospecting covers a very different scale of work.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the largest platinum mine in South Africa?

Impala Rustenburg has the largest single-mine figure among those compared here: about 1.74 million 6E ounces in the year to June 2026, after absorbing Impala Bafokeng.

What is the list of platinum mines in South Africa?

Operating mines covered here include Impala Rustenburg, Marula, Mogalakwena, Amandelbult, Mototolo, Modikwa, Two Rivers, Booysendal, Zondereinde, Eland, Marikana, Rustenburg, Kroondal, Tharisa and Platreef. Bokoni is being redeveloped.

Where is platinum mined in South Africa?

Mostly in the Bushveld Complex, across North West, Limpopo and Mpumalanga. The city of Rustenburg sits on the western limb and Mokopane on the northern part.

Which company produces the most platinum in South Africa?

Implats has the largest group total here, but that total includes Zimbabwe and Canada, and the bases differ. No single figure in this page settles a like-for-like platinum-only ranking.

Is Anglo American Platinum the same as Valterra Platinum?

Yes. Anglo American Platinum was renamed Valterra Platinum, and Anglo American demerged its majority interest. It is listed on the JSE and the LSE.

How much of the world’s platinum comes from South Africa?

About 71% of 2025 mine production, based on USGS estimates of 120,000 of 170,000 kilograms. Recycled platinum is not counted in that share.

What is the difference between 4E and 6E?

4E is platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold. 6E adds ruthenium and iridium, so it reads higher for the same ore.

What grade is a South African platinum mine?

Recent head grades include 3.00 g/t 6E at Two Rivers and 4.02 g/t 6E at Marula, and 2.74 g/t 4E at Eland. These are milled grades from each owner’s 2026 report.

Are these mines safe to invest in?

This page does not give investment advice. It gives output facts only. Read the owner’s filings and speak to a licensed adviser for any investment decision.