Krugerrand maker seeks silver lining
Rand Refinery looks to cheaper metal to boost revenue amid plunging gold output
Rand Refinery hopes to launch a silver Krugerrand in 2018 with South African Mint, satisfying international demand for the coin and giving investors more affordable access to the iconic Krugerrand. Management of Rand Refinery, the world’s largest single-site gold smelting and refining operation, is looking for ways to add revenue as South African gold output continues a precipitous fall to about 140 tonnes a year, from 1,000 tonnes a year in the 1970s. Rand Refinery, in Germiston, has capacity of up to 600 tonnes a year, but is using about half that. South African gold companies, which are shareholders in the refinery, supply about 50% of its feedstock and the balance comes from the rest of Africa. With a number of companies talking about mine closures, including AngloGold Ashanti, Sibanye Gold and Harmony Gold, Rand Refinery was looking at strategies to lower costs, including downsizing the refinery and creating more value-added products, said CEO Praveen Baijnath. With South Afric...
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