Amid tumbling chrome valuations a subtle counterbalance is unfolding in Jubilee’s metal mix. While stainless steel markets have sent chrome prices into retreat since May, a rising platinum complex and an astute reshaping of supply partnerships have given the group’s latest figures an intriguing twist. Investors seeking clues to Jubilee’s next strategic move will find the interplay between metals and the company’s evolving portfolio hard to ignore.
Jubilee’s South African operations pushed chrome concentrate output to just over half a million tonnes in the latest quarter to end-June, edging close to guidance yet arriving against a backdrop of roughly an 11% slide in benchmark chrome price. What might have flagged concern instead morphs into a story of managed exposure: the ramp-up in production from third-party mining partners and the parallel advance in platinum group metals (PGM) have helped to counter the pressure on margins. In the three months to June, chrome volumes rose almost 20% year on year, while 6E PGM output, comprising platinum, palladium, rhodium, ruthenium, iridium and gold, extended its upward run by nearly 15%. It is this calibrated balance between volume gains and metal mix that marks Jubilee’s latest quarter as more than a simple reaction to commodity swings.
Underlying the numbers is a strategic pivot in how Jubilee sources and processes its chrome feedstock. The end of a sizeable ore supply contract in South Africa left a potential 450 000 tonnes per annum hole in the group’s book. Yet this shortfall has been largely absorbed by partnerships delivering direct ore offtake, which now account for around 70% of chrome volumes. These alliances offer Jubilee not only steady throughput but also enhanced upside to pricing movements, shifting some of the revenue risk onto third-party miners while preserving operational leverage. Investors accustomed to Jubilee’s traditional tolling model will note this transition as a subtle but meaningful realignment of risk and reward.
Where chrome buckles under margin pressure, platinum prices have offered relief. Over the latest quarter platinum complex values surged by around a third, a boon to Jubilee’s refined PGM division. The impact is amplified by the technical relationship between metals: Jubilee’s management points out that a 1 per cent shift in chrome pricing is now roughly equivalent to a 4.5% move in platinum. As such, even a modest uptick in the PGM basket can offset outsized slides in base-metal sectors. It is this asymmetric exposure that underpins the “unexpected hedge” in the title, a deliberate tilting towards precious-metal strength to smooth earnings volatility.
Looking ahead, guidance for the new financial year calls for chrome concentrates of between 1.65 million and 1.80 million tonnes and PGM output of 36 000 to 40 000 ounces. While these targets lie below the recent highs, they emphasise sustainability over sheer scale, reflecting caution amid mixed market signals.
Management highlights the superior growth potential and stronger margins in copper, and the forthcoming full update on Zambian operations is likely to be scrutinised closely. For now the copper segment remains the strategic growth lever, with Zambia trials at a high-grade concentrator nearing completion and set to inform future supply agreements. The pivot suggests that Jubilee is positioning itself for a commodity cycle where copper’s role in electrification and renewable-energy infrastructure offers a more compelling earnings trajectory than the ebb and flow of steel-related metals.
Operational resilience and safety remain focal points. Jubilee’s South African sites recorded an improved lost-time injury frequency rate of 1.33, the best in recent years, with no classified injuries reported. A new PGM joint venture initiated in the spring is now in trial phases, overseen by Jubilee’s internal technical team, promising incremental throughput and potential cost efficiencies as it scales. These developments underline the company’s broader commitment to operational excellence even as it reshuffles its asset portfolio.
Jubilee Metals Group plc (LON:JLP) is a diversified metal recovery business with a world-class portfolio of projects in South Africa and Zambia. The Company’s expanding multi-project portfolio across South Africa and Zambia provides exposure to a broad commodity basket including Platinum Group Metals, chrome, lead, zinc, vanadium, copper and cobalt.
