Geological, power and industrial relations issues finally overcome, Platinum Australia Ltd appears ready to make the most of its Smokey Hills platinum mine in South Africa's Bushveld. PlatAus started mining at Smokey Hills, adjacent to Aquarius Platinum Ltd's Modikwa mine on the Eastern Limb of the Bushveld, in February 2008 with an open pit operation. While that finished as planned at the end of 2009, the ramp-up of the mine's underground operation has been ponderous. "It has taken quite a while to ramp-up - a lot longer than we hoped - but that is because we have had a few issues to say the least," managing director John Lewins told Paydirt recently. "It's been ramping up every month but it has been a pain. It is without doubt the toughest project I've ever had."
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