South Africa’s mining industry posted a modest 1.2% year-on-year increase in total production in September 2025, supported by stronger output from key export commodities including platinum group metals (PGMs), gold and coal, according to new data from the Minerals Council South Africa.
PGMs remained the largest contributor to overall growth, with production rising 3.8% and adding 1.1 percentage points to the monthly increase. The council said improved operational stability, following earlier maintenance shutdowns and labour disruptions, helped lift output across major producers.
Gold production strengthened by 5.9%, contributing 0.6 percentage points, as mines benefited from uninterrupted electricity supply and higher ore grades. The sector has long been vulnerable to rolling power cuts, and the improved consistency of electricity supply offered rare relief to producers already facing deeper geological challenges.
Coal output expanded by 1.5%, adding 0.4 percentage points. Exports were nearly 1 million tonnes higher between January and September compared to the same period last year, supported by marginal gains in rail and port performance after years of logistics failures at Transnet. The Minerals Council noted, however, that the country’s newly released Integrated Resource Plan (IRP 2025), which rules out new coal-fired power stations, signals a structural shift for the industry.
Chromium ore production increased by 3.4%, contributing 0.2 percentage points to the overall index, buoyed by strong stainless-steel demand. The council warned that the government’s proposed export tax on chrome ore would be ineffective without addressing persistent electricity constraints, which remain the sector’s biggest cost and productivity challenge.
Diamond output also rose 3.4%, though its overall contribution to the production index was minimal due to the commodity’s small weighting. Soft global prices and high inventories continued to cap sector gains.
Together, these growing commodities accounted for 84.4% of total mining production in September.
Among commodities that declined, iron ore was the most significant. Output fell 2.2% year-on-year, largely due to plant maintenance at one of the country’s largest producers. Iron ore accounts for 16.41% of total mining output.
Despite the production dip, iron ore exports rose 12.6% year-on-year to 6.8 million tonnes, supported by improved rail performance, a rare bright spot for a logistics network widely blamed for constraining South Africa’s export capacity.
Other notable production declines included copper (-19.4%), manganese ore (-7%), and nickel (-11%). Combined, these three commodities make up 7.78% of total mining output.
Mineral sales between January and September reached R614 billion, surpassing the same periods in 2023 and 2024. Gold sales climbed 60.4% year-on-year to R17.4 billion in September, fuelled by a global gold price that averaged $3,667/oz, up 42.7% from a year earlier.
PGM sales rose 53.8% year-on-year to R22.1 billion, supported by strong platinum, palladium and rhodium prices. Coal prices fell 21% to $85.9/t, while iron ore rose 10.6% to $106.4/t.
Economists expect mining GDP to grow 2.5% quarter-on-quarter in Q3 2025, following a 4.7% expansion in Q2.
Despite the modest uptick, seasonally adjusted output remains below the 2019 base year, underscoring the sector’s slow recovery from pandemic-era disruptions, persistent load shedding, and logistics bottlenecks.
The Minerals Council warned that the IRP 2025 will have long-term implications for employment and export earnings. Without new coal plants or large-scale adoption of carbon capture technology, Eskom’s coal consumption could fall by about 60 million tonnes by 2042. Coal exports generated more than R113 billion in foreign exchange earnings in 2024 alone.
The PGM basket in South Africa includes platinum, palladium, rhodium, iridium, and ruthenium, commodities that remain central to global automotive and industrial demand, but whose long-term trajectory is increasingly shaped by the worldwide shift to electric vehicles.
