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Richards Bay Minerals (RBM), a unit of Rio Tinto that mines titanium dioxide slag, ilmenite, rutile and zircon used in the production of paints, plastics, sunscreen and ceramics, says it is all systems go for the construction of its Zulti South project, which will expand its life to 2050.
6m in value awarded. Rio Tinto has placed RBM under review as a noncore asset despite the Zulti South investment, which could result in a sale.
However, MD Wilhemina Ngcobo warned that high energy costs were suffocating the company's business in South Africa.
RBM, which is one of Eskom's largest customers, is hoping that it can receive tariff relief similar to that offered to the Glencore and Samancor chrome smelters, which enabled them to halt retrenchments. Should the company not receive tariff relief, its processing and smelting division will continue to be loss-making, Ngcobo said.
"It means that if the power tariffs do not come into play, it will mean that RBM will continue to be loss-making," she said. "So we can't survive without the reduction in tariffs; we have to ensure we are part of the companies that will receive reduced rates."
The company is in talks with Eskom and the department of trade, industry & competition to find a solution to the high power costs at its smelters, which account for 44% of costs. As a result of the costs the company has had to reduce its furnaces from four to three.
The company is focused on implementing renewable power through three power purchase agreements that will generate 500MW of electricity, paving the way for reduced energy costs and an improved carbon footprint. They are the Bolobedu Solar PV project in Limpopo, which has been generating power since March 2026, and the Khangela Emoyeni and Overberg wind farms in the Western Cape.
"I think we realised sooner than later that it's no longer just about decarbonisation. It's really about saving the business and making sure that we can be quite competitive," said Ngcobo.
RMB completed a section 189 process at the end of March, which "wasn't easy" for the group's leaders, who saw people that had been part of the company's five decades having to go, she said. "We have gone through a major transition at RBM. It was one of the first section 189s in RBM's existence, but people saw it had to be done."
Ngcobo took over from Werner Duvenhage on August 1. The Australia-based Rio Tinto approved the $473m (R7.7bn) Zulti South project, which had been in limbo for six years, in March, securing operations and sustaining jobs at the company.
In 2020 Rio Tinto suspended construction of the project following community unrest and violence. RBM was at the centre of several violent incidents, including the murders of executives, while operations were halted.
Ngcobo stressed to Business Times the importance of having Zulti South come online without disruptions. "We need to make sure it flows as it should; otherwise we are going to run short of heavy mineral concentrate, which is something we don't want to get into."
She said RBM's priority was to ensure a stable and safe operation. "I always say that if you do not have a stable operation in terms of safety and security, unfortunately you are not going to set the right culture, and you are not going to get employees to focus on the right thing."
RBM, focused on mining, processing and smelting mineral sands, was established in 1976 and marked 50 years of operating in 2026. It is one of the biggest taxpayers in KwaZulu-Natal and spends just under R2bn in salaries and wages annually.
As part of the Zulti South project, bush clearing for the concentrator plant is under way, while the 42km of corridor service pipeline for transporting produce to the smelter is also under construction.
At the peak of the project, roughly 1,400 people will be employed, marking a boost for job creation for the host communities, who are already benefiting from the project. More than half of the suppliers that have been registered on the company's portal are from the host communities, said Ngcobo.
"There is a lot of buy-in from the community. They know that if Zulti South is not going to continue, Zulti North is coming to an end, and therefore everyone will be affected."
The company said to date 23 work packages have been awarded to 14 host community businesses totalling R189.6m in value awarded.
Rio Tinto has placed RBM under review as a noncore asset despite the Zulti South investment, which could result in a sale. The review is ongoing, said Ngcobo.
RBM is not out of the woods due to the low-price environment coupled with high power costs, which resulted in a reset of the business and saw the company set a target to reduce costs by 20%.