Lonmin, the South African platinum producer, saw the total amount of tonnes mined in the final three months of 2011 fall by 3.7% compared to the same period of 2010.

The actual fgure was 2,892,000 tonnes versus 2,963,000 in 2010.

The amount of metal "milled", or processed, also dropped over the period from 3,048,000 tonnes in 2010 to 3,023,000 tonnes last year.

The overall impression created by today's statement is one of frustration at lost production due to safety inspections. Lonmin says it lost 177,777 tonnes of production due to so called "section 54" stoppages, this compares to the previous year when the figure was just 21,000 tonnes.

The firm also says, however, that it lost one of its workers in a fatal accident on December 9th, its first such fatality since April. That fatality and what is described as "illegal unrest" saw production at Lonmin's Easterns operation drop by 12.2%.

A decision to let workers take part in an industry safety march in October saw an additional loss of production of 30,000 tonnes.

It is not all bad news for Lonmin, however. Sales of platinum jumped 39.8% compared to 2010. Total platinum group metals sales were up by 2.9%.

The group has also agreed a wage settlement giving workers a rise of 8.5% for both 2012 and 2013.

Sales guidance for the full year is maintained at 750,000 tonnes although with a warning that costs will increase in line with the wage settlement. Lonmin also makes clear that production could slip further if the South African authorities persist with the current inspection regime.

Today's update saw the shares gain 1.82% by 08:49. Over the last year Lonmin's stock has declined by 38%.

BS

Related share prices
Lonmin (LMI) share price