South African ferrochrome producer Merafe Resources has announced that the Glencore-Merafe Chrome Venture has begun restarting operations at its Boshoek and Wonderkop ferrochrome smelters following the conclusion of new electricity pricing agreements with South African power utility Eskom in June 2026.
According to the statement, the restart of operations at the Boshoek smelter commenced in September, followed by the Wonderkop smelter in October. Production at both facilities is expected to ramp up during the fourth quarter of 2026. The two smelters had been suspended since May 2025 due to unfavorable operating conditions, including high electricity costs.
Merafe secures reduced electricity tariff of 62c/kWh
The restart follows an agreement between the Glencore-Merafe Chrome Venture and Eskom establishing an electricity tariff of ZAR 0.62/kWh for ferrochrome smelting operations. The tariff was approved by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) in May, while the venture finalized the terms of its negotiated pricing agreement with Eskom in June.
The agreement provides a three-year electricity pricing framework for the Glencore-Merafe Chrome Venture. Previously, NERSA had approved an interim tariff of approximately ZAR 0.88/kWh in January 2026, but this level was insufficient to support the commercially viable restart of the Boshoek and Wonderkop smelters.
According to Merafe, the revised electricity pricing arrangement enables the restart of the two facilities, which had remained suspended for more than a year.
Merafe's ferrochrome production falls by 46% in January-September
Meanwhile, Merafe reported that its attributable ferrochrome production decreased by 46 percent year on year to 61,000 mt in the first nine months of 2026. The company attributed the decline primarily to the suspension of operations at the Boshoek and Wonderkop smelters.
During the same period, Merafe's attributable chrome ore production declined by seven percent year on year to 658,000 mt, due to lower mine production and reduced ore processing through its concentrators.
