Economic impact

In the U.S., our operations represent a sizable generator of economic prosperity, not only for the communities in which they are located but for Montana as a whole. We are the largest private industrial employer in Montana and the state’s largest taxpayer.

In 2019, the Bureau of Business and Economic Research of the University of Montana conducted a study of the economic contributions of our Stillwater and East Boulder operations and found that our operations ultimately support:

• almost 6,000 permanent year-round jobs across a wide spectrum of industries
• US$500 million in annual, recurring income received by Montana households, of which US$438 million is disposable, after-tax income
• state tax and non-tax revenues of approximately US$95 million annually
• over US$1.5 billion in added economic output annually

In South Africa, we employ 81,862 people including contractors, making Sibanye-Stillwater the country’s largest employer outside government. It is estimated that each person employed in mining in South Africa supports 10 direct dependents and up to seven additional indirect dependents. That means that, in South Africa, our jobs support close to 1.2 million people – close to three percent of the country’s population.

Many of our community engagement programs focus on local economic development, including our agriculture and portable skills programs, designed to create jobs outside of mining and ensure the long-term sustainability of current mining communities.

We devote significant resources to local procurement. In 2020, procurement of goods and services in South Africa totalled R12.6 billion, of which R10.6 billion was expended on the purchase of goods, services and consumables from local Black Economic Empowerment entities.