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South Africa has been hit by a sixth straight day of rolling blackouts as state-owned power utility Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. acts to prevent a total collapse of the grid after a raft of plant breakdowns. The company implemented a record level of cuts -- 6,000 megawatts -- late Monday, prompting platinum and gold mines in the country to halt operations.

Highlights So Far:

  • Eskom says there’s a high likelihood of cuts all week. The utility plans to cut 4,000 megawatts until late Tuesday.
  • Producers including Sibanye, Implats and Harmony stopped mining operations.
  • Rains that have soaked coal and caused flooding may continue through Friday.

Read more: Record Blackouts Shut South Africa Mines as Recession Risk Rises

Here are the latest developments, updated throughout the day. Time stamps are local time in Johannesburg.

Platinum, palladium rise (10:30 a.m.)

Platinum and palladium led gains among major precious metals after South African producers said they had stopped operations. Platinum gained as much as 1.2%. Palladium rose as much as 0.6% to a fresh record of $1,894.47 an ounce, closing in on $1,900 for the first time. The metal has rallied 50% this year amid tight supply.

High likelihood of cuts all week (10 a.m.)

Eskom plans to cut 4,000 megawatts -- Stage 4 -- until 11 p.m. on Tuesday as it continues to face a shortage of generating capacity. Breakdowns are at 15,200 megawatts, the company said in a statement.

“The incessant rains continue to impact coal handling and operations at our power stations. The probability for load-shedding remains high for the rest of the week.”

Rains to continue (10 a.m.)

Heavy rains have soaked coal, which is used as fuel, and caused flooding at Eskom’s Kriel and Camden power stations, the utility said. South African Weather Service forecasts show rain in Mpumalanga, the province in which the power stations are located, will continue through Friday. Rainfall in Lephalale, near the giant Medupi plant, could reach as much as 25 mm (1 inch) today, forecasts show.

Mines close (Earlier)

Producers including Sibanye Gold Ltd., the world’s biggest platinum miner, recalled workers from underground and stopped milling ore after Eskom announced Stage 6 cuts on Monday night. No. 2 producer Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. didn’t start the 4 a.m. underground shift Tuesday and the company has stopped milling ore and shut its smelter.

To contact the reporters on this story: Felix Njini in Johannesburg at fnjini@bloomberg.net;Prinesha Naidoo in Johannesburg at pnaidoo7@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Lynn Thomasson at lthomasson@bloomberg.net, ;Rene Vollgraaff at rvollgraaff@bloomberg.net, Liezel Hill, Nicholas Larkin

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