Jan 28 (Reuters) - Aquarius Platinum Ltd, theworld's fourth-largest platinum miner, reported a 7 percent risein second-quarter output attributable to the company, despitehigher cash costs at its key Kroondal mine in South Africa and acontinued dip in platinum prices.
The miner, which operates in South Africa's platinum beltthat is prone to labour unrest, said attributable output rose to84,528 ounces in the three months ended Dec. 31 from 78,987ounces a year earlier.
Production attributable to Aquarius from its main operationat Kroondal, a venture with Anglo American Platinum inthe northwest province of South Africa - rose to 55,152 ouncesfrom 51,262 ounces.
However, cash costs at Kroondal rose 2 percent while pricesof platinum group metals fall 9 percent from a year earlier.
Aquarius also said proposed tax changes and regulatoryuncertainty in Zimbabwe had impacted its ability to plan futureproduction levels and capital allocation for its Mimosa mine inthe country.
Miners in Zimbabwe have felt the heat from President RobertMugabe's controversial "indigenisation" policy, which seeks togive local blacks majority stakes in foreign firms operating inthe country.