JOHANNESBURG Aug 24 (Reuters) – World No. 1 platinum
producer Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) said on
Friday 100 workers had refused to go underground at its
Thembelani mine in South Africa, a sign that simmering
discontent in the sector has not been contained.
There was no immediate threat to production at Amplats as
the mine employs over 4,100 people, but the sector is on
tenterhooks in the wake of a violent strike at Lonmin
that saw 34 striking miners gunned down by police last week.
Amplats said in a statement that 6 workers were having talks
with management regarding wage demands.
“The rest of the employees have proceeded underground and
the situation is calm,” the company said.
Smaller producer Royal Bafokeng Platinum said it
had received an undertaking that the 500 employees who
participated in an illegal strike earlier this week would
return.
It said allegations of intimidation would be independently
investigated and appropriate action would be taken if required.
“In spite of the loss of approximately 14,000 tonnes planned
to have been hoisted over the three days … total tonnes milled
for the month should remain unaffected due to the stockpile
processed during this period,” it said.
In the fortnight since the Lonmin strike began the spot
price of the white metal used for emissions-capping
catalytic converters in cars has spiked over 10 percent.
Already struggling with soaring costs and weak global
demand, the platinum sector has been hit by a union turf war,
transforming workers into warriors as the Association of
Mineworkers and Construction Union takes on the dominant
National Union of Mineworkers.
South Africa sits on about 80 percent of the world’s known
platinum reserves.
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