AP: 643 workers jobless as firm shuts copper mines in Namibia
Weatherly International Plc has shut down two of its remaining copper mines in Namibia, citing shrinking profits due to a sharp fall in global prices of copper, and throwing into the streets about 643 workers, the firm's management said late Thursday.
The London listed Namibian copper miner said that it had closed its Otjihase and Tschudi copper mines in Namibia.
Weatherly closed Tsumeb West and Matchless mines two weeks ago.
The copper miner said Thursday that it had mothballed its two remaining mines in Namibia, citing unfavourable prices of copper, bringing to a halt copper mining activities in Namibia.
Copper prices have fallen by more than 59 percent on the London Metals Exchange (LME) to trade at about US$3,500 per tonne.
Weatherly, which suspended trading of its shares on the London bourse citing a shaky financial position, could not say when it would resume mining.
The firm first shut down Kombat underground mine due to flooding early in 2008.
"We have taken a decision to suspend operations at Weatherly's remaining mining assets at Otjihase and Tschudi and place them on a care and maintenance basis," Weatherly said.
It said that the move follows a series of cost cutting measures, including the closure of the Tsumeb West and Matchless and the cancellation of a number of mining contracts.
The closure is likely to have ripple effects on Namibia's economy, which is heavily reliant on the mining sector.
"Prices have now dropped to such levels that the remaining mining assets are no longer economically viable," Weatherly said, adding that it had notified the workers of the closure of the mine.
The copper miner's only remaining viable business operation is the Ausmelt smelter in the copper mining town of Tsumeb, which has toll refining contracts with copper miners in Bulgaria and Peru for the next three years.
The firm said that the smelter's revenues were derived primarily from toll refining, adding that it is not directly affected by the volatile copper prices.
The Ausmelt smelter processes about 150,000 tonnes of copper concentrates yearly.
