Zambia govt engages Sentinel over job cut plans – media report
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The Zambia government is reportedly in talks with base metals producer First Quantum Minerals to try put a stop to possible job cuts, as operational challenges around restricted power supply have pushed subsidiary Kalumbila mine to possibly retrench 730 miners at Sentinel mine.
Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) on Wednesday quoted Information Minister Chishimba Kambwili as saying that the mine and labour ministries were engaging the mining company after it allegedly notified the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, the Ministry of Finance and National Planning and the Ministry of Energy and Water Development of the retrenchment plans, following significant power reductions.
The country’s power-constrained State-owned utility Zesco had cut power supply to Sentinel from more than 150 MW to 70 MW, heavily curbing production and leaving the company able to operate only half of the plant.
With the national grid battling to meet its power supply commitments as water levels at its hydroelectric plants dropped due to drought, Sentinel warned that less power supply meant that the operation had no choice but to downscale to remain viable. Another 360 jobs currently under recruitment have been placed on hold if the power supply restrictions to Sentinel plant are not lifted.
In August last year, six months after starting first production at Sentinel, First Quantum warned of the retrenchment of about 1 480 workers after the power restrictions hit output. The firm subsequently shut its Sentinel copper processing plant after electricity supplies to its operations were reduced by 24%. However, the utility restored full power to the miner shortly thereafter.
Meanwhile, Zambian officials have assured the public that the construction of the Lusaka-Kalumbila power line was under way and that the government was committed to boosting power supply to the mining industry and other economic sectors in North Western province.
Comments
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation