Yanacocha's ore extraction cut in half

Yanacocha's ore extraction cut in half

BNAmericas

By Pablo Gaete

9th May 2007

Ore extraction at the Yanacocha gold mine was slashed roughly in half on Wednesday afternoon after local contractors trespassed onto the site, interfering with operations, said Omar Jabara, director of media relations for Yanacocha majority owner Newmont Mining.

"Dozens" of outsourced workers arrived at Yanacocha's La Quinua pit Wednesday demanding additional work. As a result the company stopped activities at the pit to ensure the safety of workers on duty, Jabara told BNamericas. The incident is unrelated to the suspension of talks announced Monday (May 7) resulting from the Yanacocha workers union's rejection of a company pay offer.

La Quinua produces roughly half of Yanacocha's output, which in 2006 reached 2.62Moz/y of gold. The other areas of the mine remain unaffected, the spokesperson said. However, Yanacocha has still been producing gold at normal levels due to stockpiled ore, Jabara said.

Since the start of the incident, law enforcement representatives from Cajamarca department, where the mine is located, began negotiations with the trespassers, Jabara added.

The Peruvian mine is 51.3%-owned by Newmont, while 43.7% is controlled by local miner Buenaventura and 5% by the International Finance Corporation.