Chile Collahuasi Strike In 19th Day, Production Remains Normal

As a strike at Chilean copper mine Dona Ines de Collahuasi entered its 19th day on Tuesday, production remained normal because of a contingency plan, a company spokeswoman said.

According to the company, as of Sunday 120 workers had broken away from the strike and returned to the mine, accepting the sweetened offer the mining company presented last week.

Despite the length of the strike, "the company will meet all of its commercial obligations," Collahuasi spokeswoman Bernardita Fernandez said.

She said negotiations between management and labor leaders haven't resumed.

While labor leaders weren't immediately available for comment, they have maintained that production is only at 20% of capacity and only 36 workers have accepted the company's offer and left the strike. They have vowed to continue the strike until the company agrees to negotiate and listen to workers' demands.

The remaining 1,430 strikers have until late Tuesday night to accept the latest wage and benefits offer, which includes a signing bonus of around $30,000 per worker, before it expires, Fernandez said, adding that the company will give an update later in the day as to the number of workers that have accepted the wage deal and left the strike.

According to Chilean labor laws, if 50% of the striking workers break away, the strike ends immediately.

Diversified mining companies Xstrata PLC (XTA.LN) and Anglo American PLC (AAUKY, AAL.LN) each hold a 44% stake in Collahuasi. A consortium led by Mitsui & Co. (MITSY, 8031.TO) holds the remaining 12%.

Collahuasi, one of the world's largest copper mines, is located 185 kilometers southeast of the port of Iquique, high in the Andes mountains at 4,400 meters above sea level. It produces about 500,000 metric tons of copper a year, or about 10% of Chile's annual output.

Chile is the world's leading copper producer, accounting for about 35% of global output.

-By Anthony Esposito, Dow Jones Newswires; 56-2-715-8929; anthony.esposito@dowjones.com

Mitsui (NASDAQ:MITSY)
Historical Stock Chart
From Jun 2024 to Jul 2024