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Sibanye-Stillwater, a multinational precious metal mining group led by South African businessman Neal Froneman, has announced the start of a restructuring exercise for its gold operations, which may result in the company severing ties with 465 contractors and laying off 2,000 employees.
The new comes after the Froneman-led mining group held talks with organized labor and other affected stakeholders about restructuring its South African gold operations.
Sibanye-Stillwater disclosed that the productivity improvement talks had not been successful and that it has become clear that, due to rising costs and an inability to achieve targeted output levels, it will be difficult to secure the profits required for the mine and plant’s long-term viability.
With cost-cutting efforts increasingly ineffective in addressing the ongoing lack of profitability, the Kloof 1 plant will be unable to operate at full capacity, with Kloof 4 SRD serving as the only remaining primary source of ore.
The restructuring move, according to Richard Stewart, chief regional officer of Sibanye-Stillwater’s Southern Africa operations, will reduce all shafts and operating plants that are no longer sustainable but continue to operate at a loss, threatening the remaining life of the mine and the other South African gold operations, and ultimately the employees of the broader group.
He added that the group is committed to minimizing the impact of the proposed restructuring and will engage constructively with all stakeholders in an effort to avoid job losses while attempting to limit the impact on the remaining operations employees and the group’s sustainability.
Sibanye-Stillwater is a South African multinational precious metal mining company. The company, led by CEO Neal Froneman, is involved in gold and base metal mining in South Africa and the Americas.
The multinational precious metal mining group has expressed interest in acquiring Mopani Copper Mines, a Zambian-registered company wholly owned by ZCCM Investment Holdings, the successor company to ZCCM Ltd., as part of its efforts to expand its operations.
