Sibanye rescues Beatrix, but places Cooke under care and maintenance
Sibanye-Stillwater says it has completed the consultation process with stakeholders in terms of section 189A of the Labour Relations Act, 66 of 1995 to determine the fate of its struggling Cooke and Beatrix West gold operations.
Cooke 3 plant. Photo: Sibanye-Stillwater
The outcome of the consultation is as follows:
- Beatrix West will remain in operation for as long as it makes a profit, on average, over any continuous period of three months, after accounting for all-in sustaining costs, following the productivity enhancement and cost containment measures agreed upon by all parties.
- Through these arrangements, Beatrix West will continue to provide employment for approximately 1,640 people. Both the underground operation and Beatrix 2 plant will be put on care and maintenance with immediate effect if it starts making a loss. It was not possible to define realistic arrangements to operate Cooke 1,2 and 3 on a profitable basis. The underground mining operations at the Cooke 1, 2 and 3 shafts will therefore be placed on care and maintenance with effect from end October 2017.
- The Cooke surface processing plant will continue to operate for as long as there is sufficient feed material for it to be profitable, subject to various cost cutting measures being implemented. Through these arrangements, 132 employees will be retained at these operations.
- Sibanye-Stillwater and its stakeholders have secure jobs for an additional 1,510 employees through transfers to available positions within the group and as care and maintenance personnel for the Cooke underground operations through the consultation process. Approximately 2,025 employees will be retrenched with an additional 1,350 having already elected to take voluntary separation packages.
- An additional 620 employees will replace contractors involved in non-critical activities across the group.
“The decision to restructure was not taken lightly, but it is pleasing to note that we have managed to ameliorate job losses through the consultation process. We preserved employment for 3,282 people, while ensuring the sustainability of our remaining operations and thereby securing over 60,000 jobs in South Africa,” Sibanye-Stillwater CEO, Neal Froneman says.
