Amcu: nationalise Angloplat mines

Published Jan 18, 2013

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The government should nationalise mines that Anglo American Platinum (Angloplat) would idle as part of plans by the biggest producer of the metal to return to profitability, a union said yesterday. The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) wanted Mineral Resources Minister Susan Shabangu to reissue unused mine permits, union president Joseph Mathunjwa said. Last month the ANC rejected proposals to nationalise mines in favour of higher taxes, ending uncertainty for companies such as Anglo American, which owns 79.8 percent of Angloplat. The platinum unit has proposed to reduce output by 19 percent and may cut as many as 14 000 jobs to stem losses execerbated by a two-month strike last year. “As long as this country is run by the foreigners, we are far from any solution,” and the government should take definitive action on resource ownership, Mathunjwa said. “Let’s see how this works on a small scale,” he said, referring to nationalising the idled Angloplat shafts. Angloplat fell 2.44 percent to R447 yesterday.

– Bloomberg

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