JOHANNESBURG - Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) today said it had recorded zero mine fatalities at the company's mines in the year to December 2019 for the first time in the company's history.
“For the first time in Anglo American Platinum’s history, we have had no workplace fatalities at our managed operations in the year. The company also demonstrated leading Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) performance in 2019," Griffith said.
Griffith said the company's record safety demonstrated commitment to creating a safe working environment.
"We had 25 fatalities in 2007. We put in an incredible amount of work of turning the business around. We took a different approach to safety, and we believed we can mine without hurting people and made sure that every single person went home safely," he told journalists.
Amplats announced that Griffith who has been chief executive for seven years will step down in April.
Amplats' record fatalities come as South Africa's mining industry had made significant progress in 2019, after reducing fatalities to 51 in 2019 from 81 a year earlier.
Chris Griffith, CEO of Anglo American Platinum. “For the first time in Anglo American Platinum’s history, we have had no workplace fatalities at our managed operations in the year. The company also demonstrated leading Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) performance in 2019," Griffith said.
Griffith said the company's record safety demonstrated commitment to creating a safe working environment. FILE PHOTO: Courtney Africa/African News Agency (ANA)
Mineral Resources and Energy Minister, Gwede Mantashe said 2019 marked a record low for South Africa's record mining and evidence that a fatality-free mining industry was possible.
"We must double our efforts ting o reach our goal of zero harm," Mantashe said last month at the Investing in African Mining Indaba held in Cape Town