Zijin halts copper production at a Tibet mine after accident

Reuters | May 15, 2023 | 7:45 am Top Companies Asia China Copper

China's Zijin takes control of Tibet copper miner for $548m

Tibet. (Image by Göran Höglund (Kartläsarn), Flickr).

China’s Zijin Mining said on Monday that one of its mines in Tibet had stopped production after an accident the previous day left six people working for a subcontractor missing.

The mine is operated by Tibet Julong Copper Co., a subsidiary in which Zijin Mining holds a 50.1% stake. Julong Copper produced 115,000 tonnes of the metal, used in power and construction, in 2022 and planned to produce 152,000 tonnes in 2023.

Contact with six workers was lost when a lift cage fell during construction of shafts in the drainage system of the Julong Copper and Polymetallic Mine, Zijin said in a statement, adding that the mine had suspended production.

“Search and rescue operations for the missing personnel are underway in full force,” it said.

The global copper market is expected to see a deficit this year of about 114,000 tonnes, the International Copper Study Group (ICSG) said in April.

(By Polina Devitt and Dominique Patton; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)