Operations at Southern Copper's Cuajone mine in Peru have been suspended for 15 days as locals continue to block the company's access to reservoirs and other critical supplies, the country's mining and energy industry body revealed.
Saarto alkoi 28. helmikuuta, kun Southern Copper päätti vaihtaa 50 - vuotta vanhan vesiputken, joka toimitti vettä läheisille yhteisöille.
Southern Copperin toimitusjohtajan ja Peruvian Association of Mines, Petroleum and Energy (SNMPE) nykyisen puheenjohtajan Raul Jacobin mukaan kaivoksen toimilupaa ollaan korvaamassa.
Jacob kertoi paikalliselle medialle, että hänellä on asiakirjoja, jotka osoittavat, että muutto on viety yhteisön johtajille sekä alueellisille ja kansallisille viranomaisille.
"We were taken aback by the blockade," Jacob said.
Yli 5,000 henkilöä työllistävän Cuajonen kaivoksen työntekijät ovat pyytäneet hallitusta sovittelemaan yrityksen ja paikallisten välistä konfliktia väittäen, että heidän työpaikkansa ja henkensä ovat vaarassa.
"The residents' refusal to restore water supply to Cuajone and release the railway has prevented us from resuming operations at the mine," Southern Copper said in an emailed statement.
SNMPE said the protesters were demanding 5bn in compensation and a 5 per cent share of the company's profits.
Pablo O'Brien, a mining expert at Velocity Trade Capital, said it was more than that, describing the situation as "very serious".
"No one can just turn off the water supply to a group of people for whatever reason. This situation unfortunately demonstrates the current inability of states to mediate in resolving conflicts, "O 'Brien said.
Peru is the world's second-largest copper producer after neighboring Chile, and mining is a major source of tax revenue. Residents of nearby communities have increasingly protested against the mines, claiming they cause pollution without contributing enough to the local economy.
Southern Copper, osa Grupo Mexicoa, on yksi kupariyhtiöistä, jolla on suurimmat mineraalivarannot, ja Cuajone on sen toiseksi suurin kaivos Perussa.
The miner's copper production fell 4.3 per cent in 2021 and recently said it expected a further decline this year.
Vuoteen 2022 mennessä Southern Copper odottaa valmistavansa 922,000 tonnia rakentamisessa ja sähköautoissa käytettävää metallia.
"After this year, we believe our 2023 production will rebound to 1 million tonnes of copper," it said in its February earnings statement. By the end of the decade, as our organic growth projects mature, we expect copper production to reach 1.8 million tonnes.
China Southern kehittää 2,8 miljardin arvoisia projekteja Perussa. Jos syntyneet Michiquillay- ja Los Chancas -projektit otetaan mukaan, luku hyppää lähes 8 miljardiin.
Protests have hit several of Peru's biggest mining companies since leftist President Pedro Castillo took office in July after winning an election with overwhelming support in the country's impoverished mining regions.
Roads used by MMG's Las Bambas copper mine to transport its metal have been intermittently blocked by residents demanding financial contributions from the company.
Last year protests also disrupted Antamina, the country's largest copper mine, which is jointly owned by BHP billiton (33.75 percent), Glencore (33.75 percent), Teck Resources (22.75 percent) and Mitsubishi (10 percent).
Myös Glencore (LON: GLEN), Hudbady Minerals TSX, NYSE: HBM) ja Hochschild Miningin kaivokset kärsivät.
Social unrest in the country's mining areas has deepened global fears of a looming copper shortage.
CRU Groupin arvioiden mukaan kupariteollisuuden on käytettävä yli 100 miljardia euroa kattaakseen 4,7 miljoonan tonnin vuosivajeen vuoteen 2030 mennessä.
