Vedanta Resources' Zambian unit Konkola Copper Mines KCM) said it
would mothball its loss making Nchanga underground mine by the end of
the month.
Zambian
President Edgar Lungu speaks before attendees during the 70th session of
the United Nations General Assembly at the U.N. Headquarters in New
York, September 29, 2015. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz (Reuters)
Zambia does not plan to take over mines that have shed jobs after a sharp fall in global copper prices, President Edgar Lungu said on Thursday, backtracking from a warning earlier this month that the state would take over such mines.
Lungu
said the economy would grow at a slower pace than previously estimated
due to the struggling mining industry and electricity shortages, but
that government would implement austerity measures to cope with the
decline.
"The government can run the mines but we have no intention to take over the mines,"
Lungu said, adding that government tried its best to keep the job
losses to a minimum and that the troubles in the sector would lower
economic growth.
On the
job losses in the mines, Lungu said during a speech from his office that
the government had tried its best to keep the job losses to the barest
minimum.
"We would
have lost all the jobs if we insisted on no job losses. The mines have
told us why these jobs are being lost. The challenges in the mining
sector are bound to continue. The government can run the mines but we
have no intention to take over the mines," he said.
Lungu earlier this month warned that he would not allow Glencore's local unit to lay off workers.
The company has been cutting its copper output to support flagging global prices.
Vedanta
Resources' Zambian unit Konkola Copper Mines KCM) said it would
mothball its loss making Nchanga underground mine by the end of the
month.
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