Chambishi smelter closes indefinitely

Chambishi smelter closes indefinitely
Written by Mwila Chansa and Zumani Katasefa in Kitwe
Sunday, December 07, 2008 6:31:45 PM

CHAMBISHI Metals smelter has been shut indefinitely, sources have revealed.Well-placed sources within the company, which is the sister company to Luanshya Copper Mine, told The Post that management told the employees through their union that the smelter had been shut and would only remain open for care and maintenance purposes.

But Chambishi Metals chief executive officer Derrick Webbstock said the smelter had been shut down temporarily because of the losses it was making as a result of the falling prices of cobalt.

"Yes, it has been closed temporarily but operations will be re-started as soon as prices pick up but the rest of the operations continue as normal," said Webbstock.

According to sources, about 90 per cent of the workforce at the smelter faced the possibility of redundancy.

"This afternoon [Friday], management informed the employees through their union that the smelter has been shut. It will only remain open for care and maintenance purposes and that about 90 per cent of the workforce at the smelter face being laid off," the source said. "They will be entitled to all their conditions of service as in salaries, their leave days will accrue, housing allowance and everything except that they will not be reporting for work."

The source feared that the closure of the smelter would soon affect all areas of operations because the smelter fed all the other plants.

"It is a kind of a forced leave where you get your money and all but you don't report for work," the source explained.

According to the source, management would only consider recalling their workers once the metal markets stabilise.

The source appealed to the government to quickly intervene in the matter, saying management was playing "hide and seek" because no investor would continue paying workers who do not report for work.

"They are just short of telling us that we have retrenched you because eventually this thing will lead to retrenchment because even during ZCCM days, first people were sent on what they were calling a recess whilst they were home, the letters of retrenchment found them there," the source added.

The source observed that it would be very difficult for employees to regroup and negotiate for a reasonable retrenchment package if the letters found them at their homes.

The source said there were over 200 employees at the smelter whilst the old plant had 700 plus employees.

Meanwhile, Luanshya Copper Mine (LCM) has retrenched five more expatriates as a cost-saving measure following the falling prices of copper and cobalt on the international market.

This brings the total number of expatriates retrenched so far to 13 out of the 18 expatriates the company had employed.

LCM public relations officer Sydney Chileya confirmed the development yesterday, saying management had also intensified its cost-saving measures by cutting on contractors whose contributions did not directly affect the operations of the company in the short term.

“Other cost measures taken are further reduction in expatriate staff, critical review of all required spares, consumables as well as continued negotiations with all major suppliers for price reduction,” Chileya said.

And according to a management brief, the company would now focus on improving production at the Baluba mine shaft.

The brief signed by chief operations manager James Bethel stated that during this time, it was more critical than ever for the company to maintain its focus on safe production and workers should not allow the situation to distract them from discipline and compliance to safe production.

The local staff directly employed by LCM have however not been affected by the retrenchment exercise.

Anxiety has gripped many Luanshya miners who fear that the mine, which forms the economic back bone of the town, might be closed. Others have suggested that they be given their terminal benefits before the situation worsens.

Other mining companies like Konkola Copper Mines, Mopani Copper Mines and Bwana Mkubwa have started cutting down on their workforce systematically in view of the low copper prices and the global economic meltdown, which they say has raised their cost of production.