Sibanye avoids closure of FS mine as restructuring gets underway

Sibanye-Stillwater describes the restructuring of its South African operations as “a retrenchment avoidance process”. Sibanye’s senior VP for investor relations, James Wellstead, tells the OFM Business Hour that they are trying to avoid closing down the Beatrix 4 shaft near Welkom in the Free State, despite the mine’s drop in productivity and profitability. At risk in this restructuring process are just under 2000 jobs as well as 465 contracts which are mainly at the Beatrix 4 shaft and less so at the Kloof 1 plant in Gauteng. Sibanye says rising input costs, such as loadshedding, as well as a general drop in production has led them to this restructuring decision.