Flooded Kombat mine suspends operations, 580 sent home

The Kombat copper mine will close its gates today at 16:00, suspending all operations for at least the next nine months. Yesterday, around 580 mineworkers received letters terminating their employment.The closure follows pump failures earlier this month, which led to underground flooding at the mine.Despite repeated enquiries, neither the mine’s management nor its Canadian owners, Trigon Metals, have officially commented on the situation. However, earlier this week, Tom Panoulias, Trigon’s vice-president for corporate development, said a formal press release would be issued in the coming days.The Mineworkers’ Union of Namibia (MUN) says it was not informed of the job losses, despite representing over 70 workers at the mine.“We strongly condemn any secret layoffs,” said union leader Filleppus Ampweya earlier this week. Yesterday, he visited the mine to meet with employees and later held discussions with the mine’s management.“There was no proper retrenchment process followed. Workers first heard about the layoffs on Monday. Today, nearly 200 employees came to collect their termination letters and service certificates, which they were required to sign. Legally, a retrenchment process requires four weeks’ notice, but management claims there are no funds for additional costs,” Ampweya explained yesterday. On notice He believes the layoffs were premeditated. In the lead-up to the closure, the company had placed all workers on short-term contracts ranging from one to three months, ensuring that no employees had continuous employment for over a year.Allegedly, new contracts were signed every few months, which, according to Ampweya, may be used as evidence that workers were informed and had agreed to the terms. “However, we have managed to get management to agree to discussions regarding the impact of the retrenchment packages,” he added.Mining commissioner Isabelle Kandjii-Chirchir confirmed that she had received the closure notice from Trigon yesterday.The Kombat mine processing plant also shut down yesterday to prepare for refurbishment after processing the remaining available ore. Only 28 workers will remain on-site for about a month to handle maintenance.The dismissals took effect on 30 January, with final payments expected on 25 February. Employees will receive severance calculated at one week’s pay for those employed for less than a year. Meanwhile, Trigon announced on 16 January that, despite the pump failures, it still intends to proceed with its previously announced sale transaction with Horizon Corporation.

Flooded Kombat mine suspends operations, 580 sent home

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Namibian Sun 2025-03-19

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Flooded Kombat mine suspends operations, 580 sent home

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Namibian Sun 2025-03-19

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