Indonesia Newmont Stops Mine Ops As Ex-Landowners Protest:
JAKARTA (Dow Jones)--Gold miner PT Newmont Minahasa Raya said Friday former landowners have resumed a protest at its Sulawesi mine, forcing the closure of the mine for the fourth time this year.
Newmont Minahasa, a unit of Newmont Corp. (NEM, news, msgs) of the U.S., said it stopped operations Friday morning after a group of 15 people entered the mine.
The former landowners are protesting Newmont's purchase of their land for its mining operations, saying the deal was unfair.
"The situation here is extremely frustrating because this handful of claimants are in no way representative of the perception of the other ex-landowners," said Richard Ness, Newmont Minahasa's president.
Newmont's Minahasa mine produces about 340,000 troy ounces of gold a year, or 4% of Newmont's annual global production.
-By Tom Wright, Dow Jones Newswires |
