Teck: 475 jobs to go in South America - Chile, Regional
Published: Friday, January 9, 2009 16:47 (GMT -0400)
By Maximiliano Pichon / Business News Americas
bnamericas.com
Global job cuts announced by Canadian miner Teck (NYSE: TCK) will include 475 positions in Chile and Peru, a company spokesperson told BNamericas.
"In terms of our copper mines in Chile, about 440 employee and contractor positions will be affected. In Peru, we are reducing our exploration office, affecting about 35 employee and contractor positions. There is no impact at [minority-held copper-zinc mine] Antamina," Teck director of corporate affairs Sarah Goodman told BNamericas.
The company said on January 8 that it would reduce its global workforce by about 1,400 positions, roughly 13%, by the end of the year as part of a strategy to cut costs and bolster competitiveness due to weakening commodities prices.
"In total, about 210 employees and 50 third-party contractors associated with our exploration group globally are affected by the workforce reduction," Goodman added.
The workforce reduction is expected to generate annual savings of approximately US$85mn. Teck also said it plans to reduce coal production in 2009 to 20Mt due to declining global steel demand.
Teck's operations in Chile include a 90% stake in the Andacallo copper mine and 76.5% in the Quebrada Blanca copper mine.
The company has a 22.5% interest in Antamina as well as operations in Australia, Canada and the US. |