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Gold/Mining/Energy : Copper - analysis -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: NYBob1 who wrote (1814)	7/17/2007 6:58:44 PM
From: Stephen O	Respond to of 2131

Codelco Says Work at 2 Chilean Copper Mines Is Halted (Update2) 2007-07-17 13:32 (New York) (Adds analyst comment in the fourth paragraph.) By Heather Walsh July 17 (Bloomberg) -- Codelco, the world's biggest copper producer, said work at two of its Chilean mining units is stopped, halting about one-fifth of the company's production of the metal. Heavy snows have cut off access to the Andina mine complex in central Chile, extending a shutdown that began July 9, spokesman Carlos Rios said. Contract workers have blocked access to the El Salvador mine for a second day, the company's press office in Santiago said. The two units produced 19 percent of Codelco's copper last year. Striking contract workers have cut output at Codelco mines as they press for bonuses after the price of copper more than quadrupled in four years. Copper futures have gained 5 percent since the strike started June 25. Codelco, owned by the Chilean government, produces 10 percent of the world's mined copper. ``The world market is pretty tight, which means these temporary impacts can affect prices,'' said Diego Figueroa, an analyst at brokerage Larrain Vial SA in Santiago. A protest at the Andina division on July 9 led Santiago- based Codelco to halt output and send employees home. Snow and cold weather have hampered efforts to resume production. At the El Salvador mine, contract workers have taken over a processing plant, the company said. About 180 contract workers also are blocking access to the mine in northern Chile, Egidio Masias, president of the largest union of Codelco employees at El Salvador, said in a phone interview. ``No vehicles are going through,'' Masias said. Contract Workers Contract workers are employees of the companies Codelco hires to maintain equipment, build infrastructure and provide food and cleaning services. The workers' pay is less than that of Codelco employees, even for similar jobs, said the Confederation of Copper Workers, which is organizing the strike. Codelco said it has offered to ensure that contracted companies provide better health and accident insurance and a bonus of 325,000 pesos ($630) per worker tied to productivity. The company said last month it had 28,000 contract workers, compared with about 17,300 regular employees. Codelco produced 1.68 million metric tons of copper at its fully owned mines last year. Copper futures for September delivery fell 0.95 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $3.5525 on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Mexican workers at Southern Copper Corp., the world's fifth-largest producer of the metal, today postponed a strike. --Editor: Farr (kjo/jvb).