Canadian company suspends operations after African mine death
The incident occurred at a pit at the Sentinel copper mine, located 150km west of Solwezi in the northwestern province of the southern African country, the mining company said in a statement on Monday.
The 'operations in the area of the accident have been temporarily suspended and will resume once it is determined that it can be done in a safe manner,' it stated.
The company said it had notified local authorities about the 'tragic loss' and that an internal investigation is currently underway.
First Quantum is a major player in Zambia's copper-rich northwestern province, where it operates two major mines – the Kansanshi mine and the Sentinel mine, as part of its larger Trident project. Its operations, have, however, been marred by several fatal accidents in recent years, including a 2023 dump truck collision at Sentinel and multiple contractor deaths at Kansanshi. Last September, the Toronto-based miner reported that a collision between a tracked dozer and a light vehicle had killed one of its employees. In November the previous year, two contractors at its Zambian operations died in separate incidents.
The latest incident comes at a time when countries in Africa have revoked the licenses of major Western mining firms over a series of grievances, including alleged unpaid taxes.
Last Thursday, Niger's military government announced plans to nationalize Somair uranium, a local venture operated by the French state-owned nuclear company Orano since 1971, amid an escalating dispute between the miners and the West African nation. Governments in neighboring Burkina Faso, Guinea, and Mali have also moved to review mining contracts in recent months, seeking to boost revenue from their extractive industries.
Earlier last Monday, Mali temporarily stripped Canadian firm Barrick of control over the country's largest gold mining operations, citing alleged unpaid taxes and royalties.
In 2023, First Quantum lost control of its flagship Panama copper mine after the country's Supreme Court nullified its contract and the maritime authority blocked export permits.
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