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Johannesburg - Harmony Gold Mining Company [JSE:HAR], South
Africa's third-largest gold miner, said on Thursday it had restarted most of
the operations at its Evander mine in Mpumalanga province that
was shut following fatalities earlier this week.
An employee and two members of an external rescue team were
fatally injured on Monday at the mine following an ore pass accident.
"Evander mine is back in production from (Wednesday) except for the area where the accident occurred," spokesperson Henrika Basterfield said.
South Africa, which has the world's deepest gold mines, has a dire safety record compared with the industrialised world, and deaths have led to temporary closure of mines which dents output.
Some South African gold mines are nearing depths of 4 000
metres, making access and drilling dangerous in harsh conditions in which rock
temperatures can reach about 50 degrees Celsius.
Still, the number of miners killed in South Africa has
fallen drastically over the last two decades.
Companies have invested heavily to improve safety in a bid to dismiss claims by unions that they are putting ounces before lives. But analysts have said it is unlikely they will reach a zero harm record in the near term.
