Johannesburg – Harmony Gold [JSE:HAR] must feel cursed by its Kusasalethu mine, where a fire on Sunday has delivered a fresh blow to the company's efforts to boost earnings.
In the latest setback to an operation that has been closed before because of labour violence and illegal miners, the blaze took hold deep underground during maintenance work.
All 486 miners working at the time were brought safely to the surface, but Harmony's profits will not make such a swift ascent, especially since the mine will almost certainly be closed for an indefinite period while an investigation is held.