
[miningmx.com] — Newmont Mining Corp said on Tuesday it has temporarily suspended mining operations at a copper and gold mine in Indonesia because of what it called “a geotechnical failure”.
Its Indonesian affiliate PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara continues to process lower-grade ore from stockpiles at the Batu Hijau mine, the Denver-based company said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Newmont said there was a geotechnical failure on Sept. 18 and 19 in the west wall of the open-pit mine, which produces mostly copper, with a small amount of gold.
“PTNNT has temporarily suspended operations in the Batu Hijau pit pending a geotechnical review and development of a plan for stabilizing the wall and recommencing mining operations,” the filing said.
It was too early to assess the impact on production and revenues, the company said.
A spokesman declined further details, but the language of the filing suggested there was some kind of rock slide at the mine, which is located on the remote island of Sumbawa.
Newmont stock was up 97 cents, or 2.2 percent, at $45.38 in early trading on the New York Stock Exchange, as the prices of both copper and gold rose on dollar weakness.