Iron Ore Mine Shutdown: 200 Jobs in Limbo Amid Financial Dispute
A financial dispute between the owner of the Buzzard iron ore mine in SA's far north and a major contractor has left about 200 workers facing uncertain futures. The mine's operations have been shut down amid the dispute.
About 200 jobs at an iron ore mine in South Australia's far north are in limbo amid a financial dispute between the project's owner and a major onsite contractor.
In a letter to staff, contractor Agile Mining Services said work would be shut down at the Buzzard mine site south of Coober Pedy. The project is owned by Central Iron — a subsidiary of Peak Iron, whose website states the Buzzard mine extracts high-grade hematite for shipment.
In the letter, Agile told workers to use leave if available and to expect further advice once a "commercial position" had been resolved. "Agile is therefore shutting down site operations and directing its own personnel to cease normal duties, with employees to utilise available annual leave … where applicable," it stated.
Mining Minister Tom Koutsantonis said the situation at the Buzzard site was an "internal dispute" that did not reflect on the mine itself. "This is not about them not being a viable mine or there not being the work — this is a dispute about cost," he said.
"This is a question of a mining company who's hired a contractor to do the mining, and they're having a dispute about how much they're paying the contractor to do the mining."
He said the government was not party to the dispute and would not be intervening, but suspected there would be a quick resolution. "The contractor has stood down and is now negotiating with the mining company about the cost of the mining," he said.
"I'm pretty sure they'll sort that out relatively quickly and they'll get back to mining."