Newmont Suspends Operations at Indonesian Mine

Newmont Mining has suspended operations at its Batu Hijau open pit mine in Indonesia after a geotechnical failure.

The mine, operated by its affiliate PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara (PTNNT), witnessed a geotechnical breakdown in the west wall on 18 and 19 September.

PTNNT has suspended operations in the Batu Hijau pit pending a geotechnical review and development of a plan for stabilising the wall.

The company will give an update on the impact on revenues and production once it has a clear picture of the impact of the failure, the company said.

Batu Hijau uses an advanced monitoring system to measure pit wall movements and as a result no worker was present in the pit during the wall movement.

Initial assessments show that minimal damage has been done to in-pit infrastructure and equipment. Processing operations are continuing with ore fed to the mill from stockpiles, Newmont said.