Sibanye-Stillwater says shaft incident to hit third quarter gold output

Stillwater said it was facing a new disruption to gold output just over a year after resolving a three-month strike at the South African shafts.

The Johannesburg-listed precious metals producer said today an “incident” at its Kloof 4 shaft on July 30 resulted in damage to the shaft’s steelwork below 39 level. The extent of the damage was being assessed but operations had been suspended.

Kloof 4 shaft produces an average of about 9,650 ounces of gold a month accounting for 14% of annual production, excluding gold from Sibanye-Stillwater’s 50.01% stake in gold retreatment company, DRDGOLD.

The damage occurred during a safety trial run of the conveyance system ahead of hoisting employees up the shaft. Infrastructure damage occurred when the ascending counterweight to the conveyance hit “an unknown obstruction” in the shaft, said Sibanye-Stillwater. As a result, a number of ballast plates fell down the shaft.

No injuries were sustained during the event and employees were returned to surface unharmed but access via the shaft to underground between 39 and 46 levels is restricted, the company said.