Vedanta’s Skorpion mine will go into care and maintenance by the end of April, according to the local media reports.
A substantial portion of the open cast mine was paralysed due to technical failures since the beginning of 2020. These are likely to result in widening the zinc ore gap by 10 months. The decision to shut the mine was taken for the safety of over 1500 employees.
Skorpion mine is located at Rosh Pinah, Namibia and produces special High-Grade Zinc (HGZ). It is one of the largest zinc mines in the world. The company had estimated mine’s production capacity to reach 130,000mt in 2020.
Besides Vedanta, Trevali’s Rosh Pinah mine remains shut as precautionary measures to control the spread of COVID-19. Namibia has cut operations at mines to limit the spread of the virus. Minimal mining operations, however, are allowed by following the mandated social distancing, according to local media. Namibia has eight recorded cases of COVID-19, with the country announcing partial lockdown at its capital city Windhoek.