Lucapa Diamond Company is currently facing a production disruption at its Lulo mine in Angola after local community leaders barricaded all entrances to the site, making a series of unreasonable demands, according to the company.
While the blockade remains peaceful, it has prevented Lucapa’s workers from entering or exiting the site. The company expressed concern for the safety of its employees should it attempt to break through the barricade.
Although the workers who are inside the mine are continuing to process stockpiled ore, the blockade has caused downtime at the processing plant.
Many employees who live outside the mine site have been unable to reach the operation, impacting overall productivity, Lucapa noted.
“The blockade has disrupted alluvial mining and kimberlite bulk sampling activities at Lulo,” the company stated. “If the situation is not resolved soon, it could affect Lulo’s first-quarter production results, as stockpiled gravel is being depleted.”
Lucapa further explained that the community leaders’ demands are largely unrelated to the company’s responsibilities. Instead, the miner believes the local authorities should address the issues raised by the leaders.
“Lucapa has consistently supported the local community and fulfilled its social responsibilities, but these new demands are both unexpected and unreasonable,” the company added.
Discussions are currently underway between community leaders and a government delegation, which includes representatives from the regional governor, with the goal of peacefully resolving the blockade. However, Lucapa noted that no progress has been made so far.
The company will provide further updates on the situation as it develops.
