Mexico’s proposed higher mining royalties could block nearly $7bn in investments
The Mexican government proposed raising mining royalties under the argument that metal prices have risen in recent years.
Workers at the Indonesian mine owned by US-based Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold In.c (NYSE: FCX) have gone on strike for increased wages, reports the West Australian.
About 1,100 contract employees stopped work Tuesday at the Grasberg mine — one of the largest gold and copper mines in the world — in the eastern province of Papua.
The workers were hired from three different firms for construction on the mine expansion. Their representative union said the action would hurt the mine’s operation and the strike could go on for a month.
Freeport said the strike wouldn’t affect its overall mining production.
Regular company employees are not involved with the job action.
In 2011, thousands of mine workers went on strike for three months and shut Grasberg down until the company agreed to a wage increase.
Image: Freeport screengrab
