The Cerrejon coal mine in Colombia will cut output by 15% to 18% amid slumping international prices and ongoing legal action, Reuters reported Oct. 7, citing local newspaper La Republica's interview with mine CEO Guillermo Fonseca.
The coal mine is operated under an equally owned joint venture between Anglo American PLC, BHP Group and Glencore PLC.
The mine will produce 26 million tonnes for the next five years, compared to over 30 million tonnes it had been producing until 2018, Fonseca said, adding that the mine's cash flow will shrink by US$170 million in 2019.
There is a chance that Colombia's top administrative tribunal, the Council of State, will shut down the Cerrejon mine this month due to an ongoing lawsuit, Fonseca added. Communities in Colombia's La Guajira province filed a suit against Cerrejon, saying the mine caused water shortages, food scarcity and other environmental problems in the area.
Fonseca said, "Cerrejon's history would end this year" if the mine is closed during the lawsuit, "which could take five or six years."
