The railway infrastructure used by Glencore's Cerrejón coal mine in northern Colombia was attacked with explosives by unknown suspects late December 15, Glencore said in a statement.

The incident caused damages to the railway line and one of the cars but no one was injured. It also led to a complete halt of coal transport from the mine to the Bolívar Port, which was 150 kilometers apart.

Cerrejón stated that it rejects these types of violent acts that put the safety of their employees, neighboring communities and normal operations at risk. It also said was working to enable the coal transport to Bolívar Port as soon as possible.

Cerrejón's management team was working with the authorities to further investigate the incident and take the necessary steps to identify those responsible, the company said. But no suspects have been reported so far.

Cerrejón was one of the largest open-pit coal-export mining operations in the world. It delivered 80,000 tonnes of coal per day to Bolívar port by five-six trains, in addition to providing 80,000 liters of fresh water to nearby communities with adapted tank cars.

Since its operations began in the mid-1970s, the mine produced 19.7 million tonnes of thermal coal in 2022, translating into nearly $1 million in taxes and royalties for Colombia.

(Writing by yan.sun  Editing by Harry Huo)
For any questions, please contact us by inquiry@fwenergy.com or +86-351-7219322.

Share this article

Connect with us