Africa-Press – South-Africa. South Africa’s last remaining manganese smelter, Transalloys, said on Tuesday it was a race against time as the struggling company called for aid at the 11th hour.
The repeated calls follow an announcement that the smelter may have to close its plant in eMalahleni, Mpumalanga, and cut hundreds of jobs if its soaring electricity costs are not brought down.
The company said it had been running at a loss for three years.
It joins a list of several other smelters in the country buckling under high electricity costs.
At least 600 jobs are at risk if there is no urgent intervention to help avert the company’s closure and a labour crisis.
Transalloys chief executive officer Konstantin Sadovnik said the company had written several letters to the electricity minister and the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA).
“We don’t have anything planned as yet. Again, we have written quite a few letters to the electricity minister, NERSA. I think everybody is aware of the problem. For us, it’s important that the government is aware, the government is working towards them, towards the solution.
“We don’t necessarily want to interfere into that process, but to the extent required, we would be prepared to sit with the government and discuss whatever needs to be signed, whatever needs to be arranged, so that we can preserve those jobs.”
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