Anglo American rescheduling Chile operations to combat coronavirus

Anglo American is following advice from government and health authorities in its operating jurisdictions in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic and implementing additional measures across its offices and operations; guided by the World Health Organisation and national public health authorities.

Mark Cutifani, Chief Executive of Anglo American, commented: “We are taking all appropriate measures, often tailored to the specific nature and location of a particular site, to protect the safety, health and wellbeing of our people and all those who interact with our business around the world. 

“The nature of our business is such that much of our work cannot be done remotely, so our focus is on reducing the risk of the virus spreading into and across our sites. Operational continuity is critical for jobs, for the communities around our operations and for the local and global economies. Our sites and offices therefore have escalation plans to accommodate the ongoing impact of the pandemic and these will continue to be revised as the situation evolves.

“We recognise that this is a fast changing and stressful situation for everyone and we know that we all have our part to play to help each other through the pandemic and be ready for when we emerge on the other side.”

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Anglo American has a designated senior multi-disciplinary team in place that is monitoring the situation across its operating countries and sites to update its decisions in response to the disease and to plan for a range of scenarios. This team provides advice to the operating businesses and provides regular updates to Anglo American’s Chief Executive and Group Management Committee.

Currently all of the company’s mines are operational, with no material impact on production, with supply chains functioning well as a result of ongoing proactive engagement with key supply partners. At certain operations, such as those in Chile, Anglo is taking measures to temporarily reschedule operational work in order to help reduce the density of people on site and with it reduce the probability of the virus spreading. Such actions are designed to minimise any impact on production volumes and on deliveries of metals and minerals to customers.

Mark Cutifani added: “Global markets are reflecting the uncertainty created by the spread of COVID-19 through unprecedented volatility. This tends to mask the fundamental drivers of supply and demand, which we believe remain robust in the medium and longer term for the metals and minerals that we produce. As certain countries recover from the pandemic, we expect to see economic activity ramp back up, supported by stimulus from governments and central banks.”

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