Harmony halts gold production at Elandsrand after miner death

Harmony Gold Mining Corporation confirmed today (January 19th) that it has halted production at its Elandsrand mine in South Africa following the death of a worker.

The company, which is the third-largest producer of the yellow metal in Africa, decided to cease operations following the incident yesterday, which was caused by a "seismic event".

Chief operating officer Alwyn Pretorius revealed that the mine will now be closed for two days, with the shutdown expected to mean a loss of 30-40kg worth of gold production.

He told Reuters: "It's expected that the mine will not produce gold for at least two days - today and tomorrow - to enable us to finalise the investigation."

Mr. Pretorius added that the investigations currently taking place by the department of minerals and energy, and mine management were likely to be concluded tomorrow.

Falling output is positive for anyone with a gold investment, as reduced supplies inevitably lead to higher prices.

South Africa's mines have had a tough few years in terms of safety and a review is currently being carried out following the trapping of 3,000 workers at Elandsrand in 2007.

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