About 2,205 employees started an underground protest on Monday. “The exits for both North and South shafts remain open and accessible, and assistance is available to employees electing to exit the shafts when they are ready to do so,” Implats said. Illegal underground protests and copycat unlawful actions at mining operations in South Africa have become more prevalent in recent months, causing disruptions in the broader mining industry, Implats said. The action at Bafokeng Rasimone is the fourth such protest since October. “Given prevailing low platinum group metal prices, the financial sustainability of the broader PGM industry is at risk,” the company said Tuesday.
