In a slew of labor troubles, miners at Codelco’s Andina copper unit and Albemarle’s lithium facility staged walkouts following disagreements over wage and workers’ safety proposals.
Codelco’s 184,500mt per annum Andina unit has been weighed down with union and management tensions, with both parties struggling to gain middle ground following failed mediations noted media reports on Aug 12.
Albemarle’s Salar processing plant witnessed 135 members staging a walkout, although the company noted on Thursday that it has contingency plans in place.
Neither Codelco nor Albemarle have been able to confirm how long the strikes will last.
These events come at the heels of JX Nippon Copper’s unions calling for a strike at the Caserones mine on Aug 11 and BHP, reaching a tentative agreement with miners at the Escondida copper project, both in Chile.
There appears to be uncertainty over the imminent supply tightening of the red metal, which is likely to trickle down to the EV batteries industry.