JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Coal mining company Exxaro Coal and the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) have reached a three-year wage agreement, which brings the current wage strike at its Grootegeluk and Leeuwpan mines to a conclusion. 

“We are pleased that the parties were able to resolve the dispute speedily,” Exxaro executive head of strategy and stakeholder engagement Mzila Mthenjane told Mining Weekly Online in a media release. 

Leeuwpan employees were expected to return to work on Friday, while Grootegeluk employees will start on Monday, September 25. 

Positive engagements continue with Solidarity, the other trade union recognised for collective bargaining. 

“We’re working closely with all stakeholders to ensure that the affected mines resume operations safely,” Mthenjane added.

The portfolio of coal operations of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed Exxaro, a South Africa-based black empowered diversified mining company included in the Responsible Mining Index, includes mines in the Mpumalanga and the Limpopo provinces that supply coal to Eskom, other domestic markets and export markets.

Its investment portfolio includes a 50% interest in Cennergi, a joint venture with Tata Power, which has developed two wind farms with a combined generation capacity of 229 MW or 10% of the currently installed capacity of South Africa’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme. 

Exxaro has been working closely with stakeholders to minimise any potential impact on coal supply.