Miningmx reports that Sibanye-Stillwater CEO Neal Froneman said on Thursday that the US and SA platinum group metals (PGM) and gold producer did not expect to be fined by the SA regulators for safety violations because it did not believe it had been negligent.  

“But let’s wait for the outcome of the investigations,” he added.  He was answering questions at an analyst and media presentation on the group’s results for the six months to June.  He began by dwelling at length on the group’s safety performance, culture and focus.  Safety leapt to the forefront when 21 people died on the group’s SA gold mines in the first six months of this year, almost half the total number of fatalities in the SA mining industry.  These events were followed by the launch of two separate shareholder class actions in the US, claiming Sibanye had lied about its safety practices.  CFO Charl Keyter said Sibanye was trying to join the two actions to reduce costs.  The group reported a 13% decrease in SA gold production as a result of the safety incidents, two of which occurred in the second quarter at Kloof and Driefontein mines.

• Read this report by Charlotte Mathews in full at Miningmx

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