Coal of Africa falls following strike at Mooiplaats mine

Coal of Africa, a South Africa-based mining exploration and development company, fell on Tuesday on confirmation that employees at its Mooiplaats mine in South Africa have gone on strike.The employees, who are associated with the National Union of Mineworkers, were protesting against the suspension of four workers, due to alleged misconduct and breach of the picketing rules during a 'legal' strike in October 2012.Coal of Africa reported that all four underground sections have stopped operations and management is in discussion with NUM representatives to resolve the matter and ensure the workers resume their shifts. When fully operational the mine produces 6,000 tonnes of coal a day, yet sporadic disruption has hampered production there. Moreover, the company announced on November 7th that it had begun a formal restructuring process intended to move the operation to sustainability and likely to result in job losses. The colliery directly employs 368 people of which 244 are NUM members.For the year ending June 30th 2012 the Coal of Africa delivered a pre-tax loss of approximately $150m dollars (2011: $218m). The stock has fallen 80% over the past year from a high of 73.5p to 11.5p at 14:30.CM