SSR Mining (NASDAQ: SSRM) stock plunged on Tuesday after the company announced the suspension of operations at its primary Turkish gold mine due to a landslide, marking the second incident at the site within two years.
SSR Mining announced the suspension of operations at the Çöpler Mine in eastern Turkey following a significant landslide on the mine’s heap leach pad, a reservoir used for metal extraction from ore, on Tuesday morning. Rescue operations were promptly initiated, with nine workers reported missing, according to the statement from the Ministry of Energy & Natural Resources of Turkey.
The disclosure led to a temporary halt in trading of US shares of SSR, which subsequently plummeted by 60% to $3.87, marking their lowest intraday level since January 2016. The incident has erased over half of the market value of SSR, reducing the market capitalization to around $785 million for a Denver-based firm.
Turkish Politicians Criticize SSR
SSR is facing criticism from Turkish politicians following the recent incident, with references to the company’s previous problems at the site located near the Euphrates River, about 650 miles (1,046 kilometers) east of Istanbul. This incident occurred almost 20 months after a cyanide waste spill at the same location led to a suspension of operations in June 2022.
Meral Aksener, the IYI Party opposition leader in Turkey, commented on X,
“We had warned the government on the dangers of cyanide gold mining under the nose of the Euphrates River, but our warnings weren’t heeded.”
The authorities in Turkey have started legal and administrative inquiries. The Republican Peoples Party, the focal opposing group, has also sent a delegation to the location for evaluation.
Çöpler, known as the second biggest gold mine of SSR, generated 56,768 ounces of gold in the third quarter of the last year. The mine, operational since 2010, is now extracting ore through two facilities.
SSR abruptly ended its Tuesday conference call with analysts discussing the 2024 guidance, with Executive Chairman Rodney Antal referencing the incident.
Antal stated, “It’s currently our primary concern, and it’s still very early, so we don’t have much more detail to provide,” before requesting the operator to terminate the call.
SSR Mining (NASDAQ: SSRM) Stock Performance
SSRM stock nosedived 53.70% to close at $4.50 on Tuesday. The traders had exchanged hands with 67,121,084 (6712 million) shares compared to the average daily trading volume of 2.34 million.
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