BlueRock temporarily suspends operations at Kareevlei

Aim-listed BlueRock Diamonds has temporarily suspended operations at its Kareevlei mine in the Kimberley region of South Africa, owing to the imposition of a Section 54 notice from the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR).

The Section 54 notice is in relation to the code of practice relating to the operation of trackless mining machines only and resulted from an accident on Friday involving an external contractor.

Section 54 notices are not uncommon as a result of such incidents, the company noted in a statement on Thursday.

BlueRock met with the DMR on Wednesday to discuss the matter and was amending its code of practice as required.

This will be reviewed by the DMR on Friday and the company expects the suspension of operations to be lifted soon thereafter.

The company does not expect the temporary suspension to impact on its volume guidance for the year.