The Northern Cape High Court has extended the provisional liquidation of Ekapa Mine in Kimberley until October 30, rather than issuing a final order. The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) opposed the application and expressed satisfaction with the outcome. The decision follows a fatal mud rush at the mine in February.
The Northern Cape High Court in Kimberley extended the provisional liquidation of Ekapa Mine on April 17, postponing the matter to October 30. This came after business rescue practitioners sought a final liquidation order, which Numsa contested due to its potential harm to workers.
Numsa local organiser Lerato Mohatlane welcomed the ruling. "Numsa was there to oppose the liquidation and then also to request an extension on this matter that the liquidation process must not be granted and of which it is something the court did," Mohatlane said. She added that the extension allows the union to prepare further and enables workers to access 50% of their pension funds from Momentum.
The case stems from a mud rush in February that killed five miners at Ekapa Minerals. All bodies were later retrieved, leaving over 1,200 workers in distress.
