KL closes down copper mine

KL closes down copper mine

KUALA LUMPUR (DPA): Malaysia's only copper mine, the country's biggest mining operation, has closed down after exhausting its ore reserves following 24 years of operation, a report said Tuesday.

The Mamut mine, in the eastern Malaysian state of Sabah on Borneo island, sent its last shipment on Sunday of 3,000 tons of copper concentrates to Japan, the Sun daily said.

The company which owns the mine, Mamut Copper Mining Sdn. Bhd., said the mine had produced 2.4 million tons of concentrates containing 582,000 tons of copper, 44 tons of gold and 301 tons of silver over the years.

At its peak of operation, the mine employed 1,300 workers and the firm exported total ores worth 3.3 billion ringgit (US$868 million).