Glencore-owned coal miner Cerrejon restarts operation after roadblocks

Colombian coal miner Cerrejon, owned by Anglo-Swiss commodities giant Glencore GLEN.L, said it was able to restart operations late on Tuesday after earlier reporting that production at its mine was halted by some 13 illegal road blocks.

Blockades on roads and rail lines around the mine - the largest in Latin America - are not uncommon.

Former workers blocked a rail line last year and Cerrejon has had repeated disagreements with nearby Wayuu indigenous communities and its largest union, which held a three-month strike in 2020.

In September nearly week-long road blockades cut production at the mine by 70%, the company said.

"Cerrejon's mining operations were able to restart tonight, after people who participated in the illegal blockades that affected the company lifted the actions they had initiated during the morning of October 25," the company said in a statement on Tuesday.

There were multiple reasons for the road blockades affecting the mine, not all of them connected with the company, Cerrejon added.

The company, which produced 23.4 million tonnes of coal in 2021, was fully bought by top global miner and trader Glencore last year.

Colombia is a major global exporter of coal and royalties and taxes from the fuel are a top contributor to government coffers.