ArcelorMittal Temirtau has issued a statement confirming its preliminary agreement with the government of Kazakhstan to transfer ownership of the mine to the Republic. This decision comes in the wake of the tragic fire incident that occurred on October 28 at 2:33 a.m. in the Kostenko coal mine of ArcelorMittal Temirtau, resulting in casualties, QazMonitor reports.
“ArcelorMittal also confirmed, as communicated earlier today by the government of Kazakhstan, that the two parties have been in discussions concerning the future of ArcelorMittal Temirtau and recently signed a preliminary agreement for a transaction that will transfer ownership to the Republic of Kazakhstan,” the press service of ArcelorMittal reported.
At the time of the accident, there were 252 people in the mine. 206 workers were evacuated. As of 16:00, the rescuers have found the bodies of 32 miners, and the search for 14 miners is ongoing.
“ArcelorMittal is committed to completing this transaction as soon as possible in order to minimize disruption to the greatest extent possible,” the company’s press service reported.
By order of the Head of State, a special commission headed by Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov has been created to investigate the causes of the accident, as reported by the press service of Akorda.
“This company turned out to be the worst in our history in terms of cooperation between the government and the enterprise. Now we need to think about taking action on the enterprise itself,” said President Tokayev
The QazMonitor editorial staff extends heartfelt condolences to the families and friends affected by this devastating loss at the Kostenko mine.