A month and a half month later, the story of The Bambas could be repeated this February 20. The mine, located in Apurímac, could suspend its operations due to a new blockade of the southern mining corridor, according to the company MMG Las Bambas. If the stoppage is carried out, the main affected would be the same region and more than 8,500 workers, according to the National Society of Mining, Oil and Energy (SNMPE).
“This force measure is executed 100 kilometers from the mine in a strategic section of the road (in Cusco), preventing the free movement of workers, the entry of supplies and the transport of the production of said mining operation to the port. of Matarani, to the detriment of the country”, specified the business association in reference to the blockade that has been carried out for 12 days by members of the communities of Ccapacmarca, Huascabamba, Sayhua and Tahuay, in the province of Chumbivilcas (Cusco).
A new suspension of activities would be a serious setback for Apurímac, because Las Bambas represents 78% of the GDP of this region that hosts it. The stoppage of activities would also affect suppliers in this region and in Cusco.
claims
The main claims of those who carry out the blockade are two: that they be included in the Las Bambas zone of influence and that the corridor go from being a national road to a regional road.
Luis Huamaní, president of the Fighting Committee of the Ccapacmarca communities, asserted that the State has not paid attention to problems in the area, such as the lack of agricultural development, and criticized the negotiations carried out until January with the former head of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers (PCM), Mirtha Vásquez.
“We are already tired of the dialogue tables and of sending officials who do not have the capacity to resolve (…). That’s why we’ve asked the president to come to the scene. Yes or yes, Pedro Castillo has to arrive because (otherwise) the strike is not going to be lifted in Ccapacmarca”, he assured Peru21.
In this regard, the former Vice Minister of Energy and Mines Rómulo Mucho criticized the blockades of the corridor due to the severe economic impact it generates in Apurímac, in the mining company and in other supplier companies.
“They (these communities) have also been in the dialogue in recent weeks, but, according to them, being closer to the project, they want to be included as a zone of influence despite being in another jurisdiction (Cusco), but all this time the Executive has been headless, it has not been able to propose a serious dialogue with the prime minister nor have they achieved a development plan,” he told this newspaper.
For the specialist, the main problem has been that the authorities of the Ministry of Energy and Mines (Minem) and the PCM did not know how to deal with the demands that were made.
“There has been a lack of leadership on the part of the State and people who know the area,” he asserted, adding that the Executive must place an authority (in the Minem) that is professional, “with experience and who knows how to land the expectations of the communities.”
Data
-A possible paralysis of Las Bambas would seriously affect Apurímac, since currently the high prices of minerals have triggered the sector’s exports.
-Between January and November of last year, the sector’s shipments abroad totaled US$36,698 million, according to the Ministry of Energy and Mines, 56.6% more than in the same period of 2020.
