Media releases

Blyvoor retrenchments to cost R30 million

Details

Published: Friday, 10 September 2004 02:00

Contrary to a report in today’s Business Day, retrenchments of up to 2 000 employees at DRD’s Blyvoor mine are expected to cost approximately R30 million.
Johannesburg, South Africa. 10.09.04. Durban Roodepoort Deep, Limited (JSE: DUR; NASDAQ: DROOY; ASX: DRD; POM SoX: DRD) Contrary to a report in today’s Business Day, retrenchments of up to 2 000 employees at Durban Roodepoort Deep, Limited’s Blyvooruitzicht (Blyvoor) mine near Carletonville, South Africa are expected to cost approximately R30 million.

The newspaper reported that “packages are expected to cost the mine about R100 million”. The company was not asked to comment on the expected retrenchment costs.

Agreements were concluded this week between DRD and employee organisations (NUM, UASA, Solidarity and SAEWA), intended to restore Blyvoor to profitability.

The key elements of the agreement, reached during CCMA-facilitated consultation initiated on 28 June in terms of a Labour Relations Act Section 189 notice, are:

• up to 2 000 of the mine’s 4 400 employees to be retrenched by 20 September;


• no shaft closures.

The intention is to:

• reduce overheads immediately and return the mine to breakeven and then to, at most, R80 000/kg; and


• preserve the mine’s existing infrastructure, in order to have a sound platform for further
  remedial action over the next six months and for a strategy to take the mine into the
  future.

In terms of the agreement:

• employee organisations have given a six-month undertaking not to disrupt the normal
  operations of the company in any way;


• the current Section 189 process will be preserved for six months (so that, should consultation on further actions be required, it will not be necessary to issue a further Section 189 notice).

In terms of Blyvoor’s Social Plan, all employees affected by retrenchment will be offered trauma counselling and skills re-training. Retrenched foreign nationals will undergo counseling and re-training during their notice period, before they return to their countries of origin.

DRD has announced the appointment of Mark Munroe as the new General Manager of Blyvoor. Munroe (35) was previously Production Manager at DRD’s North West Operations.

Queries:

South Africa
Investor and Media Relations
Ilja Graulich, Durban Roodepoort Deep, Limited
+27 11 381 7826 (office)
+27 83 604 0820 (mobile)

James Duncan, Russell & Associates
+27 11 880 3924 (office)
+27 82 892 8052 (mobile)

North America
Investor Relations and Media Relations
Susan Borinelli, Breakstone & Ruth International
+1 646-536-7018 (office)
+1 917-570-8421 (mobile)

Australasia
Investor and Media Relations
Paul Downie, Porter Novelli
+61 893 861 233 (office)
+61 414 947 129 (mobile)

United Kingdom/Europe
Investor and Media Relations
Phil Dexter, St James's Corporate Services
+44 20 7499 3916 (office)
+44 779 863 4398 (mobile)

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DRD is the world’s 9th largest gold producer, with mines in South Africa as well as Australasia, a key target for growth. The company has a track record of success in extending the lives of older mines safely and profitably. For fiscal year 2004, DRD produced 905 000 ounces of gold, up from under 100 000 ounces a year in 1997, when current operations were amalgamated.

For more information, please visit www.drd.co.za or www.durbans.com

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DISCLAIMER

Some of the information in this voluntary release may contain projections or other forward looking statements regarding future events or other future financial performance, including statements regarding the production performance at the South African operations, and DRD's ability to diversify its assets and grow outside South Africa. We wish to caution you that these forward-looking statements are not guarantees or predictions of future performance, and involve known or unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond our control and which may cause actual events or results to differ materially from these expressed in the statements contained in this release.

Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences are discussed in the sections entitled 'Risk Factors' included in our annual report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended 30 June 2003, which we filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission on 30 December 2003 and is available on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or release results of any of these projections or forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unexpected results