First Quantum Suspends Panama Mine Amid Protests and Legal Challenges

The Canadian miner faces significant backlash as Panama's top court declares its contract unconstitutional, leading to the suspension of the mine and a loss of about C$11 billion in market value.

• First Quantum Minerals has suspended the contracts of 7,000 employees at its major copper mine in Panama due to force majeure.
• Panama's top court declared First Quantum's contract unconstitutional, leading to the suspension of the mine which accounts for about 1% of global copper output.
• Protests by local communities and fishermen have been instrumental in the mine's closure, with the latter blocking a key port, choking off supplies to the mine.
• First Quantum's CFO stated it is too early and challenging to consider bringing a new partner into the project due to the situation in the country.
• The mine's closure has wiped out about C$11 billion ($8.1 billion) from First Quantum's market value and raised global copper prices on supply worries.

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