London 14/06/2016 - [Adds in quote from union representative]
Workers at South32's Cerro Matoso ferro-nickel mine will strike indefinitely as of 15:00 local time (21:00 BST) today after last-minute talks on higher wages between union representatives and the company broke up without reaching an agreement.
"Yes indeed, the strike will go ahead, zero hour is scheduled for 15:00 today," union leader Domingo Hernandez said today.
The Colombian mine, which was part of BHP Billiton's 'non-core' assets that were spun off to form South32, has full-year production guidance of 36,500 tonnes of payable nickel.
"After the meeting with the company we don't see the possibility of reaching a settlement, as their representatives were little interested in resolving our points and showed inconsiderate attitude," the Sintracerromatoso union said in a statement on Monday evening.
The union is looking for a wage increase for workers at the mine comparable with inflation in the price of basic goods such as electricity, water and education, it said.
Nickel prices have been unaffected by the news, with 273,792 tonnes of nickel available as LME warrants - more than sufficient to cover any short-term supply outage. Three-month nickel recently traded at $8,850 per tonne, down $40 on Monday's close.
(Additional reporting by Ewa Manthey, editing by Martin Hayes)