NEW YORK, May 10, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Fenix Nickel Co., the US owner of Guatemalan nickel producers Compania Guatemalteca de Niquel (CGN) and Compania Procesadora de Niquel de Izabal, S.A. (PRONICO) declares its backing for the Solidarist Miners Association of El Estor (AMSE), which has urgently appealed for U.S. support as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits Guatemala.

More than 500 Guatemalan ex-employees from El Estor have urged the U.S. to assist in reopening the Fenix nickel mine, aiming to re-employ over 1,700 workers and alleviate the pressures driving them towards the U.S. border. AMSE has highlighted the severe hardships faced by the workers due to the mine’s shutdown, compelling many former employees to seek employment in the United States, often with tragic outcomes, including  deaths during perilous journeys north.

The association stresses that restarting the Fenix mine operations is critical not only for the local economy but could also significantly curb the flow of illegal immigration to the United States. Despite the removal of US sanctions on CGN and Pronico, the entities operating the mine, there remains a baffling delay in the mine’s reopening.

“We kindly seek the support of the U.S. Government in our dialogue with the Guatemalan authorities to expedite the issuance of these essential export licenses. This action will ensure the mine’s rapid reopening and the re-employment of its workforce,” stated a spokesperson for AMSE.

Expressing gratitude to Secretary Blinken for his attention to this pressing matter, AMSE underscores the mutual benefits that reopening the mine would bring to both Guatemala and the United States.

SOURCE Fenix Nickel Co.