AngloGold Ashanti has restarted its Great Noligwa Mine after an eight-and-a-half-day search for a missing miner brought no results, it said on Monday.

"We started work and blasting this [Monday] morning following a meeting held with the department of minerals and energy late last week," AngloGold Ashanti's spokesperson Joanne Jones said.

"The blasting will last for three days and then we'll meet again to determine the way forward," she said.

"The search for the missing miner has been very extensive," she added.

Due to the number of public holidays, production losses were not as serious as they might have been, Jones said.

An immediate search was started on April 25 when Adriaan Olivier (40), failed to return to the surface at the end of his shift.

The search on the 68 level where Olivier had last been seen proved unsuccessful and the mine's emergency call-out procedure was activated.

This entailed a mine-wide search, with blasting halted to ensure the safety of rescue efforts.

The Great Noligwa Mine was situated near Orkney in the Free State.

Sapa

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