Colombia’s largest coal miner, Cerrejon, said Sunday that rebels have broken into the mine’s premises in the north of the country and burned down several of the companies’ trucks.
“In the dawn of Sunday February 24th, 2013, the company was victim of a terrorist attack with explosives carried out by unknown persons against the equipment located in the South Mine sector, Oreganal pit. As a result of such terrorist action no human losses were caused, but 4 trucks that were parked as a consequence of the strike that has affected the company for 17 days were seriously damaged,” the company said in an online press release.
The coal giant “strongly rejects this terrorist action against the company, which causes considerable economic and moral damage to the company,” it said.
Cerrejon, the owner of Colombia’s largest open pit mine, has frequently been victim to attacks by rebel groups like the FARC and ELN, that increasingly have changed their military strategy to violently disrupt the country’s oil and mining industry.