Platinum producer Lonmin says its planning to close or mothball several mine shafts, putting 6 000 South African jobs at risk, because of depressed metal prices.
Lonmin said it would shut its Hossy and Newman shafts, which would also decrease normalised annual production by about 100 000 platinum ounces.
The company added that it would put a number of other shafts on care and maintenance, some of which are currently managed by contractors.
Platinum's spot price is at 6 -1/2 year low at less than a thousand dollars an ounce, while power and labour costs in South Africa have risen sharply.
Lonmin employees about 37 000 people, including contractors and like its peers it has been battered by a steep fall in platinum prices in the last year.
Meanwhile, the National Union of Mineworkers said it was extremely shocked at the news.
NUM's chief negotiator at Lonmin Erick Gcilitshana says they were only informed about this on Thursday.
He said they were going to fight against any job losses.
Gcilitshana said this drastic action would leave thousands of mineworkers in a dire straits adding that the high number of retrenchments will add to the country's high unemployment rate.
