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| - Electoral violence in Ivory Coast has caused the owners of the country's first bauxite mine to halt production, its boss said on Wednesday. The mine, located in the Moronou region, in the central east, had begun operations only last year, said Moumouni Bictogo, chief executive officer of its concessionary, Lagune Exploitation Bongouanou (LEB). But unrest sparked by the October 31 presidential elections has forced the company to stop production, he said. "The mine has halted output since August, when the political demonstrations began," he told AFP. "We were scheduled to produce 300,000 tonnes (of bauxite) with a turnover of five billion CFA francs ($9 million / 7.6 million euros). We haven't produced a single kilo (pound)." The mine is a centrepiece of Ivory Coast's ambitions to wean itself off dependence on agricultural commodities. The 13,000-hectare (32,000-acre) site holds an estimated 245 million tonnes of bauxite ore, the raw material for aluminium. But it lies near two opposition strongholds -- Daoukro, a bastion of 86-year-old former president Henri Konan Bedie, and Bongouanou, where there is strong following for ex-premier Pascal Affi N'Guessan. Both opposed President Alassane Ouattara, the 78-year-old incumbent, in last month's elections. Violence flared in August when Ouattara declared his intention to bid for a third term in office -- a plan that opponents said was illegitimate. Ouattara had earlier vowed to bow out of office but reversed course after his preferred successor suddenly died of a heart attack. In submitting his candidacy, he argued that a 2016 revision of the constitution had reset the two-term limit on presidential tenure to zero. At least 85 people have died in ethnic-tinged clashes since then, around 15 of them in Daoukro and Bongouanou. "The mine has been the target of attacks," said Bictogo. "The gatehouse was set on fire and trees were cut down multiple times to block access roads. But we have saved the rolling stock," he said. "We hoped to be scaling up to peak output in 2020, but unfortunately a succession of incidents has braked our objectives, especially sales to foreign refineries," he said. The mine's payroll, currently 200, had been scheduled to rise to 1,250 on the basis of production of 100,000 tonnes of bauxite per month. Bictogo said he still hoped to resume production this month, "provided the roads to the port of Abidjan are reopened and made secure." Abidjan, Ivory Coast's economic capital, is 200 kilometres (120 miles) away. Ivory Coast has abundant mineral treasures, including gold, diamonds, iron, nickel, copper and manganese, as well as bauxite. But mining accounts for only five percent of gross domestic product in an economy still dominated by cacao and coffee. The authorities have vowed to prosecute several opposition leaders for allegedly "plotting against state security," accusing them of fomenting violence. Political tensions eased, however, after Ouattara and Bedie, who are long-standing rivals, met on November 11 for the first time since the elections. ck/pgf/ri/erc
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