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Protests near Amplats' mine in S.Africa not hitting output-company

JOHANNESBURG, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Community protests near the Mogalakwena mine operated by South Africa's Anglo American (LSE: AAL.L - news) Platinum have not affected production despite the fact that most employees have been prevented from getting to work, the company said on Wednesday.

"The protests are not affecting production. But we are operating with a skeletal staff because the roads are being blocked," Amplats' spokeswoman Mpumi Sithole said.

She (Munich: SOQ.MU - news) said the protestors were demanding jobs and the company was "engaging with the communities to try and reach a resolution."

In the first six months of this year, Mogalakwena, in South Africa's northern Limpopo province, produced just over 200,000 ounces of platinum, about 18 percent of group output.

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The mine is a mechanised operation which does not require as large a workforce as a conventional mine.

Community protests - which often turn violent - are common in South Africa's mostly black townships, reflecting popular frustration with a lack of jobs or poor government services such as the provision of roads and housing.

Amplats said on Wednesday it has sold its labour-intensive South African Rustenburg mine to bullion producer Sibanye Gold (Other OTC: SBGLF - news) for 4.5 billion rand ($331 million) to focus on newer and more mechanised sites. (Reporting by Zandi Shabalala; Writing by Ed Stoddard; Editing by James Macharia)