New Caledonia has elected a pro-independence government, its first since 1999.
Pro-independence Kanaks protest the sale of New Caledonia s Vale nickel plant
Photo: supplied FB Instance Coutumière Autochtone de Négociation
The vote follows the collapse this month of the tenuous power sharing government led by conservative president Thierry Santa.
New Caledonia s 54 seat Congress has cast its votes for a new 11 member government.
The anti-independence coalition of loyalists, L Avenir en Confiance got 18 votes securing four ministerial portfolios and Caledonie Ensemble secured one portfolio with six votes.
On the pro-independence side, the combined Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS) and Pacific Awakening slate garnered 16 votes securing three portfolios and the National Union for Independence or UNI also secured three portfolios with 14 votes. Pacific Awakening is largely supported by constituents from Wallis and Futuna.
Indigenous Kanak leaders and pro-independence parties have supported a bid led by local company Sofinor they say has been unfairly disregarded by the processing plant’s owners and the French government.
Late week, Vale announced it had signed a binding agreement to sell the operation to an international consortium, Prony Resources, which includes a 25% stake from controversial Swiss-based commodity trader Trafigura.
New Caledonia is one of the world’s largest nickel producers, and the industry is critical to the territory’s economy, employing thousands and accounting for the vast majority of its foreign earnings.
The Goro plant owned by Vale is the world’s fourth-largest nickel ore producer and a key economic driver for New Caledonia, employing 3000 people. But it has had a difficult history, benighted by protests, arson attacks and environmental damage. It has also struggled to make money for Vale, despite millions in investment.