A fire has erupted at the Vale nickel mine site in New Caledonia, whose planned sale has been at the centre of recent disturbances.
Photo: AFP
The extent of the damage yet to be established and the cause of the blaze is not immediately known.
The site was closed after last week's riots but a building had caught fire, risking to engulf fuel stocks.
Reports said firefighters spent the night to contain the fire and protect the fuel and equipment .
Last week, the Brazilian owner of the plant signed a sale agreement with a new consortium Prony Resources, triggering protests by local chiefs and pro-independence parties, who object to a Swiss trading company being part of the consortium.
The territory-wide resistance to the Vale sale has continued with opponents still blocking access to all the mines of the SLN company.