00:00Andre Dealer is wondering how he's going to make ends meet.
00:07We have to pay for water, electricity and waste collection. That requires a job. It's tough.
00:13Until recently, he worked at the Coniambo Nickel Plant, once one of the world's largest Indigenous owned mines.
00:20More than 1,200 people lost their jobs when the site began shutting down last year.
00:26People are in the s**t. I shouldn't say it like that, but there are no more jobs. It's very difficult.
00:32Jean-Louis Djidjapac is one of the handful still working here.
00:39It's sad. It impacts your conscience because you're used to seeing people around the site and now there's no one.
00:45Nearby, buildings and businesses that used to service the plant are abandoned.
00:51We had a normal occupancy rate of 50%. Then, when it shut down, vacancy jumped to 100%.
01:00The mine and its operations had a political significance too.
01:04Partly to help the local Indigenous Kanak population become more economically independent from France.
01:11They wanted to establish a factory in the north to help with reducing inequalities.
01:17Many are talking about branching out to other enterprises, but replacing nickel is a long-term challenge.
01:24Nickel production employs about a quarter of the New Caledonian workforce.
01:28The shutdown has come at a particularly challenging time for New Caledonia.
01:32The territory's economy is still reeling from violent protests over its political status with France.
01:39People are doing what they can now, despite an uncertain future.
01:43I raise pigs and then I give what I can to my family. That's community life.
01:50I'll say escut九n impediment.
01:59That's a truly dedication to the city of Spain.
02:02Well dah!
02:07There wasn't any problems with you in general.
02:10Like that this thing, I could call a young person as a heads-to-boyfriend.
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