Commitment is measured in times of hardship.
On 28 November 2025, despite the critical and worrying situation faced by the SMSP Group and its subsidiaries, employees gathered for the 25th time to honour and remember those who lost their lives on 28 November 2000.
On that day in 2000, SMSP’s management team perished in the tragic crash of their helicopter at Chefao, in the tribe of Kouergoa (Boulouparis municipality), as they were travelling to Nakéty for work.
Aboard the aircraft were then-CEO Raphaël PIDJOT; Mine Director Jean-Pierre GASTALDI; Technical Director Jean-Pierre LAPOUS; Finance Director Régis VIVIER; two consultants from Falconbridge, Pierre THOLLOT and Robert GARDINER; and their pilot, Jean-Marc DALMASSO.
The tragedy left a deep mark not only on SMSP, but on New Caledonia as a whole. It also profoundly affected the members of the Kouergoa tribe, who were the first to reach the scene and discover the victims.
Simon, an elder from Kouergoa, recalls being in his field when he heard the dull thud of the crash—“like an explosion,” he says, his gaze distant and filled with pain.
Since that day, every year on 28 November, residents of Kouergoa and volunteers from SMSP and its subsidiaries gather to walk to the crash site and honour the memory of the men who died in those rugged mountains.
Claudine, one of the women of the tribe, remembers: “At first, there were only a few of us. Then more people from the tribe began to join.”
Today, the Kouergoa 28 November Association coordinates the commemoration together with SMSP, its subsidiaries, and the Widjè Committee—volunteers from the group and its companies who have formally organised themselves. Over the years, the event has become an annual gathering for the group, a moment of sharing, connection, and a reminder of SMSP’s purpose: to serve the country.
This year, the situation facing the SMSP Group—already under Safeguard mode—is particularly worrying. The NMC site in Nakéty had been closed for 18 months before reopening, while the Kouaoua site has been shut down since September 2025. Cotransmine is facing equally severe challenges. In South Korea, our subsidiary SNNC is grappling with fierce competition from low-cost Indonesian nickel ore and ferronickel, produced with little regard for communities or the environment. KNS, meanwhile, has remained in cold standby since the 1st of September 2024.
Despite this context, SMSP, its subsidiaries, the Widjè Committee, the Kouergoa tribe, and the 28th of November Association were determined to maintain the event.
Nearly 150 people—employees, families, and relatives of the victims—gathered in Kouergoa on the 28th of November 2025 to walk up to the hut erected at the crash site.
The commemoration, akin to a pilgrimage, is a moment where effort and perseverance bring people together. Each participant—employees, families, the broader community—walks at their own pace, sharing stories and support. The atmosphere is warm and inclusive, bringing together the youngest and the oldest. Along the trail, Sonia and Audrey could be seen each carrying their child on their shoulders—a moving symbol of shared and transmitted memory. Henri and Marcel from Cotransmine, who will retire on the 8th of December after more than 20 years with the company, were also present—role models for all and a testament to the enduring bonds within the group.
The day began at 8 a.m. with the arrival of the first participants. The PIDJOT clan, family of one of the victims, opened the ceremony with a traditional greeting, followed by SMSP’s greeting to the Kouergoa tribe and its customary authorities.
The group then departed—first by car convoy to the entrance of the trail, then by foot, to the crash site.
The Kouergoa tribe had prepared a buffet meal, warmly welcomed by participants – who may have left sweat on the steep slopes of Kouergoa – but returned home with renewed determination in spirit and stride.
The event wrapped up at 5 p.m. with a farewell gesture, before everyone set out for home—from Kouergoa to Nouméa, from Kouergoa to Nakéty, Koumac, and even further. A journey from the farthest corners of the country to feel closer, tomorrow, to one another.
Thank you to the Kouergoa tribe, congratulations to all participants, and see you next year!
