Defold Mine (Private) Limited is positioning itself for a new phase of growth and value creation as it moves beyond a three-year period of governance consolidation, financial pressure and significant institutional change, Mining Zimbabwe can report.
By Rudairo Mapuranga
Presenting the Group’s performance and outlook for the 2023, 2024 and 2025 financial years at the combined Annual General Meeting, Acting General Manager Wilfred Tanyanyiwa outlined a strategy centred on strengthening Defold’s existing investments, improving cash generation and building a more focused mining portfolio.
The forward-looking strategy comes after a challenging period for the Group, which saw it navigate Zimbabwe’s currency transition, exchange-rate volatility, weaker commodity markets and significant pressure on its financial position.
Tanyanyiwa said management was now focused on restoring sustainable profitability while supporting the shareholder’s Mining Cluster restructuring strategy.
A key part of the approach is to extract greater value from investments already held by the Group, rather than relying solely on new projects.
Management plans to improve cash generation from existing investments, strengthen oversight of subsidiaries and transition towards commodity-specific mining verticals.
The strategy points to a more focused operating model for Defold, with greater attention being placed on the performance of individual businesses and their contribution to the wider Group.
The Group’s institutional transformation has also created a new platform for this approach. Defold moved from the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development into the Mutapa Investment Fund (MIF) portfolio during the period under review, bringing a stronger emphasis on performance, accountability and value creation.
Board Chairman Onesimo Mazai Moyo described the period as a movement from governance consolidation towards strategic transformation.
The transition has been accompanied by the completion of historical audits and efforts to strengthen the Group’s governance and oversight structures.
Defold has also continued to develop its mining and processing interests. During the review period, the Group reported the commissioning of Phase I of the Kamativi Mining Company lithium processing plant, adding a value-addition dimension to its portfolio.
The developments are taking place against the backdrop of Zimbabwe’s broader push to increase mineral beneficiation and derive greater value from the country’s natural resources.
Defold’s three-year financial performance, however, demonstrates the scale of the task facing management.
The Group returned a profit before tax of ZWG$541.9 million in 2024 before moving into a ZWG$258.7 million loss before tax in 2025, with weaker diamond prices and the suspension of diamond sales between June and September 2025 contributing to the deterioration.
Despite the setback, the Group’s total assets increased by 27.8% to ZWG$2.142 billion in 2025, reflecting continued investment in its asset base.
Management is now seeking to translate that asset base into stronger and more sustainable cash generation.
The strategy also places greater emphasis on subsidiary performance, with closer oversight expected to help Defold identify underperforming assets, unlock value from existing investments and strengthen accountability across the portfolio.
The commodity-specific vertical approach could further allow the Group to develop clearer strategies around its different mineral interests, rather than managing its portfolio through a broad, undifferentiated mining structure.
For Defold, the next phase is therefore less about simply weathering the difficult operating environment and more about converting the institutional and governance changes of recent years into measurable operational and financial value.
Tanyanyiwa said the immediate priority was restoring sustainable profitability, while the longer-term objective remained the creation of a stronger and more focused mining investment platform.
The combined AGM provided shareholders with a three-year account of the challenges Defold has faced, but also set out management’s intention to use the restructuring period as a foundation for renewed growth and value creation.
