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MAB, Ownership, Empowerment, CSR, highlighted Mines Bill inaugural hearing

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MAB, Ownership, Empowerment, CSR, highlighted Mines Bill inaugural hearing

The issues to do with the Mines Affairs Board (MAB), Ownership of mining titles, Empowerment of local people and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) highlighted the proceedings at the inaugural Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill public hearing held at New Ambassador Hotel in the capital on Monday.

Rudairo Mapuranga

Stakeholders in the mining industry who submitted their proposals for inclusion in the mines and minerals amendment bill were in agreement that the amendment of the current mining law was long overdue, however, the amendment of the law should be in support of native Zimbabweans past, present and future to ensure holistic benefits the country’s God-given resource.

Commenting on the proceedings of the public hearings Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Mines and Mining Development Chairperson Hon Edmond Mkaratigwa said he was encouraged by the quality of contributions of Stakeholders in the sector specifically on Ownership, Empowerment, and CSR.

“I’m encouraged by the turnout of Stakeholders Representing various groups in the mining sector, a lot of others in their individual or family trust capacity. I am also encouraged by the quality of contributions that came from the Stakeholders. To mention first are the issues to do with an empowerment model that ensures access by locals and the ownership of the mining claims by locals.

“And coupled with the empowerment, there is a strong view that while we have opened the sector for international investors to participate in our local market, we should actually, raise the bar in terms of the entry point, the threshold for any international player to come and participate in mining. They should not restrict themselves, for example to a standard mining block, maybe they should be given more than five blocks and they should be employing a minimum of 500, employees. So that they contribute significantly to our economy and they should be credible. They should pay taxes. The next, item of discussion that came out to be topical, is corporate social responsibility (CSR). What participants want to see is good infrastructure development, for example, roads, clinics and other support, infrastructure in our communities. Not only that is to be rendered by mining houses so much that the communities are going to give social license to any contribution by this foreigner.

“They also want to see the vulnerable that is, women, and the disabled participating in one way or the other in mineral exploration extraction and the value addition and beneficiation.

“There are so many issues I cannot finish them, but what I must say is, we need to see if a strong law is being enacted at the moment, a law that will defend, a law that will intensify the mining sector, a law that will regulate the mining sector, a law that will ensure that we manage and distribute equitably our resources that we are endowed with as a country and to wrap it up as an issue and we encourage conversations to allow around the participation of employees in the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development right now. The restriction they are not allowed to participate in any mining activities. They should not own any mining claims and you are saying as we, recur or as we amend this law, we also want to draw an analogy from what other Ministry officials, for example, in the agriculture sector they are allowed to what extent to own, land for agricultural purposes while they are involved in regulating that sector and those in the midst of environment, for example, who get involved in tourism and safari operations. So we’re saying our law should be fair, but we look at the views that are coming from the public not from us as a committee,” Hon Mkaratigwa concluded.

Chairperson for Artisanal and Small-Scale Miners Association (ASSA) Mr Blessing Togarepi objected that the Mines Affairs Board (MAB) be removed from the bill saying that it will slow down the processing of mining claims.

“Currently, there is slowness when it comes to the issuance of mining titles when the MAB is not involved, involving the mines affairs board will even slow down the process. As a sector we would want the MAB scrapped from the bill and give its duties to the PMDs,” Togarepi said.

Mining Consultant Nyasha Magadhi said that the MAB should be given the power it currently has in the current Mines and Minerals act and maybe take some powers to ensure that its decision to the signing of Exclusive Exploration Licence (EEL) and Special Grants (SG) be final but should not be given the power to determine who pegs, what mining claim and under what circumstances.

“We want the MAB to maintain their powers, we do not want them to be involved at whatever cost in the pegging and allocation of mining claims, it’s not and will never be their duty.

“We however want them to have the power to sign EEL and SGs on behalf of the President,” Magadhi said.

Aleck Chimhofu of Brentwood Chambers (Rusinahama-Rabvukwa Attorneys) said that the Bill should look into the Ownership of land and ensure that mining does not dispose land owners from enjoying their rights through giving mining precedents over other land uses.

“We would have expected the new bill to address for example when we pick section 241, it is introducing a provision which seeks to give an order to the owner of private land to sell their land or to dispose the land to a miner and basically what that provision would entail is that it is an erosion of the private ownership of land. It is an invasion of the rights to private property. We can’t have a law which promotes an erosion of a proper right which is enjoying the constitution because we are given this right by the constitution. Looking at section 13, subsection 4 of the constitution which says members from the local community should benefit from the natural resources which are found in their communities,” Chimhofu said.

The Chairperson of the National Gemstone Miners Association Walter Kawara said that it was of paramount importance for locals to benefit from resources found in their communities. He said that it was important that minerals like lithium and copper be removed from being classified as strategic minerals.

“We have copper and lithium everywhere in this country, and it will be a disadvantage to communities if these minerals are classified as strategic because what it means is that the communities will be relocated from the minerals they should benefit from only for a foreigner to enjoy.

“We want locals to be able to mine lithium and copper anyhow because these minerals are easy to mine, foreigners can therefore come for processing,” Kawara said.

Nothing strategic about Copper, Lithium – Kawara

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Nothing strategic about Copper, Lithium – Kawara

There is nothing strategic about the mining of base minerals namely copper and lithium due to their vastness and easy extraction, National Gemstones Miners Association (NGMA) Chairperson Mr Walter Kawara said.

Rudairo Mapuranga

Speaking at the inaugural Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill public hearing held at New Ambassador Hotel in the capital on Monday, Kawara said the issue of strategic minerals should be looked into as making other Minerals strategic will lead to a situation where the country will only benefit from employment and taxes while the rest of the minerals will be siphoned away through fancy words like Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

“The Chinese are coming and digging in people’s farms, the country is being defrauded by corruption. The law of strategic minerals should prioritize the local people. The local people should be the ones to mine minerals like lithium and copper. This law should look into communities, the government should educate locals on mining strategic minerals. There is nothing strategic with copper and lithium. People should register and mine these minerals. The (strategic) should come to the processing part of these stones. Mining copper and lithium is very easy.

“The strategic minerals are being mined by foreigners and the locals will only benefit from taxes which is ridiculous. Mining fees should differ from foreign to local people.

“Let us prescribe laws that will protect the rights and interests of Zimbabweans,” Kawara said.

Under the Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill Copper, lithium, nuclear energy source materials, rare earth minerals, diamonds, gaseous hydrocarbons and nickel have been classified as strategic.

The Government has also directed that on applications for inspection certificates, the applicants should submit a declaration of the amount of work carried out on mining claims as well as a declaration of minerals contained in the ore body being mined.

ZCDC CEO suspended

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ZCDC CEO suspended

Reports reaching Mining Zimbabwe say the Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr Mark Mabhudhu has been placed on suspension by the board.

It is not clear why Mabhudhu has been suspended although reliable sources claim its politics at play.

Mabhudhu managed to turn around the ZCDC from a loss-making entity since its inception in 2016 to one that has made a profit for the years 2021 and 2022.

This is a developing story…

Boltgas evolving into a trusted brand in the sub-region

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Boltgas evolving into a trusted brand in the sub-region

BOLTGAS, a leading supplier of engineering solutions, is evolving into a trusted brand across the central and southern African region where it continues to secure mandates – one after another – to implement high-profile projects from some of the African continent’s household names.

Having started operations nearly two decades ago, Boltgas has not only managed to dominate the Zimbabwean market but has successfully extended its reach into several markets in the sub-region as the company prepares to stretch its influence into the rest of the Eastern African region, before going all the way into North Africa.

Currently, Boltgas has two mega projects that are up and running in neighbouring South Africa, and in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

To the south of the Limpopo River, Boltgas has established a solution centre in what is undoubtedly Africa’s largest economy to make it easy for its sales force to service their clients given South Africa’s strategic location to coastline borders of the Indian Ocean to the south-east and the Atlantic Ocean to the south-west.

About the solution center Matthew Sibanda, the CEO of Boltgas had this to say: “We source from leading brands in steel products, filtration hydraulics, mineral processing, ground support, materials handling and transmission technology, etc., and distribute their quality and customised products and services to our valued customers to ensure that they enjoy an uninterrupted service all-year-round. By listening to our customers and understanding their operational challenges, we are able to provide solutions and supply chain reliability to help them enhance their productivity.”

In the DRC, Boltgas landed a contract to design and construct a sulphuric acid leach plant for one of the major mines in Katanga Province. Work on the projects is already in progress and expected to commission end of May 2023 Boltgas has been involved in the region since the late 2000s, with some of its projects having been finalised in Mozambique, Botswana and Zambia and South Africa, coal gasification project for Eskom and Leaching agitators for Crossing Uranium Mine in Namibia.

In Zimbabwe, the company has participated in a number of contracts, amongst them the establishment of a power separation plant and substation for ZimChem Refineries; the construction of a gantry and pipework for Polyoak Packaging and the design and installation of the Wattle Company’s conveying system and incinerator, Murowa Diamonds 14km pipeline, Mimosa Platinum Mine 1mw mine ventilation extraction fan

At the Pretoria Portland Cement, otherwise known as PPC, Boltgas was involved in the upgrade and maintenance of the company’s dust extraction system, while they have been responsible for the installation and maintenance of the Zimbabwe Platinum Mines’ dust bags and dust extraction industrial filtration solutions.

Boltgas started off in 2005 as a supplier of engineering services and solutions in design and detailing, structural steel works, plate works, pipe works, plant refurbishment, rehabilitation and maintenance, site works, fabrication, machining, installations, etc. The business has evolved over the years into a total provider of engineering solutions that enable their clients to keep their plants and machinery up and running to enhance their top line through reduced downtime and increased productivity.

Boltgas’ coverage extends to every inch of the country and has now taken their brand across the borders, as they push harder to being a pan-African provider of engineering solutions.

Not so long ago, they acquired National Metal Foundries in Bulawayo, opening the group to many possibilities in the engineering field. The acquisition has enabled Boltgas to diversify into National Metal Foundries’ core business of manufacturing cast-iron, aluminium, bronze and brass from scrap metal as well as general engineering, and taking the products across the length and breadth of Zimbabwe as well as into the sub-regional markets.

In addition, the engineering arm of the group went through a successful restructuring after going into a joint venture that gave birth to Boltrec Engineering whose mission is to provide customized engineering solutions that satisfy stakeholder needs. Boltrec now stands shoulder-to-should with the world’s best as a reputable engineering company designed to harness custom-made engineering solutions for its clients through formulating various synergies with industry leaders.

A proudly Zimbabwean company, Boltrec provides total engineering services and solutions in structural steel works, fabrication, precision machining, crane services, line boring, plant maintenance, installations, commissioning and training, component building, facilities maintenance, draughting and design, brick and paver moulding, project management as well as engineering skilled labour hire.

Interview: Marc Nicolle, Dallaglio Investments CEO

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Interview: Marc Nicolle, Dallaglio Investments CEO

In 2021 a company brought back to life a Mine that had shut down 20 years back breathing life into the otherwise lacklustre town of Mashonaland Central Province of Zimbabwe. There was a rebirth of hope as hundreds of men and women solidified their place as breadwinners after securing employment with Dallaglio Investments’ Eureka mine. As many were preoccupied with the pleasant development little did they know Dallaglio was already a major gold player running another popular Chegutu-based asset, Pickstone Peerless Mine.

Mining Zimbabwe sat down with the man responsible for Managing the company’s overall operations Mr Marc Nicolle who is the company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to learn more about the organization’s operations and its plans for the future. This is how the intriguing exchange with the 41-year-old Mining executive went.

Can we have a brief background about yourself and how you ventured into mining?

Marc Nicolle grew up in Gwanda, the home of Caledonia’s Blanket Mine. My family has been there since the late 1890s and in a gold mining town, mining was always adjacent and part of life. I really enjoyed chemistry at school and I wasn’t sure what to study, I did some assessments and then ended up studying chemical engineering. Chemical engineering then led me to a processing career in the mining industry.

What is Dallaglio’s strategy when it comes to mining growth and development in Zimbabwe, are there any plans for the company to add more Mines to its portfolio?

There is definitely hunger from our shareholders and from the management to grow the business but we want to grow the business in a very responsible way. There is evidence across the world of companies that do too much too soon. We want to be very credible and all of our results today talk of that credibility. Pickstone Peerless was a big step and was an expansion step for a group of shareholders that came together in 2012, they invested in 2014 and brought Pickstone back online in 2015. In 2018 with the success of Pickstone’s rebirth, that same group acquired Eureka which was a dormant asset and brought that back online in late 2021. The group continues to look for opportunities to grow but we want to do that from a strong balance sheet perspective, from a very credible production perspective.

Pickstone Peerless Mine is currently moving from open pit mining to underground as well as adding heap leaching, how is this development going to increase production at the Mine?

Eureka Gold MinePickstone underground will increase the grade that we can feed our mills, it is harder ore and because it’s harder ore it means we will have to increase milling capacity at Pickstone as well in 2023. That higher grade will increase our production to an average of about 80 kgs per month with underground online from the current 40 – 50 kgs per month that we have from the open pit material. The heap-leach is a project that we will detail more in 2023 and we will be looking to make an investment in 2024 if the numbers come back positive, they are however currently looking good for us. With Heapleaching we expect an average of 30 kgs to 40 kgs on top of the 80 kgs per month.

Eureka Mine is currently conducting open-cast mining, are there any plans to go underground?

There is a potential to go underground. We have over 800 thousand ounces in the underground portion of the Eureka ore body, that’s an orebody that we find 650 metres below the surface. Our plan is to mine the first 300 metres on an open pit, the balance is possibly mineable from underground. That planning is also on the radar to be defined in 2023 and early 2024 with the potential on the outcome of that coming to our business plan through 2024. It will take a significant time and investment to get underground at Eureka, our view at the moment is that it will add to the life of the Eureka asset in time.

Eureka has arguably the best CIL plant in Africa. What inspired you to develop such a plant and has it been rewarding vs current production?

All credit for that CIL plant needs to go to one of the founding shareholders, Mark Evans. Mark Evans is an incredible individual and we are lucky to have him as a team. He has pulled together through many suppliers a design for that plant and has delivered it at a wonderful level. Chemics in South Africa were the suppliers of a significant portion of the design, local company Brown Engineering manufactured the tanks on sight from Harare. The local Zimbabwean engineers that we hired did a significant job of putting that CIL plant together.

Does Dallaglio have plans to promote small-scale Mines through knowledge exchange and giving out mining tributary arrangements?

Dallaglio already has some other mining tribute arrangements. They are community-based arrangements that keep the communities around our mines aligned to our objects but also give them an opportunity to make an income.

In the next few years, what are Dallaglio’s plans in terms of investment specifically in Pickstone Peerless and Eureka Mine?

Pickstone Peerless Mine
Pickstone Peerless Mine

At Pickstone we are very excited about Pickstone underground which is in the old Pickstone Trent and it’s down to 5 level. We have Pickstone underground phase 2 which is from 5 level down to 14 level. An investment into that deepening of the Pickstone mining front is very exciting for us. In addition to Pickstone 500 metres North, we have the Peerless trent. Peerless is another ore body that we mined from the open pit. Peerless as a wider ore body from our experience of mining it from the surface, we are doing some conceptual work to see how best to mine that at underground.

At Eureka, we have the beginnings of the underground as we spoke earlier, so we have that portion below the open pit down to the bottom of drilled resource that is open at depth to consider for underground mining. In addition to that we have done some test work on ore sorting, layser ore sorting has shown good potential to upgrade the grade of ore fed to the mills which will allow us to mine faster and achieve quick returns.

As the world is going green there seems to be a global lithium rush. Are there any plans for Dallaglio to diversify and potentially get into Lithium mining?

Dallaglio InvestmentsAt this stage, we don’t have plans to diversify into lithium mining. We have our hands very full at Pickstone and Eureka realising the value that we can see. It’s not to say that if the right opportunity comes we will not consider it.

Zimbabwe is generally relegated as a risky investment destination. As a company operating here, what are your comments on the experience?

I’m a Zimbabwean and I’m very proud to be back in Zimbabwe applying my trade, my skills and leading fellow Zimbabweans in making this country what it can be. I understand the international community’s view of Zimbabwe simply because capital in mining is hugely scarce and it must chase a good return. My experience on being back is that there is a willingness from the government and all stakeholders to make it work but it must work in a way that is good for everyone. It must work for communities, it must work for the government and it must work for the investor and I think that the ubuntu aspect of Zimbabwean mining is something that once we can adopt, we will see a very positive change. My experience has been positive, there have been decades of under investments in the mining industry and those decades produce many opportunities.

What is the current production level and are there plans to ramp up?

In 2022 we averaged 160kgs per month, in 2023 we hope to grow that in terms of a double-digit percentage.

How have you (at Eureka) managed to be one of the top gold producers in the country while mining a low-grade gold deposit?

We achieve over 93 per cent gold recovery at Eureka. Our attention to detail in that mining operation allows us to quickly manage costs.

What is your employment policy at Eureka Mine i.e. in terms of employment of the local community?

In general, at Dallaglio, we want to be the employer of choice in the community. Our approach is to look from the local community to supply people to our mines. As I mentioned before, growing up in Gwanda the community of a town is amazing if it is contributing to the local industry. That said though, we have a very high need for top skills, mining and doing mining well require excellent professionals. We will therefore look for those skills in general and deploy them to our mining sites. But I will give you a good example, our group Processing Manager Obert Chiyangwa is from Guruve, our group treasury is also from Guruve.

There is a presence of GRANODIORITE rock which is well known for being extremely hard and tough. How are you handling this rock and managing costs at Eureka?

When you mine it is much more cost-effective when you blast correctly in the pit. So, our first port of call is to blast it in the pit. We blast it correctly in the pit we then move to crushing. Crushing is also effective for us, to date we have that particular process under control.

Are u doing in-house mining or contract mining? If it’s contract mining, how are u managing the contractor?

We are doing contract mining. Our General Managers on both sites are mining engineers and both have a wealth of experience in open-pit mining. We through the General Manager’s structure have a mining technical service team that does mining planning. We then have a Mining Manager who oversees the contractor implementation of our mine planning. So one person defines the recipe and the other cooks the cake and through that, we manage our contractors well.

What is the confidence level in the Eureka Mine Resource Model? What measures are in place to ensure that there are no surprises in the Life of Mine Plan as a result of flaws in the resource model?

The confidence level in the Eureka Mine resource model is high, it’s the highest in our group. We have taken data that was gathered by previous owners. We reassessed that in a geological structural model. From that definition of the structural model we then took the grade data within the confined structural model, the model is Jorc compliant.

What would you want to see change in Zimbabwe Mining?

We are sitting on an asset that can be world-class (Zimplats has proven this over a decade). When we are able to free up some of the funds that come into the country. If a business can deploy capital and then get a good return on it, our industry can grow significantly. Our ability as Zimbabwe to produce at an international scale will be visibly incredible. I do understand the history I do understand the need to balance what we have at the government level but I think if we will be going at any boom at the moment, the boom will be like Copperbelt DRC.

Besides the Mining business whats Marc Nicolle into?

Marc is a father of four, happily married to his wife Sophia. I live a very fulfilling life with my children. Im into cricket which I enjoy very much, I enjoy hiking so Domboshava has been a feature. I enjoy good conversations with good people, it’s always nice to talk to people.

Miners and trucks swallowed in deadly Chinese coal mine collapse

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Miners and trucks swallowed in deadly Chinese coal mine collapse

A surveillance camera has captured a coal mine collapse in China’s Inner Mongolia region earlier this week, an incident that saw at least six people killed, six injured and left 47 missing, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

The footage showed the moment the mine collapsed as miners and trucks were swallowed amid evacuation efforts on Wednesday.

State media reported that the collapse at the open-pit mine in Inner Mongolia’s Alxa League left a pile of debris roughly 500 metres across and an estimated 80m high.

Hundreds of rescuers with backhoes and bulldozers dug through tons of earth and rubble on Thursday as the search for the for 48 missing people continued.

Six people had been pulled alive from the mine in Inner Mongolia by 10:30pm on Thursday, local time, state media reported.

Li Zhongzeng, head of the town of Alxa League, said the rescue mission was difficult due to the threat of more landslides, and rescue plans include layered excavation and trapezoidal descending methods from both sides of the mountain, CCTV News said on Friday.

Conditions in the area remain dangerous, and the search had to be suspended for several hours because of a second landslide at the gigantic facility.

On Thursday afternoon, more than a dozen bulldozers, trucks, SUVs and fire engines were seen passing through a remote police checkpoint about 25 kilometres south-west of the mine.

Nearly all personnel were stopped by police and checked for entry approvals before being allowed to proceed along the road leading to the mine.

Security was also tight at another checkpoint in the neighbouring region of Ningxia, 15 kilometres east of the mine, with dozens of officers inspecting every vehicle that sought to pass in either direction.

Cranes and other pieces of heavy equipment could be seen, along with covered trucks.

Police detain people over collapse

Rescuers used heavy digging equipment and cameras that could snake down into the debris, along with thermal imaging technology and equipment to detect vital signs, the head of the rescue operation, Chang Zhigang, told reporters.

Crews were using extreme caution to avoid more secondary disasters, Mr Chang said.

“We will continue to increase the rescue force, race against time, and do our best to search and rescue the lives of every trapped person,” he said.

Police are investigating the cause of the collapse and some people have been detained.

“We will publicise the result of the investigation in due course,” Mr Chang said.

The initial cave-in of one of the pit’s walls occurred at about 1 pm on Wednesday, local time, burying people and mining trucks below in tonnes of rocks and sand.

It was followed about five hours later by the additional landslide, forcing suspension of the rescue work.

China’s official Xinhua News Agency said about 900 rescuers with heavy equipment were on the scene and they had resumed the search by Thursday morning.

Inner Mongolia is a key region for the mining of coal as well as various minerals and rare earths that, critics say, has ravaged the region’s landscape of mountains, grassy steppes and deserts.

The mine, once underground, was converted to an open-pit operation in 2012, according to state media.

It had suspended production for three years before restarting in April 2021, state media said, without specifying the cause of the closure.

China overwhelmingly relies on coal for power generation, but has tried to reduce the number of deadly mine accidents through a greater emphasis on safety and the closure of smaller operations that lacked necessary equipment.

Authorities ordered mines in several major mining regions to conduct safety inspections after the Alxa League accident.

See Video below

ABC/wires

Have your say on the Mines and Minerals bill HB 10, 2022

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Have your say on the Mines and Minerals bill HB 10, 2022

Have your say in the Mines and Minerals bill HB 10, 2022

CLICK HERE

Gold buying prices Friday 24 February 2023

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Gold buying prices Friday 24 February 2023

Fidelity Gold Refinery (FGR) official gold buying prices Friday 24 February 2023.

SG 90% AND ABOVE US$55.77/g
SG ABOVE 85% BUT BELOW 90% US$54.89/g
SG ABOVE 80% BUT BELOW 85% US$54.30/g
SG ABOVE 75% BUT BELOW 80% US$53.71/g
SAMPLE BELOW 10g BUT ABOVE 5g US$52.83/g
FIRE ASSAY CASH US$55.77/g

NB: Fire Assay cash price is for gold above 100gs and no sample is deducted.
For the Fire Assay Transfer price, a sample of not more than 10g is deducted
A 2% royalty is charged on all deposits (small-scale miners)
A 5% royalty is charged to Primary Producers

Cash available. Fidelity Gold Refinery prices will be changing daily in relation to world market prices.

Government speaks on strategic minerals

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Government speaks on strategic minerals

Government has allayed fears that declaring certain minerals strategic under the proposed Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill would scare away potential investors who might view their investments as not being safe.

Mines and Mining Development permanent secretary, Mr Pfungwa Kunaka on Thursday told the Edmond Mkaratigwa led Portfolio Committee on Mines and Mining Development public hearing on the Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill in Bulawayo that the government is merely safeguarding the natural resources from being exploited without the country benefiting.

He told participants that under the bill, nuclear energy source materials, mineral oils, lithium, diamonds, rare earth minerals, copper, gaseous hydrocarbons, coal and nickel have been classified as strategic.

“What we are looking at is a development where we have other investors coming in into gas and oil, something that was not there.

“Lithium was not as popular as it is now. As a Government, we want to safeguard the minerals which are strategic and the areas they are located,” said Mr Kunaka.

He said the mineral classified as strategic has become the top of the range globally and much sought after.

“No-one should panic, we are doing this responsibly,” he said “We just want to do it responsibly and ensure that benefits accrue to the nation and not just the company prospecting and mining.”

Making special reference to diamonds which are part of the strategic mineral category, he said the Government was to prevent a 2010 scenario where the precious gem was exploited with little benefit to the fiscas.

He said if a miner discovers a rare mineral in his or her mining claim, they should notify the Government. However, that would not mean they would be pushed out of the mining claim.

Instead, a workable strategy or partnership will be put in place.

“This provision is important for us as a country and let’s safeguard these new areas that are strategic,” he stressed.

The bill defines a strategic mineral as any mineral deemed strategic by virtue of its importance to the economic, social, and industrial or security interests of Zimbabwe.

As such, if the minister of mines, after consultation with the Mining Affairs Board, deems that any mineral is a strategic mineral, he or she, with the approval of the President, shall by order published in the Gazette, designate such mineral to be a strategic mineral and may, in like manner, revoke such declaration.

The declaration order may apply to the whole of Zimbabwe or to any specified part and may be made for a definite or indefinite period of time.

It adds that any person wishing to mine such a mineral may only obtain a special mining lease or special grant.

The bill further says before obtaining such special mining lease or special grant, the person concerned must enter into an agreement with the Minister concerning on the formation of a company or other special investment vehicle in the name of which the special mining lease or special grant shall be held, and in which the State has a defined interest or stake.

Its adds that there will be  special conditions as may be agreed with respect to the exploration, exploitation, marketing or beneficiation of the strategic mineral and safeguards for the sake of environmental protection, and the stakeholdership, if any, to be given to the community of the area in which the strategic mineral is to be mined

The designation of a mineral as a strategic mineral does not operate so as to prohibit the exploration for that mineral if such exploration is done independently of its exploitation, or is not done as a preliminary step to its exploitation.

Government to establish base minerals processing hubs

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Government to establish base minerals processing hubs

The government of Zimbabwe through the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development and the Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe (MMCZ) is working towards creating base minerals value addition and beneficiation hubs to ensure that small to medium-scale miners benefit from their mineral output.

Rudairo Mapuranga

Speaking at the Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF) Base Minerals Stakeholders Workshop held in Harare yesterday the Minister of Mines and Mining Development Hon Winston Chitando said the government was aiming at capacitating small to medium miners to ensure that they get the real value of the mineral that they are extracting.

The Minister said after the government restricted the export of base minerals ores, it was important for the government to establish hubs that will capacitate the miners in terms of market, capital and beneficiation.

“We have witnessed a significant increase in the production of various base minerals and as government we have seen that it is important we come up with hubs to capacitate our miners,” the Minister said.

Minister Chitando also said that the government was inviting investors from across the country and the world to invest in mineral processing since the government was not going to back down on its stance to ban the export of unprocessed minerals.

“We also need investors who can come in and fill in the place of how we can process the ores,” Hon Chitando said.

According to the MMCZ General Manager Mr Tongai Muzenda, the hubs will be looking towards bringing value to the country’s small to medium miners.

“MMCZ and the Ministry are working towards creating hubs for various base minerals including chrome, lithium so that we can put them in one place and then buy them from our small scale and medium miners at a fair price,” Muzenda said.

Speaking at the sidelines of the event ZMF President Ms Henrietta Rushwaya said the government was going to identify areas with an abundance of base metals and establish hubs that will ensure that the whole country benefits from its God-given resource. She said the creation of the hubs is in line with the government’s thrust to achieve an upper-middle-income economy by 2030.

“We will create hubs in areas where the mineral is in abundance and those hubs will be used to enable that the biggest benefit at the end of the day will be the small scale producers and the government will also benefit through royalties and as such will be able to contribute significantly towards the country’s GDP. Once we beneficiate the commodities, it will benefit the small-scale miners tremendously, especially given the background that our labour will get to tap from the skills that they are going to acquire from those that are coming to set up the plants in the country. Our battery producers have been benefiting from our markets. And once we have local markets being the ones that are going to generate whatever has been imported, it will enable the country to cut down on its expenditure, especially given the fact that we rely mostly on imports and given the current scenario where the country is actually under the gruelling effects of sanctions. We are able to generate foreign currency and we are able also to import equipment which we will now need for the continuation of production as a sector. And also once we are on that one, our small-scale miners are actually going to be the active participants in revenue generation when it comes to getting the products being produced here and exported from here and also being done by locals at the same time,” Ms Rushwaya said.

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