Mining ZimbabweLatest Mining News, Policy and Industry Updates

NORTON legislator Temba Mliswa has launched a scathing attack on Chinese nationals, describing them as bullies who have captured government and initiated grand looting of the country’s resources.

Speaking to journalists Wednesday, Mliswa said he wanted the Chinese to be shut out of Zimbabwe.

His comments were in reference to allegations of abuse and disregard for human rights against some Chinese nationals operating mines and other businesses.

Mliswa questioned why the Chinese who beat up Chief Chivero at tiles manufacturer Sunny Yi Feng in Norton were not arrested and how government, through the information ministry got to do propaganda for the firm.

“The Chinese have bullied us and our leaders have been captured by them at the of the day, that is the truth of the matter,” Mliswa said.

“They have left nothing for us, we have nothing, we are not a people, a Chief was beaten up, Chief Chivero was beaten up in that factory (Sunny Yi Feng) and the Ministry  of Information comes with propaganda facilitated for the Chinese who had beaten up the Chief and you do not comment on that. We are Africans, we have our culture and traditions, Mambo haarohwe and how can the whole nation keep quiet about that? I wish I was a strategist to some of these political  parties, my strategy would be simple, if I am in power i am keeping out all the Chinese,” he said.

Villagers in coal rich Hwange have allegedly been threatened with eviction from their own homes by some Chinese owned companies given the green light by government to commence exploration or mining in those areas.

A similar situation is obtaining in Murehwa where some Chinese companies are mining granite and in Uzumba where chrome deposits where discovered.

Mutare’s Dangamvura where residents are also up in arms with a Chinese mine granted permission to extract quarry in the Dangamvura mountain.

Added Mliswa: “So they have left us to be beaten up, we are abused, they do what they want. I am told  some of them have Zimbabwean passports, have you ever seen a Zimbabwean  with a Chinese passport?

“Is that corruption or what? How do they get Zimbabwean passports? Whether its through investment or what but they cannot outnumber the Zimbabweans voting at the end of the day and government must address this.”

The Chinese Embassy in Zimbabwe however told said those highlighting ills done by some of its nationals are only doing so as a campaign.

“Were it not for China’s funding support and the work of Chinese companies in ICT and power generation, even the statement in question would perhaps have to be scribbled down on a piece of paper, in a candle-lit room, and never find its way onto a functioning internet,” read the statement.

NewZimbabwe

LOCAL mining companies expect to increase mineral output this year on the back of firm international commodity prices, putting them firmly on course to achieving the country’s target of a US$12 billion mining industry next year.

For example, gold prices are expected to remain firm in 2022, with the yellow metal currently trading in the range of $1 700 and $1 800 per ounce.

Analysts see gold rising to $1 900 and above later in the year.

However, Chamber of Mines chief executive officer Isaac Kwesu says the projected good performance for the year was dependent on securing adequate power supplies and working capital.

“The prospects on the prices are very attractive but we have to take advantage of it by making sure that we are adequately prepared, we have adequate energy, and we have sufficient capital both open and working capital,” he said.

“It’s high time miners take advantage of those prices by producing more.” Kwesu said miners were prepared to do their best, and pledged sustained efforts to attain the $12 billion revenue milestone.

“But, it requires concerted efforts from the Government and private sector to meet this target.

The operating environment must be conducive and it must be able to sustain operations as well as expand while also enabling new investors to come on board,” he said.

In 2019, Zimbabwe launched the strategic roadmap to achieve an ambitious US$12 billion mining industry target, as part of the overall plan of transforming the country into an uppermiddle-income economy by 2030.

Under the US$12 billion mining roadmap, gold is expected to contribute US$4 billion, platinum US$3 billion, while chrome, iron, steel, diamonds and coal will contribute US$1 billion.

Lithium is expected to contribute US$500 million while other minerals will contribute US$1,5 billion.

Commenting on current capacity utilisation, Kwesu said: “It varies from one mineral to the other, but the average, when we take into account different levels of utilisation, I think it is well above 70 percent but some minerals are below 60 percent while others such as platinum are at 100 percent,” said Kwesu.

To support mining sector growth, Government last Friday announced that miners would now pay up to 50 percent of their taxes in local currency, a move welcomed by the miners.

The mining industry, which is the largest earner of foreign currency, is critical to Zimbabwe’s economy.

New Ziana

Namibia aims to fast-track the development of its first oilfield to have production by 2026 following a significant offshore discovery by Shell, a senior energy official said on Monday.

Shell on Friday said the exploration well off the coast of the southern African country had shown “encouraging” results with the presence of a working petroleum system with light oil.

“If we do this within the next four years that will be excellent for us, so as the Namibian government we have pledged our commitment to the joint venture team to walk hand-inhand with them . . . to ensure we expedite the field development so that we can produce as quickly as possible,” Maggy Shino, petroleum commissioner at the Ministry of Mines and Energy, said in the first official comments from the government since Shell’s announcement.
Shell’s Graff-1 well was drilled deep offshore in water of more than 5 000 metres.

Shino said it was too early to provide exact volumes of oil encountered at the Graff-1 well or whether the new discovery was sufficient to be a standalone project or will require further exploration in the area.

TotalEnergies is currently drilling another well, Venus, in a nearby block. Shell did not provide details on the size of the resource.

In recent years interest in Namibia’s offshore prospects has attracted many foreign companies including Exxon Mobil following discoveries in neighbouring South Africa as well as Brazil and Guyana, which share geological similarities. 

Reuters 

CHINESE company, Freestones Mines yesterday started engagements with Mutare residents, who have been resisting its quarry mining project in the eastern border town.

Residents were opposed to the project after it emerged that the Mutare City Council had leased a 6,5 hectare stand situated on Dangamvura Mountain to Freestones Mines.

The residents had threatened litigation to stop the mining operations.

In an interview with NewsDay after the meeting, Freestones Mines Company spokesperson Njabulo Chipangura said the company wanted to allay residents’ fears.

“As Freestones Mines, we have done all procedures to start quarry mining, but we have to make sure that we have fully engaged Mutare residents over the issue,” he said

“We did not have a chance to really engage and state our position on how we are going to carry out the quarry mining and how the Dangamvura and Mutare residents are going to benefit from this project.”

Residents had demanded the relocation of the Chinese miner to a new site far away from residential areas and water distribution pipes.

“The mining is going to be environmentally-friendly. The blasting will be done through modern technologies, in terms of the environmental reclamation. We are going to assist in the regreening of the Dangamvura project,” Chipangura added.

Freestones director Ruoxin Qi said they were not a mysterious company.

“We are confident that we are going to work well with our communities. We are not a mysterious company,” he added.

Mutare City Council said everything was under control following stakeholder engagements.

Newsday

SOUTH African President Cyril Ramaphosa has been dragged into the on-going fight between government and the Friends of SMM Holdings (Pvt) Ltd (FOSMM) over the hostile takeover of the asbestos mine in 2005.

Government placed SMM Holdings under judicial management through the Reconstruction of State-Indebted Insolvent Companies Act in 2005.

The Reconstruction of State-Indebted Insolvent Companies Act was acceded to by the late former President Robert Mugabe to reportedly protect SMM, formerly owned by Zimbabwean businessman Mutumwa Mawere, against legal action and attachment of the company’s property by local and foreign debtors.

SMM administrator Arafas Gwaradzimba then approached South African, Zambian and United Kingdom courts in a bid to recoup SMM monies allegedly siphoned into the neighbouring countries by SMM directors, in particular Mawere.

The matter spilled into South African courts and FOSMM dragged Ramaphosa to the High Court last year challenging the extra-territorial application of the law in South African courts.

In response, Ramaphosa allegedly refused to sign his answering affidavit to the application, preferring that the South Africa principal State law advisor Godfrey Mphaphuli, who is a legal advisor in his office, acts on his behalf on the matter.

In his answering affidavit on February 1 this year, Ramaphosa confirmed authorising Mphaphuli to depose the answering affidavit in September last year.

In his letter to Ramaphosa dated February 7, 2022, Tawanda Mupasiri, the FOSSM public policy director, said: “I have taken time to familiarise myself with all South Africa litigations and inescapable conclusion is that absent the complicity of the South African judiciary … The reason I am writing this letter is that the stance you have taken in relation to the FOSMM application when properly construed has the effect of undermining the rule of law in Zimbabwe by fortifying the position that a law like the Reconstruction of State-Indebted Companies Act can be recognised and enforced as law, at all.”

Mupasiri has also dragged President Emmerson Mnangagwa to the Zimbabwean High Court challenging government’s appointment of Gwaradzimba as SMM Holdings administrator.

“You may not be aware that my application under section 167(2(d) and section 167(3) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe is a quest to make President Mnangagwa accountable for his refusal and wilful failure to act following my letter of November 9, 2021 bringing to his attention the serious and scandalous allegations made against him by his confidante and lawyer, Mr (Edwin) Manikai.”

“Notwithstanding the damning allegations, that President Mnangagwa was the key driver of the project to divest and deprive a South Africa citizen of Zimbabwean heritage, Mawere, of his property in South Africa using false information, Mnangagwa has engaged Mr Manikai’s law firm, DMH Attorneys, as his legal advisers.

“It is worth highlighting that Mr Manikai has opposed my application although I do not seek any relief against, but included him in the matter solely to allow to assist the court with evidence of his state of knowledge of how the idea to use public power to undermine the rule of law was conceived and prosecuted with impunity, not only in Zimbabwe, but in South Africa, Zambia and the United Kingdom.”

Mupasiri challenged Ramaphosa to address whether the reconstruction and enforcement of the Reconstruction Laws in South Africa was consistent with the promise entrenched in its Constitution.

In October last year, FOSMM authorised Janice Jody Greaver to take legal action against Ramaphosa compelling him to rectify the breach of the South African Constitution, the Cross Border Insolvency Act, Sadc Protocol and Treaty and international law for allowing Gwaradzimba to represent SMM in South African litigation.

FOSMM trustees argue that Gwaradzimba had failed to obtain the leave of the court, in recognising and enforcing the law that offends public policy.

The organisation also dragged Ramaphosa to the High Court in Johannesburg over his appointment of Mphaphuli to respond to its application.

Mupasiri’s letter comes shortly after South African businessman, Cleopas Sanangura, petitioned the courts seeking reprieve over adverse rulings made against SMM in the South African legal jurisdiction.

Newsday

Over 200 Redwing Mine workers yesterday marched against judicial management attempts to reinstate Betterbrands Mining Company (BMC) under unclear circumstances.

In an unprecedented move, workers said they prefer Metallon Gold while resisting efforts by the Interim Corporate Rescue Practitioner (ICRP) Knowledge Hofisi to re-impose opaque BMC mining operations at Redwing.

In a fiery exchange with Hofisi at the premises yesterday, workers flatly told the ICRP that a tributary agreement was contrary to the standing resolution to remove Redwing Mine from the corporate rescue plan in September 2021.

Redwing workers’ legal advisor Reynos Gumbo is also in the eye of the storm, for allegedly handpicking a committee, led by Peter Zheke, which agreed to secretly grant exclusive rights to Betterbrands.

Inside sources revealed that Betterbrands legal advisor Allan Masiya, chaired the clandestine meeting on 13 January 2022, where the resolution to reinstate suspended tributary agreements were made with a compromised workers committee.

“The committee resolved that Redwing operations would commence immediately upon the handling of the mining claim and those operations would not be hindered or interrupted as a way of giving Betterbrands comfort and security for its investment,” reads part of the amended agreement.

Inside sources at the mine revealed that workers have petitioned the Supreme court to disengage from corporate rescue, whose judgment was reserved on 31 January 2022, with suspicions over the court outcome.

“Creditors agreed to cancel tributary agreements, while remaining under judicial management, and hunt for new investors. Surprisingly, we have seen the return of this dubious investor that we voted against.

“Workers are not aware of the new terms of the amended agreements with Betterbrands, which also elbowed out local partners like Prime Royal that we worked with before.

“Our fears are that the courts could be compromised because already our own legal advisor is supping with Betterbrands and the ICRP is not listening to our pleas,” said a worker who requested anonymity.

Hofisi is accused of failing to facilitate the fulfilment of an agreed dispute settlement structure where a formal investor would partner a consortium of local firms Prime Royal, Betterbrands and Properdeck.

Efforts to get a comment from ICPR, Hofisi proved fruitless at the time of going to press.

The workers, represented by the Associated Mine Workers Union (AMWU) are pressing for the implementation of the resolution to move out of judicial management, with a petition of the same submitted to the Ministry of Labour.

Initially a tributary agreement was signed between Prime Royal and Redwing mine in 2018, to empower local youths, before operations were stopped for failure to produce an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).

Betterbrands, took over operations until November 2021 when the tributary mining operations were halted in the wake of an exposé by Centre for Research and Development (CRD) of ongoing chaotic mining operations.

Further, a general creditors resolution passed on 9 September 2021, also voted for rescission of post commencement agreements in line with Section 144(2) of the Insolvency Act.

Civic society organisation monitoring natural resources governance say the political syndicates are circumventing the resolutions through court processes, and even forced through amendments to the initial 6 year tributary agreement.

Centre for Research and Development (CRD) , a local natural resource governance organization, has unearthed unsustainable mining operations, environmental damage and social impact in Penhalonga.

James Mupfumi, CRD director, commenting on the current fracas said the government is missing an opportunity to nip unsustainable mining operations and curb illicit trade of gold.

“What is obtaining at Redwing is the subversion of institutions meant to safeguard the rights of workers and community by politically driven cartels of mineral looters.

“Operations of gold barons at Redwing have proved beyond doubt that they are a worst case of tax evasion, mineral smuggling and human rights abuse.

“It should be in the government’s interest to allow for responsible investors with the capacity to rejuvenate production at the mine,” said Mupfumi.

263chat

MINES minister Winston Chitando has been accused of grabbing eight gold mining claims belonging to businessman Yakub Ibrahim Mahomed and re-issuing them under a special grant to Golden Reef Mining (Pvt) Ltd, where he is a director.

Mohamed, who owns Anesu Gold (Pvt) Ltd, filed a High Court application seeking to interdict Chitando, Mines secretary Onesimo Moyo, Golden Reef Mining, and Midlands provincial mining director Tariro Ndhlovu from grabbing the mining claims.

Mohamed claims that Anesu Gold is the registered owner of the gold claims in Mberengwa district, Midlands province, which are also referred to as Mangoro claims (Ipanema).

The matter was set for hearing yesterday, but High Court judge Justice Rogers Manyangadze postponed it to February 24 at the request of Chitando’s lawyer, Takudzwa Mutomba who indicated that the minister, together with Moyo and Ndhlovu had secured the services of a new lawyer, Lovemore Madhuku who was tied up elsewhere.

Welshman Ncube is representing Golden Reef Mining while Advocate Tawanda Zhuwarara is representing Anesu Gold.

In his application, Mohamed said the mining claims were previously owned by, and registered in the name of Start Mining Services (Private) Limited, where he initially had a 70% stake with the other 30% owned by Rugare Gumbo.

Mohamed said he later bought out Gumbo and now owns 100% shareholding of the claims.

It is alleged that in 2018, Chitando sent invoices for Start Mining Services to pay mining fees for the claims.

Fidelity Printers approved that US$6,4 million must be paid to finance the applicant’s operations, including the payment of the inspection fees for the mining claims.

“This arrangement had the approval of the governor of the Reserve Bank and the permanent secretary of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development. Fidelity gave the facility on the strength of clean and unencumbered mining claims following a due diligence process,” Mohamed’s court affidavit read.

He said the certificates of registration of the mining claims were handed over to Fidelity in February 2019 followed by a due diligence exercise.

However, he said he was shocked to learn that a special grant had been issued, and his claims forfeited.

Mohamed also alleged that in 2012, Gumbo approached Chitando, before he became Mines minister, asking him to invest in the mining claims but Chitando refused.

Around 2014, Mohamed then invited prominent businessman Shingi Mutasa to invest and he showed interest, but insisted that due diligence checks be done.

Mutasa and Chitando chartered a small plane and flew to inspect the mining claims in loco. After the checks, Mutasa allegedly did not take up the offer.

“Although Mutasa did not come on board, Chitando’s team and himself, had all the data and information of the juicy areas of the mining claims,” Mohamed submitted.

He said Anesu Gold secured an investor from Australia who agreed to form a joint venture, after the investor was assured by Chitando and Ndhlovu that the mining claims were clean and unencumbered.

“It would be the investment’s saddest day if this country is to send an investor back to Australia under these circumstances. This should not be allowed if transparency is to be the order of the day.”

Mohamed said Chitando was a director of Golden Reef  and shareholder through his company Windev Investments (Pvt) Limited, adding that the decision to forfeit the mining claims was “wrongful, unlawful, malicious, illegal” and motivated by greed.

But Gold Reef argued that Mohamed and Anesu Gold had no legal right to bring the case before the courts.

“The invoices for payment of inspection fees were issued to Start Mining Services and not applicant. Forfeiture made reference to Start Mining Services as the holder of the mining claims being forfeited,” Gold Reef director, Thomas Gono said.

“Accordingly, hence it is submitted that if any of the mining claims belong to applicant, no lawful and accurate procedure, as prescribed by law, was followed to change names on certificates of registration after transfer. Equally the fact that Minister Winston Chitando’s company Windev Investments is a shareholder in first respondent has no material bearing on how applicant lost mining rights over mining claims in question.”

Gono said there was nothing illegal about Chitando being a director or shareholder in a certain company, adding that the mining claims in question were forfeited two months before inspection fees were paid, meaning that the applicant had defaulted.

In his opposing affidavit, Ndhlovu said Anesu Gold was invoiced for payment of already overdue inspection fees, adding that the mining claims were forfeited in terms of section 260 of the Mines Act.

Newsday

CEMENT manufacturing company PPC Zimbabwe has invested US$37million towards a 30 mega watts solar project as it seeks to mitigate power challenges that have been hampering production.

The company operates a clinker plant in Gwanda District at Colleen Bawn where 20 mega watts of solar powered electricity is set to be installed while Cement Siding which is the milling plant situated on the outskirts of Bulawayo is set to be installed with 10 mega watts of solar generated power.

With the country’s national grid falling short of electricity supply coupled with vandalism such as theft of cables, power outrages have affected production in a number of sectors including mining and manufacturing.

The installation of the solar system come not only as a mitigatory measure but the system is rapidly becoming a mainstream alternative energy source in the world.

Solar energy comes with a number of advantages that include less service disruption, reduced electricity bills, increase in value of energy-efficiency, renewable energy, reduced carbon emission as well as low maintenance costs amongst other advantages.

PPC Zimbabwe managing director Mr Kelibone Masiyane told Sunday Business last week at the company’ Cement Siding plant, that the project was part of the company’s efforts to scale up production.

“Next month we will have a ground breaking ceremony to set up a solar plant in our Collen Bawn plant. We are talking about a 20 mega watts solar plant. Here in Bulawayo we will set up a 10 mega watts plant. So these are efforts coming from our side in terms of complementing Government efforts. We have a lot of power challenges.

As we speak, this plant was down for the last four days due to power cuts. So what we are doing is to try and complement what government has been doing,” he said.

The development will not only scale up production but will come in handy for the nation as surplus energy will be fed into the national grid.

“We have injected US$37m towards the project. Our plant in Colleen Bawn uses only 13MW while the one in Bulawayo uses only 5MW hence the surplus will be fed into the national grid,” said Mr Masiyane.

Meanwhile, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Industry and Commerce Dr Mavis Sibanda describedthe development as one of the signs that industry is keen to grow.

“Companies have shown that they are putting more resources into production and that is very interesting. As you can see here at PPC they are putting a solar plant which means that the issue of electricity which has been mentioned by a few other companies will be dealt with.

People are not only waiting for the Government to come and help them, they are also investing in green energy like the PPC,” said Dr Sibanda.

The development will see increased local production of cement as well as the continued trajectory of increased manufacturing capacity utilisation to over 61 percent, according to estimates from industrialists.

The Sunday News