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ZMDC Manager up for abuse of office

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ZMDC Manager up for abuse of office

ZMDC acting general manager was yesterday thrown under the bus by a witness in the ongoing abuse of office trial involving $168 000.

The witness, Garikai Chimhina is the corporation’s former acting general manager who yesterday told Harare regional magistrate Hosea Mujaya that the two accused persons Luke Akino and David Murangari gave their former colleague Thomas Mashungupa the job at Jena mines without following due process.

The State led by Micheal Reza led evidence in the form of emails that were exchanged within the corporation comparing the dates as to when Mashungupa was on site at Jena Mines.

“The first email to be received was from Akino’s secretary on October 10, 2017, that informed us that Mashungupa was set to make a presentation of his project at Jena Mines despite the fact that he had already commenced work at the mine without applications from other interested consultants.

“In fact, he had already moved in on site as in the email from the corporate and legal secretary T Chiparo which indicated that not a single consultant had been contacted besides Mashungupa and the draft contract was being circulated in a bid to legalise the illegality,” said Chimhina.

The witness further told the court that Akino only wrote an email to another consultant referred to as Mushangari which sought the turnaround plan quotation of the work at Jena mine, despite the fact that Mashungupa had already started work there.

He also indicated that there were queries raised with regards to the relationship between Mashungupa and the mine management who had worked together at the Bindura Nickel mine prior.

“I made a comment in the email on December 20 on the relationship between Mashungupa and the mine management which needed immediate intervention as it was insensitive to the mine needs, the project manager was arrogant.

“A fellow ex-co member Retired Colonel Lawrence Gondo also echoed my sentiments that Mashungupa was already making decisions and was no longer a consultant but was, in fact, the project manager as he was implementing the turnaround plan for Jena Mine,” said Chimhina.

The matter was remanded to today for continuation.

Luke Akino is appearing with his alleged accomplice former chairman David Murangari facing criminal abuse charges in which it is alleged that the duo corruptly awarded a $168 000 consultancy services contract to their acquaintance Thomas Mashungupa. H-Metro

1,4Mil debt haunts Msipa

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1,4Mil debt haunts Msipa

THE late former Midlands governor Cephas Msipa’s son, Cephas Mandlenkosi Msipa, has been hauled before the High Court by a local coal mining company, NR Barber (Pvt) Ltd, over a US$1,4 million debt accumulated four years ago.

NR Barber (Pvt) Ltd, which is under judicial management of one Antioch Kurauone, recently filed summons against Msipa, who operates a company called Coal Producers and Processors Trust of Zimbabwe. Msipa is yet to respond to the lawsuit.

According to the court papers, the coal mining firm provided mining services to Msipa’s company, also known as Kondo Mine in Hwange sometime in 2015. Msipa later breached terms of the agreement, prompting the miners to approach the court for recourse.

NR Barber further indicated Msipa failed to pay the invoices as they were raised upon being due, adding that since his default, the amount raised continued to accumulate, hitting US$1 400 000.

According to the firm, it then approached Msipa, demanding payment, alleging at one point he signed an acknowledgment of debt note, though he still reneged on his promise to pay.

Associated Tyres – Technical strength gives us the edge

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Associated Tyres – Technical strength gives us the edge

Associated Tyres is a homegrown, Zimbabwean owned tyre distribution and service company that has been meeting the needs of the Zimbabwe market for nearly twenty years.

Associated tyres
Associated Tyres Van ready to deliver an assortment of tyres to a client in Harare

Associated Tyres’ team includes arguably the most experienced personnel in the country, and their highly trained staff members are on hand to offer the mining sector the best advice and range of quality products.

Their professional approach to delivering the goods, be it the actual tyres, the aftersales support, or the add on lines like made-to-order rims, truck and OTR repairs, survival tyre sealant or performance enhancement products like
Tyrfil (foam filling), has been a crucial factor in their success.

Associated Tyres (Pvt) Ltd is all about the heavy-duty workloads, offering value in its products and after-sales service to the agricultural, mining and transport sectors. Known for their tyre expertise, they offer an outstanding range of quality truck tyre brands like Pirelli, Formula, Kumho and budget brands Aplus and Double Coin.

The Associated Tyres service centre at 7th street in the Avenues, Harare

General, Continental (Mining Tyres), selected Michelin (OTR) and well known BOTO (OTR) fill the mining needs. Their farming clients choose from a great selection of European manufactured agricultural brands in Trelleborg, Mitas and Cultor. Our industrial tyres on offer are Camso, Trelleborg and Mitas. In addition, we offer rims, industrial rim conversions, an OTR tyre repair centre in Harare and Bulawayo and On-Site Tyre Management.

The brands Associated Tyres offers are all ably supported through direct factory supply relationships or through major brand offices based in South Africa. They ensure the mines are visited in conjunction with the principal brand
representatives to ensure the best possible after-sales attention. The stock of selected tyres is held locally or drawn
down from bonded warehouses to ensure competitive prices in RTGS or NOSTRO.

 

Customers getting served at the Associated tyres head office in Harare
Customers getting served at the Associated Tyres head office in Workington Harare

Associated Tyres branches and workforce

Associated Tyres has branches in Harare, Bulawayo, Mutare and a dedicated salesman in the Midlands to meet your needs. They have a fully accredited Rema Tip Top repair centre, based in Harare and another repair centre in Bulawayo. The technicians are Rema trained and certified, and rigorously follow procedures to ensuring they repair customer tyres to the highest possible standard. They offer on-site service, where their teams move onto mining sites to manage and control tyre performance and supply business owners with reports that assist in better tyre cost management.

The Associated Tyres’ Tyrfil factory, based in Harare, offers miners the choice of foam filling their tyres, particularly for underground mine applications, which not only improves safety from premature tyre failure but extends tyre life and reduces costs to the mine. As is their custom, their technicians are well trained to ensure a quality product is delivered on time every time.

They offer the supply of agricultural rims for tractor rim replacement and conversion, as well as cost-effective
replacement of OE rims and rim components for mining equipment, through international brand RIMEX. The technical staff is trained to correctly measure a rim to ensure the correct delivery of your rim orders.

Call Associated Tyres today and experience the professional and friendly service.

  • Visit Associated Tyres at 8 Portland Road, Workington, Harare, Zimbabwe
  • Telephone: (242) 620 809 / (242) 666 028 / +263 772 127 355 / 086 77 18 41 29/30
  • Website: http://www.associatedtyres.co.zw/

Mine Entra an opportunity to grow your business

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Mine Entra an opportunity to grow your business

Mine Entra is here again. As Mining Zimbabwe we will be exhibiting at this prestigious event from the 17th to the 19th of July 2019 and distributing the Mining Zimbabwe Magazine copies.

Our unique function is to link equipment and material suppliers with Mining industry’s key buyers who will come in droves to find suppliers, new products and services. This is equipment and service providers’ chance to expose their products and services to the Zimbabwe Mining Industry’s Premium buyers. We have discounted advertising rates to accommodate even the smallest suppliers. From as little as US$20 surely everyone is accommodated.

Our High-quality magazine will be distributed to everyone in attendance giving you an opportunity to create new business.

You may be an exhibitor also at Mine Entra, however, studies have shown that buyers are more interested in choosing from a variety of goods and or services. Our magazine is a platform that combines a variety of suppliers that gives audiences a wide pool to choose from and chances are high they will choose you. Our high-quality magazine also stays on shelves for a long time keeping your Advert visible for months even years to come.

Not only do we target Mine Entra attendees but we target everyone in the Mining Industry so as usual, our soft copies will be mailed to our 5000 + strong subscriber base, over 18 000 Social Media followers and the soft copy will be readily available on our website which is rated amongst top 60 Influential mining websites worldwide.

Zimbabwe’s most reputable mining, engineering, transport, building and construction exhibition

Having been in existence for a successful 24 consecutive years, the Mine Entra expo has built a solid reputation of providing an integral business and networking platform. Regarded as “the platform” for meetings, networking, and sharing of innovative ideas, the objective of the expo is to bring together the cogs that make Zimbabwe’s mining sector continue to move forward.

Last year from South Africa we distributed a significant number of copies at the Mining Zimbabwe Stand and it will be a pleasure to do it once more but this time-based in Zimbabwe.

You can contact us on +263 8644 276 585 or visit Timelison Media offices at 20 Claredon Circle Belvedere, Harare

Soldiers in court for stealing Gold ore

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Soldiers in court for stealing Gold ore

EIGHT members of the Zimbabwe National Army reportedly stormed Ceola Mine in Concession, Mashonaland Central province, last week and tried to disarm security guards before stealing gold ore valued at US$150 and fleeing in a military-issue vehicle.

According to Newsday,  The matter came to light at Concession District Hospital on Friday, where one of the soldiers was admitted after being mauled by guard dogs after failing to jump into their escape vehicle.

Shelton Marerwa (52) was remanded in custody to June 28 while on his hospital bed by Concession resident magistrate Ruth Moyo.

The State alleges that Marerwa, who holds the rank of captain, together with his seven accomplices, stormed at Ceola Mine and identified themselves as being from the President’s Office.

The soldiers, who were armed with three loaded pistols, demanded storeroom keys, alleging that the mine firearms had no licences and, therefore, ordered the security guards to surrender their firearms.

The guards resisted and fought back, before unleashing vicious dogs on the soldiers. The military men fled and left their captain behind, who had been injured in the tussle.

The accused stole a cellphone and some gold ore, before driving away in the military truck.

The soldiers dumped their getaway vehicle after it broke down only a few kilometres from the crime scene.

Police officers towed it to Mazowe Police Station, where it is currently held as exhibit. Source: Newsday

Female Gold Panners paying for sex in Shurugwi

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Female Gold Panners paying for sex in Shurugwi

OFFICIAL HIV/AIDS interventions need not target male gold artisanal miners alone because their female counterparts can also turn into “sex predators”, the National Aids Council has heard.

During a tour of the Midlands’s artisanal mining flashpoints including the small town of Shurugwi, officials were told the fight against AIDS need to be holistic and in seeking to reduce prevalence among informal miners, female gold panners are sometimes left out.

“When stakeholders come to talk about HIV/AIDS, they usually target male gold panners, forgetting that here we have women too.

“From my experience, I have seen that after spending two weeks underground the female artisanal miners do not care whom their next sexual partner is,” Condom Champion Tichaona Kwashira said during a recent National Aids Council tour of its HIV/Aids advocacy centres in Midlands.

“They will just target the next male available and demand sex and in most cases, no condoms will be available as women rarely carry condoms with them.”

He added: “In the heat of the moment, they (female artisanal miners) can also force anyone to have sex with them and also pay handsomely. Remember these are not sex workers but gold panners.”

Kwashira said in their interactions as point persons in the distribution of condoms, encouraging women to carry condoms is the new frontier.

“Sometimes they will tell you that if you have a condom, let’s use it, but if you don’t have, let’s indulge in unprotected sex.

“The wild mindset is common among female and male artisanal miners and also most of the time they will be drunk and they will only start thinking about using a condom after the act,” he said.

It was also learnt that while there are sometimes “short-term-permanent” relationships, these have also helped the spread of the pandemic given the propensity to drop the use of protection after a while before moving on to the next partner.

“When these artisanal miners have ‘permanent partners’ they drop condoms before they move to the next partner after some few weeks.

“But these relationships do not last and the unprotected sex becomes high among artisanal miners,” said another condom champion.

Recently, the government regularised the operations of gold artisanal miners in recognition of their contribution to the economy.

The move could open floodgates given the high rate of unemployment.

Along with these sex orgies and drug abuse, the artisanal mining sector has also become dangerous as rival groups move around with weapons such as machetes, catapults and spears to mark and defend territories. Source: New Zimbabwe

ZMF receives mining equipment in a US$2mil deal

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ZMF receives mining equipment in a US$2mil deal

THE Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF) has received mining equipment from Lifetouch International Investments under a US$2 million partnership that will see the entity playing a huge role in supporting small-scale mining in the country.

The latest deal is part of synergies that ZMF embarked on in a bid to capacitate small-scale miners who are faced with capacity constraints, all in a bid to boost gold production. 

Lifetouch International Investments is a cement manufacturer based in Redcliff, Kwekwe. 

The US$2 million deal saw the mining federation receiving the first batch of equipment on Tuesday last week. 

The equipment includes generators, compressors, stone crushers and jaw crushers. The company also pledged more support for the mining sector through the supply of more equipment, fuel as well spares. 

Receiving the consignment at the company’s cement plant in Redcliff, ZMF president, Ms Henrietta Rushwaya, said the equipment will go a long way in strengthening the gold processing centres that Government is setting up across the country. 

“This contribution comes at a time when we are setting up gold centres across the country. It will certainly go a long way in ensuring that the small-scale mining sector will increase production. The partnership will also go a long way in ensuring that our gold processing centres across the country are well resourced,” she said.

Ms Rushwaya said with such synergies, the gold production sector was confident of surpassing this year’s gold output target of 40 tonnes.

“By so doing, we are trying to increase gold production and as of now, we are confident that we will meet, if not surpass the 40 tonnes earmarked for 2019. 

“We are also trying to increase investor confidence in the country by proving that companies can come and invest in Zimbabwe and have such kind of partnerships with local companies,” she said.

Ms Rushwaya said ZMF was also in the process of erecting spare parts shops for gold mining equipment under the partnership. 

Lifetouch chief executive officer, Mr Don Wang, said the gesture was triggered by the realisation of the potential the small scale miners have in increasing the country’s gold production but lagging behind in the capacitation thereof.

“It is our pleasure to provide ZMF with mining equipment, and this is the duty that we should play in the development of Zimbabwe. We are focusing on the small-scale miners who have the potential but lack the capacity to produce. So, we partner with ZMF so that they can realise the full potential,” said Mr Don.

He said everyone in the country has a role to play towards the development of the country.

“We are also playing our role as a company towards the development of the country that we are in, that is Zimbabwe. Everyone has a role to play and we are leading by example that everyone should play a role,” said Mr Don.

Last month, ZMF entered another similar pact with Shurugwi based company Pabloz Investments and received equipment for use in the sector. Source: Chronicle

Vast a step closer to Diamond mining

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Vast a step closer to Diamond mining

Aim listed, Vast Resources has established a road map with all key stakeholders which will enable it to mine diamonds on the Heritage Concession in Zimbabwe.

This follows meetings that took place in Harare last week between Vast Resources senior management, the local community leaders and the parastatal Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company Ltd (ZCDC).

The agreements concerning the Heritage Diamond Concession will now be directly between the company and the ZCDC rather than the local community, but the local community will be maintained as a beneficial recipient of shared profits as per the original agreement.

Andrew Prelea, CEO of Vast Resources, comments:

“After taking part in the meetings last week with our senior management, the community chiefs and ZCDC, I am pleased to say that the timeline to closing the agreements will now be accelerated.  I plan to return to Zimbabwe shortly for what I hope will be the finalisation of the contractual terms, and also to establish the commencement of the project.

“This amendment to the structure of the arrangement should not only accelerate the process to commencement, but should also provide the company further opportunities to work with the ZCDC.”

Lungu threatens to fine miners

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Lungu threatens to fine miners

LUSAKA (Reuters) – Zambia will fine and break ties with mining firms that fail to operate according to the southern African country’s laws, President Edgar Lungu said on Thursday, escalating a dispute with India-listed Vedanta.

Vedanta is fighting Zambia’s decision last month to name a provisional liquidator to run its Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) business and is seeking international arbitration.

Zambia, Africa’s second-largest copper producer, says KCM has breached the terms of its licence.

Lungu said in a statement at a mining and energy conference in Lusaka that the government expected investors to operate within the confines of the law.

“Failure to do so will result in the government imposing sanctions and disengaging with the unwilling parties,” he said in the statement read out by Mines Minister Richard Musukwa.

Zambia’s Chamber of Mines said last month that 2019 copper output could be as much as 100,000 tonnes lower than last year because of changes to mining taxes.

Zambia plans to introduce a new non-refundable sales tax in place of Value Added Tax, despite criticism from mining companies.

Lungu disagreed with the Chamber of Mines’ predictions, saying the government forecast copper output would reach 890,000 tonnes by the end of the year, more than last year.

He said the government was ready for dialogue with miners, which account for 70 per cent of export earnings.

But he added: “The government will not take kindly to any form of arm-twisting on the part of industry with regard to meeting their obligations.”

South Africa gold mining continues to lose its shine

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South Africa gold mining continues to lose its shine

JOHANNESBURG – Gold production is on its longest losing streak in more than a decade.

Fresh from losing its status as continent leader to Ghana, South Africa’s gold industry suffered a further blow yesterday with output in the sector plunging 19.5percent year on year in April, dragging down production in the whole mining sector with it.

South African gold production has declined by more than 54percent since 2005, for reasons including increased depth of mining, less working time at the face due to greater distances from shaft infrastructure, declining grades, rising costs and stoppages.

René Hochreiter, a mining analyst at Noah Capital Markets, said the gold sector was fast approaching its sell-by date and that platinum, manganese and coal held more promise.

“If you add in total costs, including capex, most of South Africa’s gold production is loss-making. The resources are very deep and the cost of getting those resources is so high that it is not worth it,” Hochreiter said.

“I don’t see South African gold production reaching the kind of tons it did 15 to 20 years ago. Production will basically continue to decline because of the costs.”

Output in the sector this year was also harmed by the five-month strike at Sibanye-Stillwater gold mines by the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union and power outages that took place in the first quarter of the year.

Statistics South Africa said mining production shrank 1.5percent on a yearly basis in April with declined output in iron ore, chromium ore, nickel and building materials joining gold as the main negative contributors in the period.

Gains were recorded in copper, manganese ore, platinum group metals, diamonds and other non-metallic minerals sectors. On a monthly basis, mining output dropped by 2.3percent, following an increase of 4.2percent month on month in March.

Minerals Council South Africa chief economist Henk Langenhoven said gold production was unlikely to recover to its previous levels.

“Gold’s lower production was accelerated by the Sibanye-Stillwater strike action. However, the Minerals Council has been saying for a long time that more than 60percent of gold mines are marginal or loss-making and the fact that Sibanye is closing shafts is an example of the reality of this,” Langenhoven said.

FNB economist Matlhodi Matsei said although April’s print outcome spelt a weak start to mining production in the second quarter, the sector would like to see an improvement in the remainder of the quarter.

“Factors that are likely to support recovery include improved electricity supply compared to the first quarter, as well as some normalisation in gold mining production following the end of the protracted strike at Sibanye-Stillwater,” Matsei said.

“Nevertheless, the backdrop of cooling global activity and ongoing trade tensions present downside risks to this potential recovery.”

The mining and quarrying industry decreased by 10.8percent in the first quarter largely as the result of low production of coal, gold, iron ore and chrome ore. Together with manufacturing, trade and agriculture, the sector formed the biggest negative of the first quarter’s shock 3.2percent contraction.

Activity data this week showed that the manufacturing and trade sectors rebounded strongly at the start of the second quarter.

Capital Economics emerging markets economist Virág Fórizs said while mining figures for April were softer than expected, stronger conditions in the rest of the economy suggested that the second quarter started on a brighter note.

“Manufacturing output growth jumped to 4.6percent year on year in April, while retail sales rose by 2.4percent year on year. And measured on a month-on-month basis, the manufacturing and retail sectors also recorded stronger growth in April than in the first quarter. Taken together, the figures for April point to South Africa starting the second quarter on a firmer footing,” Fórizs said.

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