From newsday.co.zw
13 Feb 2013
Original source
THE government has repossessed over 27,000 hectares of land from the country’s top platinum miner, Zimplats, with immediate effect.
This comes as the State moves to reclaim idle claims in a bid to court new investors, Mines minister Obert Mpofu said yesterday.
Mpofu told a Press conference that the repossessed claims were enough to accommodate five big investors, amid disclosures the platinum mining firms were holding on to the land for speculative purposes.
The figure represents nearly a tenth of the size of Harare. The measure, according to Mpofu, will extend to all mining companies under-utilising their claims.
“As the sole regulator and promoter of the mining industry in terms of the mines and Minerals Act (Chapter 21:05), the ministry is focusing on the creation of real opportunities and investment space by making more land available for new investments, attracting new players into the industry and acting on excess and unutilised ground,” Mpofu said.
“This will be done through reviewing all mining rights deemed to be in excess. To that end and following protracted discussions on the release of excess ground, my ministry is taking a step forward to repossess excess ground from Zimplats measuring 27 948 hectares.”
Mpofu said the claims would be up for grabs using an approved indigenisation model compelling foreign-owned companies to sell 51% to black Zimbabweans. Zimplats, a unit of South Africa’s Impala Platinum, has already complied with the country’s empowerment law.
“We have seen that the current model at the diamond companies with ZMDC holding 51% or more shareholding is viable and we could see that in the new platinum ventures, of course with the approval of the indigenisation ministry,” he added.
Zimbabwe has the second largest known platinum reserves in the world after South Africa.
THE government has repossessed over 27,000 hectares of land from the country’s top platinum miner, Zimplats, with immediate effect.
This comes as the State moves to reclaim idle claims in a bid to court new investors, Mines minister Obert Mpofu said yesterday.
Mpofu told a Press conference that the repossessed claims were enough to accommodate five big investors, amid disclosures the platinum mining firms were holding on to the land for speculative purposes.
The figure represents nearly a tenth of the size of Harare. The measure, according to Mpofu, will extend to all mining companies under-utilising their claims.
“As the sole regulator and promoter of the mining industry in terms of the mines and Minerals Act (Chapter 21:05), the ministry is focusing on the creation of real opportunities and investment space by making more land available for new investments, attracting new players into the industry and acting on excess and unutilised ground,” Mpofu said.
“This will be done through reviewing all mining rights deemed to be in excess. To that end and following protracted discussions on the release of excess ground, my ministry is taking a step forward to repossess excess ground from Zimplats measuring 27 948 hectares.”
Mpofu said the claims would be up for grabs using an approved indigenisation model compelling foreign-owned companies to sell 51% to black Zimbabweans. Zimplats, a unit of South Africa’s Impala Platinum, has already complied with the country’s empowerment law.
“We have seen that the current model at the diamond companies with ZMDC holding 51% or more shareholding is viable and we could see that in the new platinum ventures, of course with the approval of the indigenisation ministry,” he added.
Zimbabwe has the second largest known platinum reserves in the world after South Africa.
Chart from ABC Bullion
