Zimbabwe agreed to waive requirements that
Impala Platinum (Implats) transfers majority stakes in two of its mines to
black citizens of the country, the company said on Thursday.
Implats
won’t be required to ensure that its Zimplats unit or Mimosa joint venture,
which operates separately, are 51% owned by locals because of other measures it
is implementing, said CEO Nico Muller.
Zimplats,
Zimbabwe’s top platinum producer, has sold 10% to employees and is concluding
an agreement to sell an additional 10% to communities, Muller said. The
producer will get government credit for the remaining 31% from helping to
develop local industries and small businesses, he said. The same model will be
applied on the Mimosa mine, which it jointly owns with Sibanye Gold.
"At the
moment we don’t see it as a threat at all," Muller said in an interview.
"The equity stays. Instead of transfer of ownership, we are achieving that
through business development in Zimbabwe. We have agreed on that with the
government."
Zimbabwe has
scrapped requirements that majority ownership of mines be reserved for locals
for all minerals other than platinum and diamonds. The nation has the world’s
second-biggest platinum reserves and producers also include Anglo American
Platinum, the world’s top supplier of the metal.
Platinum and
diamonds are key exports for an economy that halved in size since 2000 after a
chaotic and violent land-reform programme slashed shipments of tobacco, corn
and roses. Zimbabwe also holds substantial deposits of gold, chrome, lithium,
coal and iron ore.
"So far
as equity transfer is concerned, we are done, we are comfortable," Alex
Mhembere, Zimplats CEO, said. "Getting credits, we are well ahead on that.
The law is not a big threat anymore and I don’t think its going to be any
different in rest of platinum industry."
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