COPPERBELT Energy Corporation says the revocation of SI 33, which banned the use of foreign currency in local transactions, will help expedite sourcing of finances for the Kapombo Hydropower project.

Copperbelt Energy Corporation managing director for operations, Owen Silavwe, said revocation of Statutory Instrument 33 would ease some of the challenges the company was facing in building the 40 megawatts hydropower plant. He said the revocation of SI 33 came as a “huge relief” as several challenges pertaining to project implementation were mitigated.

“From our side, it has come as a big relief – not just for Kabompo but for also CEC,” he said.

The government last month revoked the Statutory Instruments 33, which prohibited the use of foreign currency for domestic transactions while SI 55 empowered the Bank of Zambia (BoZ) to monitor inflows, outflows and international transactions.

Silavwe stated that bureaucratic hindrances had slowed CEC’s plans to invest in the vast hydropower potential in Luapula Province.

“What you have got on the Luapula river is the number of potential sites that you can develop, and the consultant basically tried to come up with an optimal way of developing those sites,” said Silavwe.

Source: Mining News Zambia

A JOINT venture company where Copperbelt Energy Corporation ( CEC) has 50 per cent shareholding has acquired 60 per cent interest in the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company that supplies power to over 10 million people in Nigeria.

KANN Utility Limited is a joint venture company between CEC Plc and XerXes Global Limited and was confirmed as the preferred bidder to acquire Abuja Electricity Distribution Company ( AEDC) in November 2012 following rigorous international bidding process.

According to information released by CEC Plc yesterday and also posted on the Lusaka Stock Exchange ( LuSE) website, the consideration payable for the 60 per cent interest in Abuja Electricity Development Company ( AEDC) is US$ 164 million, out of which 25 per cent ( US$ 41 million) is payable within 15 days of signing the agreement, with the balance of 75 per cent ( US$ 123 million) payable after six months.

The financing plan for the acquisition has been developed with Standard Bank of South Africa. The transaction is expected to be finalised and shares transferred when the final payment is made ( anticipated August 2013).

During the interim period, preparations will be made to take over the management of AEDC and CEC Plc would be the operator of AEDC, which has a franchise for distributing electricity in four states, comprising the Federal Capital Territory of Abuja, Niger State, Kogi State and Nasarawa State, which has a combined population of 10.5 million people in 2.3 million households.

AEDC purchases power from the Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading Plc and is connected to various power generation plants by the Transmission Company of Nigeria.

Nigeria has one of the worst electricity distribution records in the world with almost each household and business entity having a back- up generator.

Source: Mining News Zambia

China’s Non Ferrous Africa Mining Corporation (NFCA) plans to spend US$100 million this year towards the development of the South East Ore Body Mine (SEOB) at its Chambishi unit in Zambia as it seeks to expedite the project.

It is estimated that when the project is complete more than 5,000 jobs would be created; the Times of Zambia reported citing NFCA chief of executive Wang Chuilai. The mining company is committed to developing the SEOB because the future of the company largely depended on the project, according Wang.

During a recent visit to the mine by Copperbelt Minister Mwenya Musenga said NFCA’s planned investment in the development of the SEOB was US$830 million and that by last year, the company had injected in a total of $123 million.

“The future of NFCA depends on the SEOB and this is why we are determined to have the project successfully completed, we are so far on course in the implementation of the project and its completion date is 2017,”

When completed, the SEOB would increase the life span of the mine by 25 years. NFCA has made significant social and economic contributions and that the company had a workforce of more than 3,000 workers. Apart from creating employment, NFCA is contributing to the economy of the country through the various forms of taxes we are paying to Government.

From inception up to the end of 2013, the company had paid to the Government a cumulative US$150 million in taxes, which included mineral royalty tax, company income tax, Payer as You Earn (PAYE), Value Added Tax (VAT).

Wang further said the company had paid dividends to the Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines-Investment Holding (ZCCM-IH). During the tour Musenge was happy with the Chinese investment in the country noting that NFCA had significantly contributed to the growth of the economy.

“We are actually grateful for the contribution you are making to this country and it is our desire that we continue building on our bilateral relations,” Musenge said and commended NFCA for its outstanding safety record. He urged the company to continue investing in the safety of its workers. The Zambia Environmental Management Agency recently halted the implementation of the SEOB on grounds that NFCA had failed to comply with regulations on compensation and relocation of surrounding communities. This action by the agency ultimately led to over 500 miners who were working on the project being laid off.

Last month the Government lifted the suspension on the construction of Non-Ferrous Mining Corporation Africa’s Chambishi South East Ore Body Project, the delay which according to the mine management had cost the company about US $10 million during the 48-day closure of the project.

Following the closure of the project for alleged failure to meet certain environmental conditions, the Government said it had decided to waive the decision according to Labour and social security minister Fackson Shamenda after a closed door meeting with NFCA management and unions.

“The suspension of the construction of Chambishi South East Ore Body has been lifted. Various concerns from some stakeholders surrounding the project will be resolved well and we hope to close this whole matter by the end of the month,”

According to Shamenda, any issues that were being raised by other stakeholders should not affect the operations of the mining company adding that where there are different companies or people, there will always be complaints but the differences must be resolved in an amicable manner.

Source: Mining News Zambia

Glencore Xstrata increased its copper outturn by more than 12 percent at its Mopani Copper Mines in Zambia last year compared to a year earlier, as expansion bolstered by investment in the local unit rose; company says.

Annual Copper output rose 12 percent to 111,000 tons last year compared to 99,000 tons recorded a year earlier, spurred by an expansion drive embarked upon by the copper producer-bolstered by the more than US$2 billion injected into the local operations at Mufulira and Nkana mines on the Copperbelt.

Glencore Xstrata has raised over US$2 billion towards recapitalizing its operations in Zambia, Africa’s rich copper producer of which over US$320 million has been injected into the sinking of the deep mine project, the synclinorium, to boost the company’s copper outturn as one of the country’s leading producer of the red metal as well as cobalt.

The sinking of the shaft expected to be operational by 2015, will elongate the lifespan of the Nkana mine in Kitwe-an old mining town; by 25-30 years with access to 115 million tons of the copper ore and this will further create over 3,000 additional jobs for the local people according to its chief executive officer Danny Callow.

Additionally, MCM, in its quest to remain competitive as one of Zambia’s leading producer of copper and cobalt has invested in the expansion and upgrading its cobalt plant at a value of $27million to ostensibly double the current production capacity to 7,000 tons from an estimated 2,800 tons by next year.

Mopani Copper Mine forecasts to invest over US$300 million in completing the final phase of the smelter at its more than 80-year-old Mufulira mine and assist capture over 98 percent of the sulphur dioxide (senta) emissions that has remained a menace to the local people since the inception of the mines.

The captured gases is anticipated to be rechanneled into the acid plant to make the substance that will assist in copper production and cut down the cost incurred in procuring the product for mining operations including ore leaching in Mufulira west.

According to Mopani, the company has spent over US$2.4 billion to date in upgrading the Mufulira smelter and various operations at its units including various corporate social responsibilities which have seen communities become self-reliant, both in health and general welfare of the people where the company operates and surrounding areas stated chairman, Emmanuel Mutati.

Source: Mining News Zambia

Coal production at Zambia’s sole producer, Maamba Collieries Limited in Southern Province, more than doubled last year as the company ramps output up to meet demand from various end-users, the company says.

In 2012 production of the heating substance at Maamba Collieries in Sinazongwe, about 350 kilometres south of Lusaka, was 90,000 tones per annum which last year rose to 400,000, company spokesperson Janardhan Lavu said citing fairly stable policy environment and conditions in the country as reasons spurring the increase in outturn.

“In 2013, coal production levels at Maamba Collieries reached over 400,000 tonnes compared to only 90,000 tonnes in 2012,” said Lavu adding that the performance by the collier in 2013 had been fair since the mine was reopened in May, 2010.

The company, majority owned by Nava Bharat of Singapore and bought for US$26 million over three years ago, has continued registering an upward trend in coal production, although the break-even point had not been reached yet.

“The good performance in both production and sales can be safely attributed to a fairly stable and growing economic position Zambia occupies,” said Lavu.

This good performance has seen the company record orders from within and outside the Southern Africa Development Community or SADC.

Maamba Collieries says Lavu, has the ability to produce adequate coal requirements for the country and that the lower production scales recorded earlier, were mainly due to the small coal market in the country but the policy framework by the Government has helped the company grow since it was taken up.

“The policy environment has remained stable and conducive for investment and we have continued to receive tremendous support from all stakeholders,”

MCL is a joint venture between the Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines Investment Holdings (ZCCM-IH) and Nava Bharat of Singapore. Nava Bharat holds 65 per cent shares while ZCCM-IH owns the remaining 35 per cent.

The coal miner was bought off for a net value of US$26 million with the Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines Investment Holdings having 35 percent share in the collier.

Maamba Collieries Limited (MCL) was incorporated in 1971 under the ownership of the Government through the Zambia Industrial and Mining Corporation (ZIMCO).

Maamba Collieries has operated under the current mining title since 1970. The mining title encompasses approximately 7,900 hectares located on the Siankondobo coalfield in the Gwembe Valley, in the Southern Province of Zambia, the company said on its website.

The company is the largest producer of coal in Zambia with estimated coal reserves of 103 million tonnes of high grade coal and 70 million tonnes of low grade coal. MCL is operating an open cast coal mine with a production history of almost 40 years.

Source: Mining News Zambia