It is with interest that we learned of the public discussion at Hotel Edinburgh in Kitwe where the Chairperson of the select committee appointed to negotiate the sale of Konkola Copper Mines, Anthony Mumba, spoke. We welcome his knowledge and insight into the unfair and outrageous situation in the
mining sector, proving that he is the right man for the job to defend the interests of the Zambian People and the shareholders of ZCCM-IH.
Mr Mumba questioned whether foreign loss-making mining companies could make offers to take over KCM. He made proposals for mining to finally benefit Zambians, including by giving 30% of all contracts and deals to Zambian companies.
Following his intervention, the Zambia Chamber of Mines president Goodwell Mateyo castigated his proposals and stated untruths that we wish to correct.
In order to scare the Zambian people, Goodwell Mateyo states a far-fetched $5 billion for compensation to increase the stakes in all mines to 30%. The value of an asset is linked to the profits it generates.How is it possible that mines that have been losing money for years can be worth hundreds of millions of dollars?
By reading the books of ZCCM-IH in the year ended 31 March 2018, we obtain the latest official values of some symptomatic mines at fair value :
- 10% Mopani: K223,518,000 (around $17,000,000)
- 15% Chibuluma: K16,033,000 ( $1,300,000)
- 10% Chambishi Metals: K11,900,000 ($900,000)
- 15% NFC Africa Mines: K320,049,000 ($24,000,000)
That is why we challenge Goodwell Mateyo to detail his $5 billion astronomical sum. His example for the Kansanshi mine is particularly staggering. His valuation of $8.5 billion is stated without any explanation. According to him, the additional 10% to be repurchased would be valued at $850 million.
A few months ago, rumours had circulated that First Quantum Minerals has proposed to buy back the 20% Kansanshi shares of ZCCM-IH for $700 million.
We deduce from this, that mining companies would offer peanuts to buy ZCCM-IH’s mining interests while Zambians would have to compensate them at the high price to increase the same stakes in all mines to 30%!
Goodwell Mateyo said that “the biggest stake in mines in Zambia is actually owned by ZCCM-IH”. This is not true because the main beneficiary of the Zambian copper is by far First Quantum Minerals, which owns 80% of the Kansanshi mine, 100% of Sentinel and 16.9% of Mopani. The annual copper production in
2018 from these mines is 199,626t (100%: 249,532t), 223,655t and 10,510t (100% 62,191t) respectively,for a total of 433,791t. According to official data, Zambia’s 2018 annual copper production amounts to 861.946t, the equivalent production of FQM represents 50.3% of Zambian copper production, Barrick Gold
11.8%, ZCCM-IH 11.2%, Vedanta 8.6%, CNMC 8.3%, Glencore 5.3%, EMC 2.05%, small scale 1.26%,Jinchuan 1.11%.
Moreover Goodwell Mateyo voluntarily forgets to mention that ZCCM-IH received only crumbs from its 2018 equivalent 96,571t copper production. With a corresponding turnover of $630 million (2018 average LME copper price: $6525/t), ZCCM-IH got only $20 million from its 20% interest in the Kansanshi mine, or 3.2%!
In addition, it would be appropriate for Goodwell Mateyo as President of the Chamber of Mines to explain to the people of Zambia the business model of most Zambian mines. How is it possible that so-called investors can keep pumping money into companies for years without making profits and yet not giving
up…? The example of Vedanta is telling, this company hangs on to KCM like a leech even though the mine is in a disastrous financial situation. A few years earlier, Vedanta chairman Anil Agarwal bragged in India that KCM was giving him $500 million every year in profit, plus an extra $1 billion. Would Goodwell Mateyo be afraid that even an eight-year-old child will understand that there is something completely fishy in the Zambian mining sector?
With this statement, we wish to warn the Zambian people and their Parliamentarians against the misleading comments of the minion of the foreign mining companies Goodwell Mateyo. His sole objective is to do everything possible to ensure that the unfair and shady game of mining companies continues at
the expense of the Zambian people and the shareholders of ZCCM-IH including NAPSA.
By Thierry Charles on behalf of Euronext Minority Shareholders of ZCCM-IH
FRANCE
Ka Mateyo is a traitor to our mother land! Sad
Vedanta has always declared losses in Zambia, yet the holding company is making hundreds of millions of profit in London and India, ask ourselves, for how long shall we be fooled!? Sad
Zambia has copper reserves to last for the foreseeable future ……..
If this PF GRZ had any brains to use for the benefit of Zambians , atleast a quarter those eurobonds should have been used to revive industries supplying the mines….
By now we should have had 60 to 80% of minning supplies made in Zambia…..all the CB towns would have been revived and we would have been in export mode by now.
Same with the renewable energy …..we have been crying to PF to ban all imports and have all solar power generators assembled/made in Zambia using Zambian copper where copper is used….
But no, not this du.ll PF , first came sata who thought loans are for free , then the dancing corrupt lungu comes for enjoyment …….the rest is a history of hardship for Zambia.
The mines prefer to buy from companies from their countries of origin and South Africa.So even if you set up such companies they’d go down due to lack of business. That’s why Anthony Mumba is working on a Private Member’s Bill to compel them to give 30% business to Zambians. Many local companies that relied on the mines have gone under or have scaled down because it’s not easy to get business from the mines. I have mind Scaw Ltd, Ndola Lime, Mpelembe Drilling, ZAL Holdings, etc. What these companies used to do is now being done by foreign entities
Ayatollah
” The mines prefer to buy from companies from their countries of origin and South Africa…”
What is the use of this PF GRZ then if forigne mining companies call the shots ???
Why not just sell the whole country to Chinese and give every Zambian $1 million.
Every country is supposed to protect strategic industries essential for its survival. Zambian companies producing in Zambia to supply mines should be classed as such…..
It seems the PF is more intrested in corruption and who bribes the most….
@Spaka, you can’t force them to buy from your shop, don’t forget Zambia runs a liberalized market economy and these are some of the disadvantages of that system. It’s like I sell you my car then I come in to control how you use it, will you accept? Would it make sense for me to control whom you give a lift or how you drive?
Mateyo has been a sellout from the beginning. I don’t even know why people still listen to him.
He’s the master of fuzzy math … Epo mpelele.
BRM
Ayatollah
Every country has protected vital industries…..trump used the steel industry as a vital industry to start the trade wars.
The industries that supply the mines in Zambia should be classed as vital strategic industries.
Only weak corrupt countries with useless leadership have no control of their trade…….Zambia is one of them.
@2.5 Spaka, that should be the ideal situation which isn’t. When FTJ liberalized he didn’t listen to advice because it was a wholesale decision. And it’s not only the mines, shops like Shoprite, Choppies, Game. Pep, Pick n Pay, etc operate in the same manner. Locals producers have difficulties to do business with these shops. At least what Anthony Mumba has proposed is a good starting point. At the moment Ndola Lime is barely surviving because most mines opt to import lime. Nervers Mumba when he was VP we told him all these things. As for #4 China, yes I’m in a Zambian compound because I’m a typical Zambian.
Goodwell Mateyo is a ruthless Economic Hit Man! He speaks slowly but what he says doesn’t make much sense that’s why he’s usually under fire from people at whichever forum he speaks. I’ve warned before that this injustice to Zambians is a time-bomb which will soon explode unless mining companies do the correct thing. They shouldn’t think that the problem will walk away if they bribe Govt officials. When Zambians react they’ll fail to even mine a single tonne of copper and other residue minerals. Anthony Mumba is a son of the soil, he has our support. I advise him to be strong because he’ll be fought by leeches. People like Kambwili pretended to be speaking for people but he ended up a contractor and suppliers together with his children. Don’t do that Anthony. We are with you!
But it appears the new finance minister listened to this Badwell Mateyo, ka
Spaka why waste your time arguing with ayatollah who is in some compound somewhere in Zed. People in Zambia want to appear smart when in actual fact they’re dull. They talk too much but no action. You know more than he do. Zambians are too pessimistic with zero analytical mind especially the current generation, they’re too dull. You just pointed to him an example that dispute your reasoning but he still can’t comprehend it
Putin said it, Africans are the only race on earth whose people go to developed countries, get educated and exposed yet these people fail to find solutions for their countries….
Uuhhhhmmmmm