MONDAY, 11.00AM:
GOVERNMENT has put on hold the proposed sale of its Alexkor diamond mine pending establishment of the value of the enterprise. Confirming the postponement at the weekend, public enterprises ministry spokesman Wandile Zote said that a private company may be appointed to manage the mine in the interim.
Zote said government has revised its strategy on the sale following meetings between Public Enterprises Minister Stella Sigcau and Mineral and Energy Affairs Minister Penuell Maduna. In terms of the revised strategy, government will hold a competitive tender in which mining companies will bid for a management contract to run the mine for an unspecified period, after which the winning bidder will have an option to buy Alexkor.
Zote said during this interim period, government will retain ownership of the mine, although the local community will be granted a small shareholding.
The new proposal departs from that put forward by Alexkor’s restructuring committee, which recommended the mine be split up, with a 30% stake to the community, 20% to labour, 15% to workers on the mine, and 35% to an equity partner.
A Cabinet committee will decide on the new approach by year’s end, with outstanding items still to be worked out including: financing of exploration activities; the length of the interim period; the option price; the size of shareholding to be offered to an equity partner; and company structure.