....as ZCDC become wholly Govt-owned

By Tawanda Musarurwa

HARARE – Government has told all diamond mining companies to immediately cease mining activ-ities and vacate the mining con-cessions they were operating on.

The development means there has been an instant re-structur-ing of the Zimbabwe Consoli-dated Diamond Company (ZCDC) into a wholly State-owned entity from the previous proposal of a joint venture between Govern-ment and the nine diamond min-ing firms.

Following a briefing to the dia-mond firms by the secretary of Mines earlier this morning, Mines and Mining Development Minister

Walter Chidhakwa said that the decision had been made on the basis of the firms’ non-commit-tal to the consolidation plan and the fact that they had all failed to renew their special grants.

“Since they no longer hold any titles these companies were noti-fied this morning to cease all mining activities with immediate

effect and to vacate the mining areas covered by special grants for diamonds.

“They have been given 90 days within which to remove their equipment and other valuables. During this period access into the premises will be by request which will be considered by the Minis-try of Mines and Mining Develop-

ment,” said Minister Chidhakwa.

To this effect Government has instructed the firms to co-operate in hand-over-take-over of all dia-mond products at the mines with Government personnel that have been deployed at the mines.

“All the diamond products will and must be recorded. Any dia-mond products that are not dis-closed or found later will become Government property,” he said.

Since 2008 special grants were issued to joint venture companies with the Zimbabwe Mining Devel-opment Company (ZMDC) namely Anjin, DMC, Jinan, Mbada, DTZ-OZGEO, RERA, Gye-Nyame, Kus-ena and Marange Resources.

Added the Minister: “Consulta-

News Update as @ 1530 hours, Monday 22 February 2016Feedback: bh24admin@zimpapers.co.zwEmail: bh24feedback@zimpapers.co.zw

Govt evicts all diamond mining firms

tion with the existent diamond companies which took over seven months to allow for extraordinary shareholder general meeting achieved no consensus between Government and the companies on the consolidation issue.

“There was evidence of the desire by the companies to extend the process of negotiation for unde-terminable periods at a time when the industry is in decline and definitely in trouble. This was not and remains an unpalatable choice for the Government.”

Indications are that of the nine diamond firms only Marange Resources accepted the consoli-dation proposals, while DMC and Jinan turned them down.

The other firms were “dragging their feet” and some investors in the joint venture companies, namely Grandwell and OFECC are said to have made unilateral submissions to the Government opposing the consolidation pro-posals.

According to Minister Chidhakwa the new wholly Government

entity will take over all diamond operations in the country includ-ing the Zvishavane claims being exploited by Murowa Diamonds and the Beitbridge diamond kim-berlites currently under River Ranch Diamonds.

“All diamond mines, either cur-rent or future ones will all be under the ambit of ZCDC (Pvt) Ltd. The current scope of consol-idation includes, but is not lim-ited to, the following: all conces-sions which fall under the current Chidzwa diamonds fields (both operating and mothballed); all T-concessions which are still to be explored further; the Chiman-imani diamonds fields currently being mined by DTZ-OZGEO; Zvishavane diamond kimber-lites currently under Murowa Diamonds; Beitbridge diamond kimberlites currently under River Ranch Diamonds and others which are yet to be discovered or operationalised,” he said.

Eviction Processes

“What we now expect to happen is that the shareholders must sit

and put their shareholders agree-ment in front and say what does the process of dissolution entails. They may not want to close down the company but they may want to say, lets share the company in the proportions agreed in the shareholding agreement...let’s share the assets and the liabili-ties as well.

“Because for your own informa-tion there are companies which have statutory obligations that had not been paid for quite some time. The companies must then sit as shareholders and agree on how to apportion both the assets and the liabilities of the compa-nies. What we have merely done is to take away the concessions.”

Declining Payments to Government & Investment

Pledges Defaults

Official figures show that ben-efits from the diamond sector have been declining gradually since 2011. In 2011, Government received payments from the dia-mond firms amounting to $168,5 million, which declined to $142,4

million in 2012 and $93,2 million in 2013.

In 2014 payments to Government amounted to $84,3 million, which further declined to $23,4 million last year.

The Minister charged the compa-nies for making investments that were not adequate to go beyond mining the alluvial resources at Chiadzwa.

“Anjin pledged as per the joint venture agreement to invest $132,2 million, at the moment we don’t know how much has been invested because the com-pany has never given us audited financial accounts and we have asked for them and we have not received any audited accounts from them.

“DMC pledged to invest $50 mil-lion and $41 million was actu-ally invested. Jinan $200 million was pledged and $137 million was invested. Mbada Diamonds a $100 million was pledged and $48 million was invested,” said Minister Chidhakwa.●

2 NEws

BH243

By Funny Hudzerema

HARARE - Government is looking to engage potential partners for Air Zimbabwe during the African Airline Association (AFRAA) annual general assembly (AGA) which is going to be hosted by Zimbabwe from the 20-22 of November this year in Vic-toria Falls.

Transport and Infrastruc-tural Development Minister Dr Jorum Gumbo said hosting the AFRAA general assembly will be the best opportunity to look for partners to boost our Air Zimbabwe.

“We are busy talking to sev-eral airlines who want to partner with us to revitalize Air Zimbabwe so that we can come up with one because the shopping list of partners is long since many companies are approaching us from the Middle East, China and from Europe.

“We are expecting that in the

next three to four years Air Zimbabwe will be back as a leading airline in the conti-nent,” he said.

He added that the ministry is looking at both small big-ger aeroplanes to comple-ment the airline’s fleet of aeroplanes and ensure that the airline resuscitates dome of its old routes such as the London route and those to the far East.

He said this during a press conference meant to announce that Zimbabwe will host the AFRAA general assembly conference and launching the logo for the general assembly.

“I am looking at possibly engaging with partners before the end of the year and it ’s a process, when you bring somebody to partner in such an industry which a number of countries are struggling to boost.

“We are we are aiming at bringing in new airlines and experts to revitalize Air Zim-babwe,” he said.

Dr Gumbo also said hosting the AFRAA general assembly conference will be an oppor-tunity for Zimbabwe and Afri-can countries boost its airline industry.

“AFRAA’s vision reaffirms our position to ensure that the turn-around process at our National Airline, Air Zimba-

bwe remains on a firm ped-estal.

“I am therefore urging all stakeholders to stand firm behind Air Zimbabwe and join hands with the Ministry of transport in turning around the fortunes of our airlines so that it can harness the many benefits brought by avia-tion in word economies,” he added.

He also said that hosting the AFRRA Annual General Assem-bly has many benefits for the passengers, our National Air-line, the hospitality industry and the nation at large.

“Our national airline has to prove yet again that they can lead Africa into an aviation giant,” he said.

The AFRAA annual general assembly conference will be the 48th edition targeted to bring 400 delegates from 50 countries in Zimbabwe and experts, CEOs of different airlines together.●

4 NEws

Govt to engage partners for Air Zimbabwe

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BH246

BH24 Reporter

HARARE - Dubai-based Emir-ates airliner is offering Zimba-bwean travellers these limited time special fares to some of the world’s top destinations on both Business and Economy class options.

According to Emirates, all-in-clusive Economy Class fares from Harare start at $920 to London, $570 to Dubai, $830 to Guangzhou and $720 to Mumbai, while Business Class fares start at $1 800 to Mumbai, $2 690 to Dubai, $2 585 to London and $3 010 to

Guangzhou.

The airliner said for local trav-ellers to benefit from the lim-ited reduction in fares, book-ings should be made between February 22 and March 4 for travel before June 30, 2016.

Emirates Zimbabwe country

manager Mr Paulos Legesse said “Emirates focuses on offering its customers value for money, and with these lim-ited time special fares to so many destinations, it offers even greater value.”

Last month the airliner intro-duced the Boeing 777-300ER

aircraft on its Harare-Dubai route.

He added: “With the larger Boeing 777-300 aircraft now operational on the Zimba-bwe route, passengers can experience more of Emirates industry-leading comforts and award-winning services.

“The 777 aircraft has increased the capacity on the route with 97 Economy Class seats per flight, eight private suites in First Class, 42 lie-flat seats in Business Class and 310 spacious seats in Economy Class.”●

7 NEws

Emirates reduces fares to top destinations

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BH249

BH2410

HARARE - The equities mar-ket opened the week on a high after the mainstream industrial index rebounded 0.22 to settle at 99.14 on the back of a gain in Delta Bev-erages.

The beverages manufactur-ing giant was the only coun-ter that gained ground today

adding $0,0050 to close at $0,5250.

Spirits-maker AFDIS, OK Zim, Willdale and Zimre Hold-ings traded unchanged at $0,4500, $0,0350, $ 0,0015 and $0,0127 in that order.

On the downside, telecoms giant Econet lost a marginal

$0,0003 to trade at $0,2202 while Old Mutual inched down $0,0002 to close at $1,8000.

The mining index was steady at 18.74 points as Bindura, Falgold, Hwange and RioZim maintained previous price levels at $0,0090, $0,0050, $0,0300 and $0,1040 respec-tively. - BH24 Reporter ●

ZsE11

Industrials open week bullish

BH2412

MovERs CHANGE ToDAy PRICE UsC sHAKERs CHANGE ToDAy PRICE UsC

ECONET -0.13 22.02

OLD MuTuAL -0.01 180.00

INDEx PREvIoUs ToDAy MovE CHANGE

INDuSTRIAL 98.92 99.14 +0.22 points +0.22%

MINING 18.74 18.74 +0.00 POINTS +0.00%

13 ZsE TABlEs

ZsE

INDICEs

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BH2415

16 DIARy oF EvENTs

The black arrow indicate level of load shedding across the country.

PowER GENERATIoN sTATs

Gen Station

19 February 2016

Energy

(Megawatts)

Hwange 341 MW

Kariba 285 MW

Harare 17 MW

Munyati 28 MW

Bulawayo 0 MW

Imports 0 - 450 MW

Total 1355 Mw

—23 February 2015 - 38th Annual General Meeting of the members of Powerspeed Electrical limited; Place: Powerspeed Board-room, Gate 1, Powerspeed Complex, Corner Cripps Road and Kelvin Road North, Graniteside, Harare; Time: 1100 hours

25 February 2016 - Extraordinary General Meeting (“EGM”) of the shareholders of Radar Holdings limited; Place: Tanganyika House, 6th Floor Boardroom, Harare; Time: 0900 hours...

25 February 2016 - The 49th Annual General Meeting of Mashonaland Holdings limited; Place: The Boardroom, 19th Floor, ZB life Towers, 77 Jason Moyo Avenue, Harare; Time: 1200 hours...

26 February 2016 - The sixty-ninth Annual General Meeting of Ariston Holdings limited; Place: Ariston Holdings limited Main Boardroom, 306 Hillside Road, Msasa woodlands, Harare: Time: 14.30 hours:

THE BH24 DIARy

BH2417

JoHANNEsBURG - South Africa's rand was little changed against the dol-lar in early trade on Monday as hopes for further inter-est rates hikes buoyed sen-timent, although investors were cautious ahead of the budget later in the week.

At 0645 GMT, the rand traded at 15.4000 versus the dollar, not far off its Friday's close of 15.3850.

The currency last week traded at its strongest levels this year, firming to 15.2460/dollar on Thursday, after ris-ing inflation bolstered expec-tations that the South Afri-can Reserve Bank would hike interest rates further.

Focus this week is on Finance minister Pravin Gordhan's three-year budget presenta-tion to parliament on Feb. 24.

Analysts have cautioned that the rand could resume the downward spiral triggered by the clumsy changing of finance ministers in Decem-ber if the budget failed to convince investors that pru-dent fiscal policy remains intact.

"All eyes will be on Gordhan this week," NKC African Eco-nomics said in a note.

"If he draws large enough line in sand to appease rat-ing agencies and ensure for-eign investors that govern-ment has been shaken form its jaded state we might see rand make run at 15/dollar, though flipside is also true."

Stocks were set to open higher at 0700 GMT, with the JSE securities exchange's

Top-40 futures index up 1.45 percent.

Africa's top bullion producer AngloGold Ashanti Ltd said on Monday that suitors have expressed interest in buy-ing or partnering in its idled Obuasi mine in Ghana.

In fixed income, govern-ment bonds weakened with the yield for the benchmark instrument due in 2026 add-ing 1 basis point to 9.185 percent. - Reuters●

REGIoNAl NEws 18

Rand steadies, focus on budget

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The pound fe l l the most in a lmost s ix months aga inst the do l lar a f ter London Mayor Bor is Johnson, one of the u.K.’s most popular po l i t i c ians, sa id he ’ l l cam-paign for Br i ta in to leave the European union in a June referendum.

Ster l ing dropped at least 1.2 percent aga inst a l l i ts 16 major peers, revers-ing a ga in made on Fr iday when Pr ime Min is ter David Cameron secured a dea l on membersh ip terms wi th Eu leaders in Brusse ls and set a June 23 date for the vote. Morgan Stan ley ana-lysts wrote on Fr iday that Johnson’s dec is ion would be key for s ter l ing, g iven h is popular i ty wi th the Br i t i sh publ ic .

“Even i f an ex i t i sn ’ t l ike ly, uncerta inty and concerns about i t w i l l cont inue and weigh on ster l ing,” sa id Kengo Suzuki , ch ie f cur-rency strateg is t at Mizuho Secur i t ies Co. in Tokyo. “On the economic f ront , there isn ’ t much to undermine the currency, but the uncer-ta inty over a potent ia l ex i t

wi l l cap ster l ing, keeping i t in a $1.40 to $1.50 range. ”

The pound dropped 1.4 per-cent to $1.4204 as of 7:29 a.m. in London on Monday, set for the b iggest dec l ine s ince Aug. 26. I t ear l ier touched $1.4193, the low-est s ince Jan. 29. Ster l ing weakened 1.2 percent to 78.21 pence per euro.

Higher volat i l i ty

A measure of t raders ’ expec-tat ions for pr ice swings in the pound against the euro dur ing the next s ix months c l imbed to the h ighest s ince October 2011. A l though the announcement of the date removes one aspect o f ambigu i ty for t raders, they now face months of po l l s and campaign ing that may boost vo lat i l i ty fur ther.

With t raders a l ready push-

ing back bets on the t iming of a Bank of England inter-est-rate increase, the pros-pect o f Br i ta in leav ing the wor ld ’s largest s ing le mar-ket had been caus ing fur-ther concern, he lp ing push down the pound aga inst a l l o f i ts Group-of-10 peers th is year.

“The pound’s weakness is a product o f uncerta inty of the u.K.’s ongoing member-sh ip of the un ion, not the t iming of the po l l ,” sa id David Page, a sen ior econ-omist at AXA Investment Managers in London. “Weak-ness is l ike ly to re f lect any increased percept ion of the l ike l ihood to leave and as such is l ike ly to be a con-stant feature over the com-ing months.”

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. sa id ear l ier th is month i f Br i ta in qu i ts the Eu the pound may fa l l to $1.15-$1.20 -- leve ls last seen in 1985. HSBC Hold ings P lc sa id in January a forecast for a jump to $1.60 by year-end re l ied on the nat ion remain ing in the 28-mem-ber group.-Bloomberg●

INTERNATIoNAl NEws 21

Pound falls most in 6 months as Johnson backs ‘Brexit’ campaign

BH2422

The campaign for Britain to leave or stay as part of the European union (Eu) is in full swing ahead of a membership referendum on June 23.

This comes after Prime Minister David Cameron sealed a deal for "special status" in the Eu on Friday (Feb 19), paving the way for him to push for Britain to stay in the bloc.

But his campaign has got off a tough start as dozens of his Con-servative Party members, includ-ing London mayor Boris Johnson, back Britain's exit from the Eu, also known as "Brexit".

Here's what you should know about the issue:

wHAT's IN THE BRITAIN-EU DEAl?

Immigration

What Mr Cameron wanted: To make Eu migrants to Britain wait four years before claiming in-work benefits and state-subsidised hous-ing. He also wanted to stop Eu migrants from claiming child bene-fit and sending it back to their fam-ilies overseas.

What he got: An "emergency brake" for seven years on certain benefit payments to newly arriving Eu migrant workers. A system to be implemented will tie the amount of benefits Eu migrants in Britain can claim for their children still liv-ing in their home country to local conditions there.

sovereignty

What Mr Cameron wanted: To opt out of the commitment to "ever closer union", a central pillar of the European project, in a "legally binding and irreversible" way. He sought an enhanced role for national parliaments.

What he got: A carve-out on the issue of ever-closer union - treaties will be changed in future to make clear Britain is not committed to this. A "red card" measure would allow a group of national parlia-ments - making up more than 55 per cent of the 28 parliaments - to be able to veto Eu legislation.

Economic governance

What Mr Cameron wanted: To ensure the Eu does not use Brit-ain's status as a non-euro zone

country against it. He asked for a series of "legally binding princi-ples", including recognition that the Eu has more than one currency and that non-euro zone countries should not face discrimination.

What he got: Protections to pre-vent the City of London from being discriminated against by euro zone states. While Mr Cameron claimed the Eu had recognised more than one currency "for the first time", the language in the agreement is vague. European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker insisted the deal did not include giving London a veto over euro zone issues. Com-petitiveness

What Mr Cameron wanted: To cut red tape for business. He urged the bloc to go further in ensuring the free flow of capital, goods and ser-vices so as to boost the economy.

What he got: Mr Juncker has made improving Eu competitiveness a priority so this area presents less of a problem, with the bloc agreeing to "enhance competitiveness" and take "concrete steps" to improve.

what are some pros and cons of EU membership?

One of the biggest advantages is free trade between member nations, making it easier and cheaper for British companies to export their goods to Europe. Some business leaders think the boost to income outweighs the billions of pounds in membership fees Britain would save if it leaves the Eu.

Free movement of people across the Eu also opens up job opportu-nities for British workers willing to travel and makes it relatively easy for companies to employ workers from other Eu countries.

One downside of Eu membership is Britain is bound by Eu rules and regulations and cannot make trade deals with important non-Eu part-ners.

wHo sUPPoRTs BRITAIN REMAINING IN EU?

- Mr Cameron will lead the cam-paign for Britain to stay in the Eu.

- Mr Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the main opposition Labour party, has said his party will campaign to stay because of investments, jobs and worker protection from the Eu.

23 analysis23 ANAlysIs

Brexit showdown: should Britain opt in or out of European Union?

24 analysis24 ANAlysIs

- Ms Nicola Sturgeon, Scot-land's first minister and head of the pro-independence Scottish National Party, has said she will be at the "forefront" of efforts to stay in, amid warnings that a " Brexit" could trigger a second vote for Scotland to leave the united King-dom.

- Key business leaders including Sir Richard Branson have spoken out for Eu membership, with the Virgin founder warning that a departure would be a "very sad day".

Barclays bank chairman John McFarlane has warned that London, Europe's premier financial hub, would be "significantly" worse off without the Eu.

- Several cultural figures are also pro-Eu. Award-winning British actress and campaigner Emma Thompson has said leaving Europe would be "a crazy idea". "Of course I'm going to vote to stay in Europe. Oh my God, it would be madness not to," she told reporters at the Berlin Film Festival.

- Prince William has never directly addressed the issue but in a speech

at the foreign ministry in London in February, the second in line to the throne made some comments that were widely interpreted in British media as being in favour. "Our abil-ity to unite in common action with other nations is essential, it is the bedrock of our security and pros-perity," the prince said.

wHAT ARE soME PRos AND CoNs oF BRExIT?

Britain can secure trade deals with other countries such as China, India and America.

The 350 million pounds (S$708 mil-lion) saved in Eu membership can be spent on scientific research and new industries. The country can also take control in areas such as employment law, health and safety.

The down side is Britain will still be subject to the politics and econom-ics of Europe, but would no longer have a seat at the table to try to influence matters.

The country now accounts for less than 1 per cent of the world's pop-ulation and less than 3 per cent of global income (GDP). Each year

that goes by, these numbers shrink a little.

The country will find it increasingly hard to get its voice heard on top-ics that affect its prosperity and well-being if it goes it alone.

A study by the think-tank Open Europe, which wants to see the Eu radically reformed, found that the worst case Brexit scenario is that the British economy loses 2.2 per cent of its total GDP by 2030. How-ever, it says that GDP could rise by 1.6 per cent if Britain could nego-tiate a free trade deal with Europe and pursued "very ambitious deregulation".

wHo wANTs BRITAIN To lEAvE THE EU?

- Five of the cabinet's 22 members have so far come out in favour of Brexit:Justice Minister Michael Gove, Work and Pensions Minis-ter Iain Duncan Smith, Northern Ireland Minister Theresa Villiers, Sports and Media Minister John Whittingdale and Chris Grayling, the cabinet's representative in par-liament.

- Mr Nigel Farage, head of the anti-Eu uK Independence Party (uKIP), has advocated for Britain to leave the Eu all of his political life. He tweeted: "June 23rd: our golden opportunity.

Let battle be joined. We want our country back". He said life outside of Europe would mean "control of our borders, global trade deals, making our own laws. An exciting future".

- Some entrepreneurs have spoken out for Brexit, including vacuum cleaner tycoon James Dyson. The inventor was quoted by the Daily Express as saying that he did not want to stay in a Europe "domi-nated and bullied" by Germany.

- Only very few cultural figures have declared public support for Brexit. Oscar-winning actor Michael Caine has said Britain should leave if it does not manage to negotiate "extremely significant changes". "I sort of feel certain we should come out," the 82-year-old told BBC radio. - Agence France-Presse, The Guardian, The week, The economist, straitstimes.com●