The Sunday News
Dumisani Nsingo Senior Business Reporter
THE Ministry of Mines and Mining Development has completed remodelling the $100 million loan equipment facility by a Chinese firm, Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group for capacitating small-scale miners. Mines and Mining Development Deputy Minister Fred Moyo said the ministry opted to reduce the funding to be sourced from the Chinese firm after Government struggled to meet its 30 percent bargain of the deal required for service charges.
“The loan facility deal is still there. The only challenge it was facing were security issues. We failed to raise the money we were supposed to honour on our part. “So we now want the fund to be disbursed in small tranches. I think our team has finished working on those modalities and will be placing orders to the funder very soon,” Cde Moyo said. Government signed the $100 million equipment loan facility for small-scale miners with XCMG last year. In terms of the agreement, small-scale miners are expected to submit viable business projects to Government for consideration by CBZ Bank that will facilitate a syndicate of financial institutions to take part in the disbursement process.
“The small scale miners will receive standard equipment which includes jack hammers, compressors, water pumps among others and these will still be funded by the same financier,” Cde Moyo said. Zimbabwe Miners Federation information secretary, Mr Ishmael Kaguru said there was a need to expedite the disbursement of the loan facility to enable scale-miners to enhance production. “Miners have long started doing project proposals with geological reports to determine the viability of their mines as well as records indicating that they are selling their gold to Fidelity Printers and Refineries anticipation to get funding under the Chinese facility.
“As small-scale miners we managed to deliver three and a half tonnes during the first quarter of this year without any form of funding and we are looking at about 15 tonnes and if we are capacitated we might even surpass that target,” Mr Kaguru said. He said there was a need for financial institutions to play a part in financing small-scale miners as these contribute immensely in turning around the country’s economy. “It’s really puzzling that banks are not offering small-scale miners loans despite the fact that we make deposit with them and that way we won’t over burden Government,” Mr Kaguru said.
He, however, hailed Government for reducing mining royalties for gold delivered at Fidelity Printers and Refineries from three percent to one percent. The adjustments were announced by Finance Minister Cde Patrick Chinamasa when he presented the mid-term fiscal policy statement in July. The small-scale gold mining sector contributes 60 percent of total gold deliveries to Fidelity Printers and Refiners. “The reduction of royalties to one percent of the LME price will effectively destroy the rampant black market, which has been prevalent over the years and it will definitely motivate small scale miners to improve their production,” Mr Kaguru said.
