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Maamba Collieries to receive $108m boost By Fridah Zinyama M
By Fridah Zinyama
Mon 29 Mar. 2010, 04:00 CAT [28 Reads, 0 Comment(s)]
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MINES minister Maxwell Mwale has said Nava Bharat will invest about $108 million in the recapitalisation of Maamba Collieries and the installation of the new coal handling and washing plant.
And Mwale disclosed that the completion committee sitting to finalise negotiations with Nava Bharat (Singapore) PTY Limited concerning Maamba Collieries would be completed by Thursday this week.
Giving an update on the status of Maamba Collieries Limited to Parliament on Friday, Mwale said ZCCM Investment Holdings and Nava Bharat were expediting the commencement of operations, particularly with respect to mining.
“In this regard, three senior positions, general manager (mining operations), human resources and finance managers were advertised in the local press in February, 2010,” he said. “The task of the senior management will be to undertake a skills audit of the existing labour force and come up with an appropriate structure in respect of the technology to be adopted for the mining operations.”
Mwale said this was an indication that the change of management control would not result in arbitrary redundancies.
“The company has no intentions of laying off workers but rather to increase their productivity by putting in place an efficient structure,” he said.
“Currently, Maamba Collieries has a work force of 608 employees.”
Mwale said Nava Bharat has also begun to engage mining equipment suppliers to enable commencement of operations as soon as possible.
“It is envisaged that mining operations will be resuscitated by the new management as soon as the transactions are concluded,” he said.
Mwale said the new investor would develop a coal fired power plant of a minimum generating capacity of 270 megawatts, using the low grade coal of Maamba Collieries Limited.
“Previously, this coal was regarded as unsellable material,” he said. “The power plant is expected to cost about $500 million and it is envisaged that the project will create about 150 additional jobs.”