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Zambia cedes control of Konkola Copper Mines to Vedanta Resources

Published

1 year ago

September 5, 2023

Zambian mines minister, Paul Kabuswe says the country has agreed to return control of Konkola Copper Mines to Vedanta Resources.

The agreement was reached after negotiations in which both sides decided against taking legal action and instead chose to negotiate.

Vedanta fell out with the Zambian government after former President Edgar Lungu’s administration orchestrated the seizure of the KCM assets and forced liquidation in May 2019, accusing the Indian company of failing to meet plans to invest in increasing mining output.

Vedanta has once again pledged to invest more than $1.2 billion to improve output and pay off debts, and the government, which holds a 20% share in KCM through ZCCM-IH, would permit the business to restore control and operation of KCM’s mines and smelter, Kabuswe said.

He added that to make the promises made by both shareholders enforceable, a shareholders’ agreement was currently being revised.

The minister promised that by the following three months, the legal specifics of the agreement and the reinstatement of the KCM board would be completed.

“It is not a secret that the asset has deteriorated a great deal and the production output has substantially reduced,” Kabuswe told journalists in Lusaka. “This is a very sad development for a national strategic asset of the country.”

Konkola Copper Mines is a copper mining and smelting company in Zambia. Vedanta Resources, a mining multinational with offices in Mumbai and London, owns 80% of it.

Vedanta owns 80% of the business, and ZCCM Investments Holdings, Zambia’s state-owned mining corporation, owns the other 20%.

The deal to return the mine to Vendata might be an indication of Zambian President, Hakainde Hichilema’s policy drive to reduce government participation in the mining industry.

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IMF mission concludes 4th loan program assessment in Egypt

Published

7 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Following the completion of a recent visit to Egypt, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has announced that its mission had achieved significant strides in policy talks aimed at concluding the fourth review of the IMF loan program.

The review is the fourth in Egypt’s most recent 46-month IMF loan program, which was authorised in 2022 and increased to $8 billion this year following an economic crisis characterised by high inflation and chronic foreign exchange shortages. It may unleash more than $1.2 billion in financing.

Along with reaffirming its commitment to maintain a flexible exchange rate system, the IMF stated that Egypt “has implemented key reforms to preserve macroeconomic stability,” including the unification of the currency rate that facilitated imports.

Earlier on Wednesday, Egypt’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said Cairo has asked the IMF to modify the targets for the programme not only for this year, but for its full duration, he added without giving more details.

“Discussions will continue over the coming days to finalize agreement on the remaining policies and reforms that could support the completion of the fourth review,” the IMF added in its statement.

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Kenya seeks $750m from World Bank, obtains $200m from AfDB— Official

Published

2 days ago

November 20, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

The head of debt management for the finance ministry told Reuters that Kenya had obtained a $200 million loan from the African Development Bank (AfDB) and was negotiating a fresh $750 million loan with the World Bank.

After being forced to abandon proposed tax rises costing more than 346 billion shillings ($2.68 billion) in June due to fatal demonstrations, the East African nation’s administration, which has been grappling with significant debt, has been frantically seeking fresh funding.

The Finance Ministry’s public debt management office director general, Raphael Owino, told Reuters that the IMF’s October clearance of the seventh and eighth reviews, which opened the door for a $606 million loan tranche, had aided the ministry’s talks for more loans.

“The World Bank is coming on board, riding on the back of IMF receipts,” Owino said. “The AfDB is already on board.”

The discussions for more assistance, which came under the World Bank’s “Development Policy Operations” (DPO) with the government, were confirmed by a representative at the organization’s Kenya office.

“The amount of the current (loan) is yet to be determined. The amount will also depend on the implementation of the policy reforms agreed upon,” the spokesperson told Reuters, adding that past DPO loans averaged about $750 million.

In May, the World Bank approved the latest round of DPO loans, totalling $1.2 billion.

According to a statement made last month by Finance Minister John Mbadi, Kenya has set a foreign borrowing goal of 168 billion shillings for the fiscal year ending in June 2025.