Mopani Copper Mines (MCM) management to stop moving Company property until it states its position on the future of its Mines by the end of this month.
Police in Kitwe have impounded three trucks carrying Drilling Bore Raising Machines (DBRMs) from MCM’s Mindola Mine enroute to South Africa.
Mr Mbulakulima said MCM must stop moving Company property unless with express permission from the Ministry of Mines and Mineral development.
He observed that it was government policy that no Company assets at Mopani must leave the Mining premises until the future of the Mine was known.
Speaking at Mindola Mine in Kitwe yesterday Mr Mbulakulima said he had received information from the Mine Workers Union of Zambia (MUZ) and Police that Mopani was demobilising Company Property at Mindola Mine and transferring the equipment to South Africa.
He said trucks carrying DBRMs at Mindola Mine were nabbed by Police in route to South on the pretext that they were faulty and needed repairs.
He said government was alive to the peoples demands that no Mine property should be moved outside the Country following an international price fall in Copper Prices.
The Minister said it was ill timing for MCM to start moving Company machinery at a time when the Company had indicated that it was going to close the Mine.
He said Police had detained the cargo because government wanted know how the equipment came into the Country and if proper taxes were paid for.
Mr Mbulakulima ordered the police to conclude all the investigations and dispose off the matter within 24 hours.
But MCM Nkana Mine manager Jacob Mwanza said his Company had terminated the Contract it had with Master Drill of South Africa who were the owners of the equipment currently being detained by Police.
Mr Mwanza said MCM will not be doing any drilling in the next eight to nine months at Mindola mine hence the need to take all the equipment which was not theirs outside.
He said he was not sure if MCM had to inform Government about their decision to demobilise but that Drill Masters the owners of the equipment were at liberty to take their equipment elsewhere since they were not needed any more at Mopani.
ZANIS/LK/ENDS/MM
These guys have started packing? Please impound the stuff until the decisions are rounded up. Too quick to leave when profits are no where to be seen. Culprits. These are thieves actually. Arrest them as well.
That is just one lesson you need to learn. How will you react after you give 2million hectres of land to the chinese for jatropha growing, and then start pulling off after their venture fails to tick when we start drilling our oil? Learn. No land for jatropha dreamers.
FOREIGN INVESTORS GOING BACK AFTER REAPING HUGE PROFITS. CAN A ZAMBIAN DO THAT?? I HOPE THE POLITICIANS MMD HAVE SEEN WHAT FOREIGN INVESTORS CAN DO
“He said he was not sure if MCM had to inform Government about there decision to demobilse…” I think the minister owes the company an apology, he fired his gun too early without thinking, this is the problem when you want to jump in games that you dont understand well.
EMPOWER LOCAL INDEGINOUS REAL ZAMBIANS WHO CANNOT RUN AWAY. THEY CAN ONLY RUN AWAY TO KAPUTA , SHANGOMBO, CHIZERA, VUBWI, DUNDUMWEZI, OR CHIEF SHIMUKUNAMI. EMPOWER ZAMBIANS NOT MULTI-NATIONALS
I don’t understand what the problem is because, the price of copper is going up. As of today the price of copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) is USD$4,300 and the price is expected to keep going up. The price could be back to the heights of USD$8,000 per tonne within a few weeks. Government must nationalise some of the mines so that when the prices get back to the USD$8,000 plus mark , the country should benefit by keeping all the profits. This will create employment and generate revenue that can be invested in our sectors of the economy such as agri-culture, tourism and manufacturing etc.
Government failed to run the mines in the past. How will government run the mines if it is failing to run Zesco, ZR, Zamtel NCZ etc. Mines is more complex.
These are companies that seriously need renationalising to keeep the jobs for zambians. Good opportunity for expanding govt local borrowing and investment for locals. Outside the box bane please twapapata eeeh.
We recorded our historic copper sales heights in the 60s and 70s. I don’t know who to blame but somewhere, somehow, we failed to maintain our sales structures. From then onwards, other countires like Chile, Peru and Canada took over and now look at their economies.
We are now not even among the top 10 copper producers countires and we’re still a long way from refining the product. And now with the major decline in global trade, I fear to predict the end of the Zambian copper success story.
Let them go and leave our copper and the equipment. We’ll use the equipment and sell at whatever the present price is. When the price goes up we should not allow any foreigner to invest in our copper.
#8 too negative, Zambia is still a major player on the copper scene. Lumwana is currently the largest mining operation in Africa. We have a great opportunity before us once more and this time government must use this opportunity in a wise way. China alone is expected to buy more than 1million tonnes of copper this year alone and by 2010 that will double to 2 million tonnes. Government must not worry about companies that are firing people because they will re-hire them back very soon. However the best option is to re-nationalise the mines, protect jobs, revamp the manufacturing sector by producing finished copper products locally.
It just goes to show that the only all weather friend you have despite the acrimonious relationship are the chinese.come rain or sunshine they dont withdraw.infact it is acknoledged worldwide that in this economic recession only the chinese have the money to invest in large scale mining.
Zambia is a disorganised country. You can see what the foreigners are doing now that they have reaped what they did not sow. Policies that favour foreigners are not the best for our country.
Please let them go, and never should we entertain these people once copper price goes up. hope the gov have learnt a lesson.
rose my friend
the same pipo will come back only with a changed name
this is zambia mothe zambia
pliz lets learn a leeson from this
#10 copper bullet
Ask yourself if it’s me, or rather the FACTS that are negative? I based my assessment upon having followed the world’s copper sales over the past 9 months and the statistics show different major players. The records show Chile, Peru, Canada, Indonesia and even China! taking the lead in excavation, production and refinery.
My criticism is that of a concerned citizen who sees things the way they are. I would like to share your optimism but the figures are too clear to be ignored. Personally I feel we should now concentrate on agriculture and academic skills instead of relying on copper for an economic comeback .
Mbulakulima good move. Be alert and do your work delegently. You are making me proud. But you need to do more to ensure sanity.
I like the way things are unfolding now in the zambian eye. Investotrs are being watched, which is good. The machines that were being taken away may not belong to mopani but atleast this action does send signals to MCM owners not to outstriping mcm company and probably sell the gudgets outside. Lets even watch them more closely, I tell you, they’ll be careful with what they do to favour themselves and not the country – Zambia. I like the govt’s approach in this issue. Lets keep an eye of an eagle on these mine investors.
Save the Zedians [-x
Minister get yourfacts right Master Drilling was the largest Drilling contractor at Mindolo shaft and its a south african company with other drtilling contracts all over the world so beforemost people start Gun blazin get your facts right just like jacob mwanza stated any private company would do the same
And these are the investor you chaps went for! Marabish! No one should be allowed to take even a G-string from the Mines, OUR MINES!