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Prosper Ndlovu in Hwange—
THE era of failure is over for Hwange Colliery Company Limited (HCCL) following yesterday’s official commissioning of massive mining equipment worth $31,2 million sourced by the government and its private partners. Vice-President Phelekezela Mphoko presided over the historic unveiling of the new equipment sourced from India and Belarus – marking the beginning of a new era for the troubled giant colliery firm.

Several dignitaries and cabinet ministers among them Patrick Chinamasa (Finance), Walter Chidhakwa (Mines), Joseph Made (Agriculture), Christopher Mutswangwa (War Veterans), Cain Mathema (Matabeleland North Provincial Minister), Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor John Mangudya, Indian envoy R S Malhorta, deputy prime minister of Belarus Sergel Roumas and representatives from the PTA Bank, BEML Company of India and Belaz Company from Belarus, witnessed the event.

The 24-piece modern equipment comprises of 10x130T dump trucks, front-end loaders, bull dozers, bowsers, graders, drill rigs, a wheel changer and other accessories indexed at international standards.

In his address, VP Mphoko said HCCL was now expected to deliver positive results and declare a dividend worth the investment injected into its operations. “This investment is a clear testimony that Zimbabwe will continue to grow with the support of its partners from the East. This is a milestone development for the mining sector and the entire economy at large,” said the Vice-President.

“This investment must put HCCL at advantage point to stand on its feet, achieve a turnaround and meet shareholder expectation. The government expects you to start declaring a dividend sooner than later. One of the important spin-offs is safeguarding of about 3,000 jobs. As the government, we continue to engage Belarus and the PTA Bank to support us in other key economic projects.”

VP Mphoko said the revamping of HCCL and other companies was in line with the fulfilment of the government’s Zim-Asset economic blueprint goals.

Mines Minister Chidhakwa made an impassionate speech, challenging the HCCL board and management to deliver expected results.

He said the government had done its part through mobilising financing for the recapitalisation of the firm including converting the company’s $78 million debt into equity.

“In the next few weeks, you’ll see the issuing of rights offer and total cleansing of the HCCL debt so that the PTA Bank and BEML do not invest in a burdened firm.

“We now expect the board of directors here to redouble their efforts and extend working hours and make sure this equipment is used for the benefit of the people of Zimbabwe,” said Chidhakwa.

“We expect the dividend from here to be fed into the national fiscus and ensure that Zimbabwe survives. Some board members think that their responsibility is to get school fees for their children and not serving interests of shareholders. The management here pledged to do their best and you must ensure you fulfil that.”

The minister also said the government would soon allocate HCCL new coal mining concessions following its plea on the depletion of its old fields.

HCCL board chair Farai Mutamangira said the recapitalisation of the firm was a major breakthrough in the history of the company since its establishment in 1899.

He said the company would now be able to produce up to 400 tonnes of coal per month from an average 200 tonnes.

The company also presented highlights of its turnaround strategy that is anchored on five pillars – recapitalisation, contract mining, divisionalisation, balance sheet restructuring and customer service.

HCCL exports coal and coke to several countries in the region that include South Africa, Zambia and the DRC.

The acquisition of the new equipment is also expected to reduce production costs and ensure more exploitation of the resource underground.

Improved output will also see the company increasing supplies to Zesa for thermal power generation.