BARBERTON – By June 19 all role players in the business rescue of Lily Mine and Barbrook Mine will know if there is a brighter future for the two mines.
A proposed merger could see the mines become part of a company registered on the Canadian Stock Exchange. There is a proposal on the table that Vantage Goldfields, owners of Lily and Barbrook, merge with Galane Gold.
Rob Devereaux, business-rescue practitioner for Lily and Barbrook, told Lowvelder that R190 million from the Canadian company would be used towards carrying out the stipulations of the business-rescue plan.
A further R130 million from a South African BEE partnership structure will also be used in the rescue.
Read about negotiations between roleplayers
“As a business-rescue practitioner, I have issued my notices of the new developments to the parties involved, like the trade unions. Amcu is supportive but we have not heard from Solidarity as of yet. We are still having discussions with the Office of the Premier, but do have a clear road map going forward.”
The merger will have to work strictly according to the plan prepared by Devereaux earlier this year, when Barbrook was also placed under business rescue.
“My message to the miners is that it was difficult to get investment into the mines. This is a most welcome merger which will take both mines and the companies involved forward.”
Also read how illegal mining was rife months before the Lily Mine collapse
Gideon du Plessis of Solidarity said the members of the union involved will “get excited when we see these plans realised, as the investment deals have been coming and going since April last year.”
The members, however, are of the opinion that the Canadian company is a better option than AfroCan Resources Gold. A deal with this company fell through in 2016.
“This is also a marginal company, but they do have a local presence and seemed to have shown resilience in the negotiation process. What makes it positive for us is that they do have a bigger mining investment focus, which bodes well for sustainability.”
• Comment from Amcu and the Office of the Premier was not available at time of going online.
