[miningmx.com] — There are “serious discrepancies” between the assets handed to back Aurora’s liquidators, and those given to Aurora when it made a R600m bid for the financially-striken Pamodzi Gold mines.
“Our preliminary conclusions are that there are serious discrepancies between the assets returned to the joint provisional liquidators by Aurora… ” one of the liquidators, Johan Engelbrecht, said in a statement on Tuesday.
The joint provisional liquidators, appointed to manage Pamodzi’s assets, recently cancelled their interim trading and contract mining agreement with Aurora. As a result Aurora had to hand back the mines – the Orkney mine in the North West and the Grootvlei mine in Springs, Gauteng – to the liquidators in the same condition it found them in.
Unions, representing workers who were owed millions of rands in unpaid salaries, had claimed Aurora was stripping the mines’ assets.
“The joint provisional liquidators are determining the way forward,” Engelbrecht said.
In addition, Aurora had failed to continue pumping operations at the Grootvlei mine, to prevent the mines from flooding, due to its failure to maintain equipment and pay electricity bills.
If this was allowed to continue, a “major ecological disaster” could result, Engelbrecht warned. The liquidators intended approaching the water affairs department to find a solution.
Aurora currently owed Eskom about R54m. The power utility subsequently cut the power. An agreement had however been reached for a limited electricity supply, to preserve the mine’s assets. Contractors had been appointed at both mines to generate sufficient interim income to protect the assets.
The liquidators invited other interested parties to make a bid for the mines.
“This invitation is to expeditiously finalise the disposal of the mines in a transparent and responsible manner, given its… impact on employment and the economy of the areas.”
Pamodzi went into liquidation in 2009, after which the liquidators accepted Aurora’s R600m bid for the mines. Aurora Empowerment Systems however failed to come up with the money and pay the salaries of workers. It is headed by former president Nelson Mandela’s grandson Zondwa, and President Jacob Zuma’s nephew Khulubuse.
