[miningmx.com] – IVANHOE Mines said that most of the communities involved in its black economic empowerment scheme at its proposed Platreef mine in South Africa’s Mokopane region were consulted about the transaction.
Citing activists, Bloomberg News had earlier reported that communities in the Mokopane area in the northern Limpopo province, were concerned about how long it would take to repay the debt on a 20% stake in the proposed $1.6bn Platreef project.
“The million-dollar question for us is when will our debt be fully repaid,’ Aubrey Langa, an adviser to the Kopano Committee that represents five settlements in the community, told Bloomberg News.
However, Ivanhoe Mines said that the communities themselves would not incur any debt obligations as a result of the B-BBEE [Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment] transaction…”.
The company added that 15 of the 20 participating communities in the empowerment scheme voted on the transaction and that in structuring the deal some 150 stakeholder meetings were held.
It added that Langa was previously convicted of furnishing false information, robbery and attempted murder. He had also been involved in inciting violence during the stakeholder meetings held by Ivanhoe Mines, the company said.
“The black economic empowerment transaction and process leading up to the grant of the mining right have been fully transparent and in line with the objectives of the National Development Plan in terms of transformation,” said Patricia Makhesha, MD of Ivanplats through which Ivanhoe Mines owns the majority stake in the Platreef Project.
