21 Feb 2019

 Selibe Phikwe West MP, Mr Dithapelo Keorapetse has implored government to re-open the liquidated BCL copper mine.

 Debating the budget speech, Mr Keorapetse said the closure of the mine was not an isolated incident, as other copper mines in Botswana also bore the brunt of the commodity price rout. 

He stated that the closure of the mine was a mistake as copper and nickel prices had bounced back as predicted in 2016. 

 He said the BCL mine was in a position to reopen at any moment on condition of the removal of the liquidator, adding that two of the BCL shafts could be opened immediately where the developed and well defined ore of high profitable grade could be mined instantly.

The idea, he said, could be to mine, concentrate and sell as it could generate revenue which could be used to resuscitate the smelter since it would require high capital injection to restart.

He said neighbouring countries base metal industries were performing well with the same model of mining, concentrating and selling without smelting. 

Mr Keorapetse stated that some copper mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo had indicated interest to export  their copper concentrates to Selibe Phikwe for smelting, saying it could generate more revenue for BCL sustenance.

 Interested investors, he said, had, however, pulled back due to the liquidator’s demands, who on the other hand, continued to benefit heftily on the mine’s liquidation process by asking prospective buyers to assume the P2.8 billion environmental rehabilitation liability.

He said it was alleged that the machinery and shafts at the mine were slowly deteriorating and that there was flooding underground, which could also scare away potential buyers.

He argued that the mine should be reopened with or without the liability.

The Selibe Phikwe MP said another alternative would be to set up an environmental rehabilitation liability trust since it was clear that the liquidator was damaging mine asserts.

The closure of the mine, he said, had consequently led to Selibe Phikwe experiencing repeated earth tremors.

Mr Keorapetse further pleaded with government to pay former mine employees their entire retrenchment packages to lighten the effects of the abrupt closure of the mine which left them in instant destitution.

 “I understand that some former mine employees are still owned their packages as they were served with Section 25 of the Employment Act letters that is the retrenchment clause, only for the mine to be liquidated thereafter,” he said.

He said the closure of the mine had left many indebted as 106 people had been civil imprisoned for failing to pay their debt.   

He said BCL’s closure also affected coal production with Morupule Coal Mine (MCM) reducing output while the water and electricity sectors also reduced output due to the closure of the copper and nickel mines.

He noted that BCL was one of the biggest consumers of Morupule coal while the mine also consumed power in huge quantities.

He also called on government to relocate BIUST’s Department of Mining and Geological Engineering from Palapye to Selibe Phikwe for the purpose of establishing the Phikwe BIUST campus as part of efforts to resuscitate the town’s economy.

As a way of revitalising the Phikwe economy, Mr Keorapetse said government also needed to review the SPEDU mandate so that it was increased further from  playing a mere facilitators role to an expanded role of the investors arm of the region. ENDS