Chinese, locals bid Pamodzi Gold's Orkney, Harmony wrapping up Free State
miningweekly.com
By: Martin Creamer
30th July 2009
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) - Two strong bids were in for Pamodzi Gold's provisionally liquidated Orkney gold mine; Harmony Gold's takeover of Pamodzi's Free State gold assets was imminent; and a Chinese organisation was showing interest in both Orkney and Pamodzi Gold's East Rand gold assets, Mining Weekly Online learnt on Thursday.
While provisional liquidator Enver Motala was prepared to confirm the two strong local bids for Orkney and the finalisation of Harmony's Free State mine, he would neither confirm nor deny the move of the China Africa Development Fund to acquire both Orkney and the Pamodzi Gold's hedge-burdened East Rand gold mine.
"We'll finalise the Harmony-Free State deal next week," Motala told Mining Weekly Online.
Thereafter, the approval of the competition authorities would have to be secured along with transfer of the mining licence to Harmony.
"We have some very lucrative offers for Orkney, two of which we are seriously considering," Motala added.
The announcement of the preferred bidder for Orkney, which had undertaken to absorb its entire work force, was expected in the first week of August.
Both bidders were local companies: "We're going ahead full steam," Motala said.
Mining Weekly Online learnt separately that the former Pamodzi management were working in tandem with the China Africa Development Fund on possible Orkney and East Rand transactions.
Mining Weekly Online understood, at the time of going to press, that the China Africa Development Fund had made an approach through the Standard Bank, which is the official adviser to the team of provisional liquidators, to buy both Orkney and East Rand. |
