Zimbabwe tells banks to stop global payments for Zimplats

ZIMBABWE’S central bank has ordered the country’s banks to stop processing mineral exports by Impala Platinum’s local unit, Zimplats, which it accuses of failing to comply with an order to bank locally, a state newspaper said on Friday.

A spokeswoman for Zimplats, which is 87% owned by the South African miner, told the Herald that the directive was unnecessary because the company had complied with the instructions.

Central bank governor Gideon Gono said Zimplats had defied his directive, issued in February, to transfer funds from its offshore accounts to Zimbabwean banks, the newspaper reported.

“Due to the failure by Zimplats to adhere to provisions of this directive, to close their offshore accounts and transfer their funds to banks onshore as directed, exchange control has taken corrective administrative measures to enforce compliance,” the bank said. “In this regard, authorised dealers (banks) are hereby advised to stop processing and facilitating global or any cross-border payments on behalf of Zimplats, and to stop facilitating any exports on behalf of Zimplats.”

Zimplats spokeswoman Busi Chindove said: “We were surprised because in reality Zimplats had no objection to the initial communication by the reserve bank. To this end, the company is now paying for 75% of its expenditure in Zimbabwe. The remaining 25% relates to foreign loans that were raised with the knowledge, support and approval of the monetary authorities.”

If implemented, the central bank move would paralyse Zimplats’ exports, which account for 25% of Zimbabwe’s total mineral exports, according to official figures. Zimplats contributes 10% to its parent’s annual output.

Zimbabwe ordered foreign mining firms to deposit their export earnings with local banks as the government tackles a dollar crunch afflicting the economy.

Foreign companies have come under pressure from President Robert Mugabe’s government, which is championing an empowerment drive to transfer majority stakes to locals.

The government earlier this year threatened to take Zimplats over after it failed to submit a plan to distribute 51% of its shares to locals to comply with the country’s indigenisation laws. The company later submitted a plan to the government for evaluation.

Under its terms, the company said it would give 10% ownership to its workers, another 10% to a community trust near its mine, and 31% to the government’s Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Fund. Reuters, Sapa