Business / Companies
Zimbabwe suspends 15% platinum levy
25 May 2015 at 08:22hrs | Views
ZIMBABWE has put the brakes on a plan to levy a 15% tax on unbeneficiated platinum group metals (PGMs).
The levy would not be implemented until current discussions between platinum miners and Government were finalised, said Walter Chidhakwa, Zimbabwe's mines minister at an Indaba of mining executives and government officials at Victoria Falls today.
The mineral rich southern African country has the world's second largest platinum reserves after South Africa. These deposits have attracted investment from Anglo American Platinum (Amplats), Impala Platinum (Implats) and Aquarius Platinum as well as Russian investors which are developing the Darwendale project.
A government directive that platinum miners build beneficiation and refining facilities in Zimbabwe had raised alarm among executives of the platinum mining groups who said it was unviable.
Chidakwa said only Zimplats, which is controlled by Implats, had so far shown it had the capacity to refine the precious metal inside the country. Mimosa, in which Implats and Aquarius were invested, and Amplats' Unki, were still required to provide plans detailing how they would comply with the directive.
The levy would not be implemented until current discussions between platinum miners and Government were finalised, said Walter Chidhakwa, Zimbabwe's mines minister at an Indaba of mining executives and government officials at Victoria Falls today.
A government directive that platinum miners build beneficiation and refining facilities in Zimbabwe had raised alarm among executives of the platinum mining groups who said it was unviable.
Chidakwa said only Zimplats, which is controlled by Implats, had so far shown it had the capacity to refine the precious metal inside the country. Mimosa, in which Implats and Aquarius were invested, and Amplats' Unki, were still required to provide plans detailing how they would comply with the directive.
Source - miningmx
