7 October 1999
Pretoria, Thursday, 7 October 1999: We have received confirmation from Nabera's financiers that they have raised the R120 million loan facility in fulfillment of the condition precedent in The Management Agreement. We are currently in the process of working out the details of the loan agreement.
We are also confident that this is a positive signal that the exploration strategy, so vital for extending the life of the mine, can proceed without further delay. We will await the details of the exploration strategy and a cost benefit analysis so that an informed decision can be made on the medium to long-term prospects of the mine.
We also want to assure the workers of Alexkor mine and all those who depend on the subsidiary industries for their livelihood and survival that government will leave no stone unturned to ensure that Alexkor Mine becomes a well-managed, effective and efficient state-owned business entity. For this reason the IMCC last week sanctioned the deployment of a state compliance team to the mine to prevent further deterioration of the status of the mine. In addition, we are interacting with the IDC and the Department of Minerals and Energy with a view to second appropriately skilled staff to Alexkor. We believe that these measures begin to address the pivotal role that the mine plays in the domestic economy of the Namaqualand region.
Press Statement by the Department of Public Enterprises
Contact: Zaid Nordien: 082 453 6224