Company says it wants to build trust and stronger relationship with Tanzania but declines to discuss smelter.
Investors on the teleconference include Western financial power houses JPMorgan Chase Bank, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Standard Bank.
Brad Gordon, ACACIA Chief Executive Officer
By TZ Business News Staff.
ACACIA Gold Mining PLC, the Barrick Gold subsidiary which currently operates three mines in Tanzania has held a teleconference with its worried investors to explain the situation it has described as “very fluid” in Tanzania where its exports of mineral concentrates has been banned.
Tanzania is accusing ACACIA of under declaring values of mineral concentrate exports and tax evasion.
Investors on the teleconference included the western financial giants JPMorgan Chase Bank, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Standard Bank.
Responding to one caller question, the ACACIA Chief Executive Officer Brad Gordon disclosed the export ban on mineral sand had in essence affected only one main player in the mining industry, ACACIA, because the other players were insignificant companies.
Gordon declined to answer some questions including one on the company’s stand on building a minerals concentrates smelter, explaining that those issues would be the subject of discussion in pending discussions with the Tanzania Government to resolve the export ban dispute. Tanzania wants all minerals processed locally to bring an end to exporting concentrates.
But he told investors the nation’s fiscal regime would be one of the topics to be tabled during the talks. A press release distributed June 29, 2017 expresses concern about the newly passed 2017/18 Finance Act and the mining laws under discussion in parliament.
The press release reads: “Acacia notes the publication of draft legislation which recommends changes to the legal framework governing the natural resources sector in Tanzania. We understand that this legislation is to be debated by the Parliament in an extended Parliamentary session.
“In addition, Parliament has approved the new Finance Act, which will impose a 1% clearing fee on the value of all minerals exported from the country from the 1st July 2017. Acacia will review the proposed changes in the context of our existing agreements and will provide further updates as appropriate.
The press release also re-iterates that proposed discussions with the Government of Tanzania regarding the current concentrate export ban had not yet commenced on June 29, 2017.
The CEO told investors ACACIA was interested in building a much stronger relationship with the Tanzania government and that they would seek to address the question of trust.
He said the dispute has affected worker’s morale because they have been given bad ‘labels’. Productivity will be affected, he said, adding that figures on the extent of the effect would be known when Q2 2017 production figures are released.
