Diversified miner Vedanta Resources Holdings has advised that it, and its parent company Vedanta Resources Limited, will this year continue to pursue their rights in respect of the Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), in Zambia, in which the company holds a 79.4% interest.
The Zambian High Court in November granted a court order that restricts the sale of the Mimbula mining right by the KCM provincial liquidator. This order remains valid.
Vedanta on Monday said it appeared that the liquidator was seeking to dispose of further KCM assets, to which Vedanta would seek the required court action in each instance.
Zambian State-owned mining company ZCCM-IH’s winding-up petition continues to be stayed, pending the hearing of appeals by both Vedanta and ZCCM-IH.
Meanwhile, an arbitration process around KCM is ongoing.
Vedanta contends that ZCCM-IH is in breach of a shareholders agreement since May 21 last year, since ZCCM-IH sought an ex parte order from the Lusaka High Court to appoint a provincial liquidator for KCM to begin wind-up proceedings.
The South African High Court then granted Vedanta an application for an injunction in support of an arbitration agreement – as envisaged in a shareholders agreement between the parties – and ordered that the KCM winding up be withdrawn.
Vedanta stated that neither ZCCM-IV nor the provincial liquidator had yet complied with that injunction.
The Zambian government previously said it had appointed a liquidator to run KCM, claiming that KCM had breached the terms of its licence.
Vedanta remains committed to seeking resolution through dialogue and constructive engagement with the Zambian government and ZCCM-IH, it stated.