By Precious Chida
Freda Rebecca Gold Mine has been licenced to buy gold directly from 500 smal-scale miners and artisanal miners operating within its claims.
Freda Rebecca has gold claims spreading over 60 000 hectares, which are concentrated in Manicaland and Mashonaland provinces.
In terms of the licence and agreement with Fidelity Refiners and Printers, seen by this publication, Freda Rebecca would purchase gold at the same price as that being offered by Fidelity of US$45 000 per kilogramme.
On the back of this agreement, Freda Rebecca Holdings has entered into a partnership with CBZ Bank, which will see specific banking halls being converted into specialised gold buying and handling centres.
The bank’s extensive branch network has been utilised to ensure the gold buying centres are located as close to the miners as possible.
“We are basically buying gold from small-scale miners, who are operating from our claims, so we are basically mobilising unaccounted for gold and we officialise it to Fidelity Refiners and Printers,” said Freda Rebecca Gold Mine general manager Eliakem Hove.
“This gesture helps towards ensuring transparency within the gold sector.
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“We have close to 500 small-scale miners who we are empowering through this initiative.”
Freda Rebecca Gold Mine is a subsidiary of Landela Investments.
Speaking on the sidelines of an inspection of the recently completed pilot buying centre in Harare, Landela Holdings officials said the initiative followed realisation that artisanal miners were being short-changed by unscrupulous middlemen who sought to undervalue proceeds from small-scale miners and in turn illegally export the gold.
It is envisaged that this initiative will result in the government being able to account for more gold and ultimately plug gold leakages.
The artisanal miners would be paid their full amount for gold delivered in United States dollars from CBZ banking halls, and the bank has already committed to creating products tailored for the miners to enable them to access loans for capital expenditure as well as working capital.
CBZ will also offer investment advisory services to the small-scale miners to help them grow into mainstream mining firms.
This initiative is expected to increase the government’s gold receipts considering the level of transparency as gold from all Freda Rebecca’s claims will be accounted for.
CBZ must be able to do the same with other gold mining companies and open branches in Kwekwe, Kadoma, Gweru, Gwanda, Bindura, and Harare for the benefit of other miners outside Freda Rebecca’s mining claims, an official said.
Landela will offer technical support, equipment and financial support to small-scale miners as a way of boosting their operations, which will be recovered through gold sales.
Freda Rebecca has set in motion a process to re-register holders of tributaries on its mining claims to ensure that all activities are legalised.
This exercise will see the stopping of custom milling, which is happening on its claims since they may fail to channel their gold through a formal system.
“The aim is to buy 500kg of gold monthly from artisanal miners and tribute holders while the overall vision is to attain one tonne monthly over the next three years,” Hove said.
