Oliver Haill  DigitalLook Web Financial Services.     12.06.2017

Acacia Mining has been accused of operating in Tanzania illegally, as a second presidential mining committee alleged the company had been understating its level of exports for several years to avoid “tens of billions of US dollars”.

A second presidential committee set up by Tanzania’s President John Magufuli to examine London-listed Acacia’s disputed gold-copper concentrate exports accused the company of operating outside proper Tanzanian law and even of not being properly licensed to operate in the country.

At a public reading of the report in Dar es Salaam, committee chief Professor Nehemiah Osoro accused Acacia of “mining illegally” and more generally accused owners of mining companies in the country of having “committed various crimes”, while also laying blame at local officials for signing deals that allowed wide-scale tax evasion.

One of the report’s recommendations was that the Tanzanian government build smelter in order to prevent the need for it to monitor concentrate exports, something with which Acacia has previously offered to help, though analysts have said they do not think the country is producing enough concentrate to justify its own smelter.

Osoro’s recommendations also included the government taking a greater ownership in the mines, the payment of newly calculated taxes and royalties, re-negotiation of large-scale mineral development agreements and the continuation of the export ban.

Acacia refuted the allegations, countering that the report’s findings were based on those of the earlier investigation in May that the company also refutes as the findings were based on samples from 44 containers and ran counter to “more than 20 years of data”.

“Acacia strongly refutes these new unfounded accusations,” the FTSE 250 company said later on Monday. “We have always conducted our business to the highest standards and operated in full compliance with Tanzanian law.

“We re-iterate that we have declared everything of commercial value that we have produced since we started operating in Tanzania and have paid all appropriate royalties and taxes on all of the payable minerals that we produce. In addition, our published accounts are annually audited to an international standard in accordance with IFRS.”

LOST MILLIONS

Magufuli, nicknamed ‘the bulldozer’, commissioned a second presidential committee to look into the “economic and legal aspects of historic exports of metallic mineral concentrates” after an initial committee accused Acacia of under-reporting the amount of gold concentrate for export by a factor of 10.

Acacia has been banned from exporting gold/copper concentrate since March and said it is losing around $1m a month as the ban effects two of its three mines in the country.

On Monday the committee said a large number of containers were shipped from Tanzania between 1998 and 2017 without being listed and so calculated that it had lost an average of 108trn shillings (£38bn) and 188trn through gold, copper concentrates export between 1998 to 2017.

Acacia, which saw its own cash in the bank slip to $165m at the end of May from $196m at the end of the first quarter, has provided the second committee with access to each of its mine sites and all available mineral data, while arguing that the findings of the first committee “contain significant discrepancies compared to the more than 20 years of data”.

Acacia highlighted that 96% of the workers at its mines are Tanzanian and that it and its shareholders have funded $4bn of investment in the country to date.

“Acacia remains open to further dialogue with the Government regarding this issue and continues to assess all of its options. We will provide a further update to the market as soon as practical,” the company said.

Some analysts believe Acacia will have to pay a large sum to resolve the dispute, while other think the Tanzanian government’s demand may be more complicated.

It was reported on local media over the weekend that Acacia confirmed it is in the process of retrenching its workers at its mines, though mostly in the security section.

More on Acacia

DODOMA, Tanzania

Tanzania plans to introduce a 1% clearing fee on the value of mineral exports in 2017/18 (July-June), its finance minister said on Thursday, part of government measures aimed at getting a bigger share of revenues from the east African country’s natural resources.

“The government will not allow the direct export of minerals from mines,” finance and planning minister Philip Mpango said in his budget speech in parliament.

Mpango said the government would announce more details on the new mineral clearing fee at a later date.

Last month, President John Magufuli fired his mining minister and the chief of the State-run mineral audit agency after an investigation into possible undeclared exports by mining companies.

A second audit of the mining sector is now underway after Magufuli said the first audit committee said it found Acacia Mining had ten times more gold in its containers than the company had declared, as well as undeclared minerals such as iron and sulphur.

Acacia has denied any wrongdoing and said the state’s audit of the company’s gold and copper ore was inaccurate and has said it would consider its options in the east African country.

Introduction of the clearing fee also comes after Magufuli ordered a ban on exports of gold and copper concentrates in March to push for domestic value addition of minerals through the construction of a copper smelter.

Magufuli also announced in May that his government would enforce a new rule requiring mining companies to list on the country’s stock exchange by August 23.

Major foreign-owned mining companies in Tanzania that will be affected by the requirement to list on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange include Acacia Mining, AngloGold Ashanti and Petra Diamonds.

Tanzania is Africa‘s fourth-biggest gold producer and also has vast deposits of coal, uranium and precious gemstones.

Magufuli said he hoped the listings would bring more transparency and offer the public a share of the mining industry’s profits.

Since coming into office in November 2015, Magufuli has targeted large companies, particularly mining and telecoms businesses, in a crackdown on tax evasion.

Minerals Clearing Fee

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Acacia Gold Mining Company’s shares in the FTSE 250 group fell 30 per cent on Wednesday, and dropped another 12 per cent to 268p by Wednesday evening after Tanzania Presidential Committee presented report on the company’s ore concentrate shipments.

In Dar es Salaam, shares of the mining firm at the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange fell by 19.47 per cent on Thursday after dropping by 17.3 per cent on Wednesday.

A report by a presidential committee revealed that Acacia Mining declared the presence of gold, copper and silver in its mineral sand exports but did not declare other precious metals in the consignments.

The committee which presented its findings this week said they found that 277 containers probed held as much as 15.5 metric tons of gold, instead of the 1.1 tons that had been declared.

Following the report, President John Magufuli fired the Minister for Energy and Minerals, Prof Sospeter Muhongo and the Chief Executive Officer of the Tanzania Minerals Audit Agency (TMAA).

However, miner’s shares rebound after calling independent review and after its intention to challenge the report into the company’s value of shipments.

Acacia

Vodacom Group’s Tanzanian unit has received regulatory approval to extend the deadline of its share sale for three weeks, allowing investors more time to take part in the country’s biggest initial public offering to date.

The offer will now expire on 11 May, Ian Ferrao, MD of the Vodacom-owned business, said in a statement on Tuesday. The extension will give retail and institutional investors more time to take part, he said.

“Vodacom Tanzania expects a continued influx of applications for shares during the course of this week,” Ferrao said.   Vodacom IPO Extension

Kampuni ya Vodacom imepata idhini ya kuendelea kuuza hisa zake za awali kwa muda wa wiki tatu, kutoa muda zaidi kwa wawekezaji wengi kushiriki katika uuzwaji mkubwa wa hisa za awali kwa umma hadi sasa.

Uuzwaji huu sasa utaendelea mpaka tarehe 11 Mei, Ian Ferrao, Mkurugenzi Mkuu wa Vodacom alisema katika taarifa yake siku ya Jumanne. Kuongezwa huku kwa muda kwa Vodacom kutatoa fursa zaidi kwa wawekezaji wa rejareja na wa kitaasisi kupata muda zaidi wa kushiriki, alisema.

“Vodacom Tanzania inatarajia kupokea kwa wingi maombi ya ununuzi huu wa hisa katika wiki hii,” Ferrao alisema.

TCCIA Investment PLC IPO continues to next week, closes 14 March 2017.

I&M Bank Rwanda IPO closed on Friday 10 March 2017.

VODACOM Tanzania IPO launched on Thursday, 9 March 2017, will run till 19  April 2017.

For foreign investors;  if Vodacom IPO won’t be fully subscribed will be allowed for the purchase, so far could participate through purchasing our UMANDE Units that will be invested in the VODACOM.

And our dear retail and small investors under Tshs. 85,000/- could participate by investing in our UMANDE Units the same as would have invested in the VODACOM. Our UMANDE Units starts with Tshs. 15,000/- investment.

Please visit our Muhunda Resources offices in Musoma, Mara or contact us for more information.

Kampuni ya Muhunda Resources katika ofisi zake za Mjini Musoma imeanza kuuza hisa za Kampuni ya Kiuwekezaji ya Chama cha Wafanyabiashara, Viwanda na Kilimo (TCCIA) kwa Uwekezaji wa Awali (IPO) kuanzia wiki hii. Bei ya hisa moja ni sh. 400/ – na kiwango cha chini cha Uwekezaji/Ununuzi wa hisa ni sh. 40,000/-  Wasiliana nasi kwa maelezo zaidi.  KARIBUNI NYOTE!

Muhunda Resources Limited at its offices in Musoma town has begun offering for sale to the public The TCCIA Investment PLC’s Initial Public Offering (IPO) since this week. Each share is priced at Tshs. 400/- with minimum share purchase of Tshs. 40,000/-  Contact us for more information. WELCOME ALL! TCCIA IPO

TCCIA Investment Company Limited aims to raise TZS 45 billion and double its asset value from the selling of 112,500,000 shares valued at 400/- each from next week. The company is poised to be the first investment company to list on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange, DSE. The IPO is scheduled to last 45 days running from the 1st February to 14th March 2017. The company is expected to be fully publicly tradeable after the 24th April 2017, with a Market Capitalization of 73bn/-. TCCIA IPO

THE Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) is set to penalise telecommunications companies that have not completed the process of listing their shares at the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE). Telcos DSE Listing