Ivanplats responds to MRA accusations

MOKOPANE - About 100 people marched through the streets of Mokopane last week in protest against the business practices of the new Platreef mine outside town. With placards reading: “We want proper consultation [on] the communities like Machikiri Village and [athers],” the marchers presented a memorandum to representatives under the banner of the Mogalakwena Residents Association (MRA) and the South African National Civic Organisation (SANCO).
The marchers accused Ivanplats, owners of Platreef, of interfering with the local municipality in exchange for cheap water and demanded that 80% of the mine’s procurement and employees be from the local areas. They also demanded a copy of the long-term surface agreement and refused to recognise the traditional chief Platreef negotiated with.
“Ivanplats has noted the memorandum submitted last week,” says communications and public affairs vice-president, Jeremy Michaels. “It is worth pointing out that the estimated 100 people who participated in the march is hardly representative of the 150 000 people in our host communities.”
“This is not to to dismiss the concerns of those who participated in the protest,” he pointed out. “However, we are confident that the majority of people in our host communities support the development of a new mine which has already created 700 direct jobs and will created several thousand more direct and indirect through construction and production phases of the project.”
Michaels also added that many of the demands outlined in the memorandum were “either unreasonable or based on misinformation and, as such, we will not be responding in public to such demands.”
“One example of such misinformation is the distortion of facts relating to our Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) structure,” he explained. “We state categorically that Chief L.V. Kekana has no stake in our BBBEE structure. “The fact is that 20% of our BBBEE-structure is in the hands of our local communities.”
He added that a further 3% is in the hands of local entrepreneurs and another 3% in the hands of the workers. This means that the full 26% BBBEE stake is truly broad-based and in the hands of ordinary men and women from Mokopane.
Michaels also reaffirmed the company’s previous statements with regards to water issues and the Mogalakwena Municipality. “Ivanplats takes strong exception to ongoing attempts to draw us [Ivanplats] into the troubles at the Mogalakwena Municipality. The allegations are completely untrue and the company would like to state clearly that while there had been some discussions with the municipality – as has been the case with other mining houses in the area – about a take-off agreement, no such agreement was ever concluded and discussions with the municipality in this regard have since ceased.
“We will continue to engage the relevant community organisations as part of our broader stakeholder engagement efforts to assist them to better understand the facts.”