Vedanta Resources Ltd has announced that it has arranged the financing needed to start paying creditors of its Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) in Zambia, as the company takes steps to revive operations after regaining control of the assets.
The miner, owned by Indian billionaire Anil Agarwal, will have around $250 million to pay small creditors in Zambia on or around July 8, the company said in a statement.
Vedanta needs to settle debts owed by KCM as part of a deal reached with Zambian authorities after it regained control of the copper mines and smelter late last year. The company had been embroiled in a five-year battle to recover the assets, which were seized by the administration of former Zambian president Edgar Lungu, who accused Vedanta of failing to invest to expand copper production.
In addition to settling the outstanding debts, Vedanta has also announced that it will grant KCM workers a 20% salary increase and a one-off payment of 2,500 Zambian Kwacha (about $102).
However, the company still needs to raise an additional $1 billion to revive the mining operations and invest in advancing the Konkola Deep Mining Project, which holds one of the richest copper deposits in the world.
Vedanta has said it is committed to exploring all funding options, including through debt or by selling a stake in the copper assets. Talks to sell a 30% stake in KCM to the United Arab Emirates’ International Resources Holding (IRH) collapsed after the parties failed to agree on the assets’ value.
The Zambian government owns a 20% stake in KCM through the state-owned firm ZCCM-IH.