Zambia's copper giant ends long-running legal battle

Zambia's largest copper mine has dodged liquidation and received a cash injection of $1bn from its parent company, ending a four-year-long legal battle. London-listed Vedanta is the majority owner of Zambia's largest copper mining firm, Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), which has been at the centre of a stand-off with government, africanews reports. The state-owned ZCCM-IH is a minority shareholder in KCM. In 2019, the Zambian Government placed KCM in liquidation proceedings after accusing KCM of violating its operational licence and not paying all its taxes, sparking a long legal battle with Vedanta. KCM's liquidation process has now been halted and Vedanta would continue to run the mines as the majority shareholder with 79.4% stake, the government said. ‘The KCM board will be reinstated and Vedanta Resources Limited will return to its previous role as the majority shareholders,’ the country's Mining Minister said. In 2015, some 2 500 villagers filed a claim in London against KCM for alleged toxic pollution caused by water discharged from its unit Nchanga Copper Mine, situated in Zambia's central Copperbelt region. The mining firm agreed to settle the claims in 2021.

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