JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Zambezi Platinum, the company created to house the newly constituted black shareholding in Northam Platinum, will be listed on the main board of the JSE on Monday.

As the kernel of JSE-listed Northam’s R6.6-billion black economic empowerment (BEE) ownership deal, Zambezi simultaneously make R4-billion in cash available to fund Northam’s growth aspirations, one of which has already been realised with the acquisition of Everest Platinum, which has since been renamed Booysendal South.

The special BEE vehicle will issue tradable preference shares, in which a broader public beyond Northam shareholders will have the opportunity to invest.

The establishment of Zambezi follows the BEE transaction of March 19, which won overwhelming shareholder support for repositioning Northam as a fully empowered South African mine-to-market platinum group metals producer.

With its conclusion, a sustainable black equity credential was conferred on Northam, which ticked the Mining Charter’s ownership box.

The BEE transaction was necessitated by the unbundling of Mvelaphanda’s previous BEE partnership after underlying shareholders disposed of a significant portion of these shares, leaving Northam bereft of full BEE credentials.

Long-standing nonexecutive Northam chairperson Lazarus Zim, who was intricately involved in the unravelled Mvelaphanda BEE structure, now heads the list of Zambezi directors, which includes Northam CEO Paul Dunne, Northam CFO Ayanda Khumalo, Northam chief commercial officer Leon van Schalkwyk, Sakhumnotho chairperson Sipho Mseleku, Mosomo Investment CE Brian Mosehla, and Buyel'Ekhaya Pan African Cultural Festival founder Nomahlubi Mazwai.

Northam and the State-owned Public Investment Corporation put a joint shoulder to the transaction wheel of just under 160-million shares at R41 a share.

Total black interest in the Department of Mineral Resources-approved transaction is 35.4%, taking in the pre-existing 4% Toro Trust black profit share structure.

The ten-year lock-in has been sweetened with an immediate R400-million to Zambezi BEE shareholders.

Within Zambezi, employees will receive 3% of the BEE shares and host communities 5% of the equity through the Booysendal and the Zondereinde community trusts.