Chinese buy liquidated Orkney gold mine for R150m, plan R525m capital injection, High Court Aurora enquiry

Chinese company SSC Mandarin of Hong Kong has agreed to buy Pamodzi Gold’s Orkney gold mine out of liquidation for R150-million; the purchase takes place as an in-camera Master of the High Court enquiry is under way into the Pamodzi Gold...

More than 300 illegal miners arrested at Grootvlei – Aurora

Embattled Aurora Empowerment Systems said on Wednesday that it was being held under siege by illegal miners plundering the Grootvlei mine, east of Johannesburg. Aurora GM Louis Lamsley said that the “extremely violent” illegal miners had been...

Aurora receives R14m from Swiss group, union still sceptical

The much-publicised financial troubles of Aurora Empowerment Systems once again took centre stage on Monday, when the company announced that Swiss investment group Global Emerging Markets (Gem) had advanced the first tranche of interim funding to...

Aurora may be setting new labour standards – economist

Aurora – the company controlling the Orkney and Grootvlei mines formerly owned by Pamodzi Gold – may be setting new labour standards, economist Mike Schussler said on Thursday. "The example of people working for free at the Aurora mines shows...

$51,5m Chinese bid for Aurora's stricken Orkney, Grootvlei gold

A Chinese-backed consortium – the Virgile Asia Mining Consortium that is believed to include the Hong Kong-listed Grand TG Gold – on Tuesday submitted a formal $51,5-million bid for the financially stricken Orkney and Grootvlei gold mines,...

Weekly podcast – June 2, 2010

Demand for rough diamonds, particularly from China and India, remains strong; AngloGold Ashanti's Tropicana gold project in Australia should proceed despite concerns about a proposed new mining tax; and Eskom's discussions with Anglo American...

Chinese eye Aurora's Orkney as AngloGold cut services

A Chinese consortium is reportedly keen to wrest the ownership of the Orkney gold mine away from the cash-strapped Aurora Empowerment, coinciding with the tough step taken by AngloGold Ashanti to halt the services it was rendering to the...

Workers at Aurora Orkney down tools again

Mineworkers at Aurora Empowerment System's Orkney operations, outside Klerksdorp, have once again downed tools, this time over unpaid wages for March. The Orkney mine resumed operations last week, after workers ended a month-long strike over...

Aurora to resume mining at Orkney

Aurora Empowerment Systems will restart operations at its Orkney mine on Wednesday, after workers ended a month-long strike over late payment of wages. Aurora commercial director Sheshile Ngubane told Mining Weekly Online that around 1 200...

Union wants DMR to intervene in Aurora retrenchments

South Africa's powerful National Union of Mines (NUM) wants Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) DG Sandile Nogxina to intervene in its dispute with new gold-mining company Aurora Empowerment Systems. NUM spokesperson Lesiba Seshoka told Mining...

Thousands strike as Mandela-Zuma's Aurora gold retrenches

The fledgling gold-mining company Aurora Empowerment Systems is suffering strain. It is headed by former President Nelson Mandela's grandson and President Jacob Zuma's nephew and it is shedding a large number of jobs. A total of 1 440 jobs are...

Aurora says fire broke out at Orkney mine

South African junior miner Aurora Empowerment Systems had to evacuate workers at its Orkney mine on Wednesday, after a fire broke out at the operation, the company, headed by Nelson Mandela's grandson Zondwa Mandela, said on Thursday.