Former Lily Mine employees to get financial relief

Former employees of Lily Mine in Louisville near Barberton, Mpumalanga, will get financial relief from the company, Arqomanzi.

This was announced by company CEO, Neil Herrick at a meeting held at the KaLomyisho Tribal Authority which was led by Prince Tinkotele Dlamini.

The management of Arqomanzi confirmed that they would also pay the employees their outstanding monies owed by Vantage Goldfields since the mine collapsed in 2016. Herrick says all claims submitted by the employees and creditors will be paid.

He says their main focus will be to recover the container with the remains of the three workers trapped underground when the mine collapsed five years ago.

“In a nutshell what Arqomanzi has decided today is to bring some immediate financial relief to former employees of Nimco and Babrook who were out for over five years earning nothing in an area that suffered greatly because of the closure of the two mines. Our plan is in the next three days, we invited the employees of Nimco and Babrook back here, we are going to pay them an amount of R15 000 plus five thousand per person, we will pay all employees and creditors up to 65 percent of their total claim.”

Court rules against Lily Mine business rescue practitioners

Last week, the High Court in Mpumalanga ruled that the Lily Mine business rescue practitioners cannot unilaterally amend the business rescue plan.

This is after one of the Lily Mine’s creditors – Arqomanzi – approached the court after the practitioners unilaterally amended the rescue plan in January.

Arqomanzi says the amended was done in favour of the owners of the mine, Vantage Goldfields after they secured a financial deal with Australia-based company, Macquarie Metals.

Herrick said the practitioners should now follow proper procedures in order to reopen the Babrook and Lily Mine, as well as recovering the remains of the three workers who were trapped underground when the mine collapsed five years ago.

“So we are satisfied with the outcome and we have always contended that the business rescue practitioners acted unlawfully when they attempted to unilaterally the rescue plans. We always contended that Vantage … requirements of the business rescue practitioner were also unlawful and the court has now agreed to that,” explained Herrick.