Former MP Tororo Municipality, Sanjay Tana has been sworn in as the Chairperson of the Board of Directors for Kilembe Mines Ltd.
Tan and other members of the Board including; Gilbert Mujogya Atwooki, Edwin Kugonza, Eng. Nobert Semitala, Dr. Ruth Sengonzi, Mr. Candiga Eric, and Former MP Kasese District Loice Biira Bwambale were sworn in yesterday at the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development.
The swearing-in ceremony was presided over by State Minister for Minerals Peter Lokeris and State Minister of Finance for Investment and Privatization, Anite Evelyn.
Tana pledged to consult the old board and the ministry to revamp the various revenue sources and make it attractive for the investors to put in money and make a value-for-money proposition.
According to East News, the appointment of the new board followed the government’s decision to revamp the mines. Early this year, the Minister of Energy and Mineral Development, Ruth Nankabirwa said that the government had embarked on the redevelopment of Kilembe Mines.
She said the redevelopment is facilitated through the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development together with the Estate of the Late Sir George David Kamurasi Rukiidi III, the management of Kilembe Mines Limited-KML, and the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development.
The mine is located in Kilembe, a suburb of the town of Kasese, in the foothills of the Rwenzori Mountains in the Western Region of Uganda.
Kilembe Mines is Uganda’s largest copper mine, with estimated deposits of copper in excess of 4,000,000 tonnes and an undetermined amount of cobalt ore. There are approximately 2,800 acres (1,100 ha), of unexplored acreage at the site.
In July 1950, two Canadian mining companies, Frosbisher Limited and Ventures Limited, formed a joint venture, named Kilembe Mines Limited, whose objective was to mine copper from under the Rwenzori Mountains near Kasese. Kilembe Mines Limited built and operated a copper smelter in Jinja and maintained offices in Kampala, the country’s capital. Other assets include a housing estate for staff in Kasese and the 5MW Mubuku I Power Station in the Rwenzori Mountains.
In 1962, Kilembe Mines Limited was acquired by Falconbridge of Africa, who sold it to the Government of Uganda in 1975. Copper extraction ceased in 1982 due to dilapidated equipment, high inflation, and insecurity.
In 2013, after nearly 30 years of dormancy and after several failed attempts to privatize the mine, a consortium led by Tibet-Hima Mining Company Limited, won the competitive bid to manage, rehabilitate and operate Kilembe Mines Limited for 25 years from 2013 until 2038.
In exchange for those rights, the consortium paid cash down payment of US$4.3 million and is expected to make an annual payment of US$1 million until the end of the concession. Also, the consortium will invest US$135 million into rehabilitating and improving the mine and will increase the capacity of Mubuku I Power Station to 12MW. In addition to the cash payments above, the Ugandan government will receive royalties on the minerals extracted as well as taxes from Kilembe Mines Limited’s business operations.
