ON THE MONEY
STUART THEOBALD: Guptas’ stewardship has left Optimum coal mine in dire straits, but there could yet be a glimmer of hope
Thousands of jobs and security of supply to Hendrina power station depend on what happens next at Optimum
The Optimum coal mine is enormous and it is in big trouble, thanks to the Guptas. In its 50-year history, it has mushroomed over 37,000ha of Mpumalanga, measuring 32km from one end to the other. It is actually four different mines: one mined out, one that supplies the international market when prices are high and two that Glencore had managed to operate at a loss to supply the Hendrina power station via a 30km conveyer belt. Some parts are open cast but in others the coal is deep and costly to access. Overall, Optimum is an expensive and complex operation. It has been under the Guptas’ control for two years since the family notoriously forced Glencore to sell it to them, using the Department of Mineral Resources and Eskom to extort it from the Swiss conglomerate. The Guptas managed to pay for the mine only with highly unusual and probably illegal financial support from Eskom, then led by Brian Molefe. And now Optimum is back in business rescue, with the Guptas on the run from the po...
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