Shiva Uranium
Workers stranded at Gupta mine
Competing interests have paralysed the business rescue of the former Gupta asset Shiva Uranium, leaving workers unpaid and the mine falling into possibly terminal disrepair
When the Gupta family bought the Dominion uranium mine in 2010 they renamed it Shiva, after the god of destruction. A principal Hindu deity, Shiva is typically depicted as blue-skinned, with a deadly cobra wrapped around his neck and dark, matted hair. His third eye, when open, emits flame and fury, turning everything to ash. His body, too, is covered in ash — a reminder that all of material existence is transient and that everything comes to an end. The name is apt as, increasingly, Shiva Uranium appears doomed. President Cyril Ramaphosa’s inauguration in February made life in SA too hot for the Gupta brothers, who are now thought to spend their time in Dubai or India. Their companies were placed in business rescue after transactional banking facilities were cut off. But now a complex and at times baffling mix of interests threatens the rescue process — particularly at Shiva, where operations have come to a standstill. The futures of 287 people hang in the balance, and it’s feared ...
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