By CHARITY MOONGA –

MAAMBA Collieries operations achieved a break even in 2014-15 with a total volume of 100,000 tonnes of high-grade coal earning about US$ 48 a tonne.
ZCCM-IH owns 35 per cent of Maamba Collieries Limited (MCL) shares and the other 65 per cent is owned by Nava Bharat (Singapore) Pte Ltd (NBS).
The two shareholders have developed strategies to run the company as an integrated coal mining and thermal power plant company.
The thermal power plant project is being implemented in phases with the first phase producing 300 MW. The total cost of the integrated project is $750m.
According to the online Business Standard, Nava Bharat Ventures executive director of GRK Prasad Nava Bharat said MCL has so far invested about $223 million in the project mostly as its equity out of a total funding requirement of $830 million for the coal and power projects.
The company had revived the coal mining operations in MCL, which was estimated to have 140 million tonnes of high grade coal and thermal coal reserves spread on 1070 hectares out of a total concession area of 7,900 hectares.
Mr Prasad said MCL had achieved considerable progress with reference to debt financing.
“Our Zambian company, Maamba Collieries Limited has achieved considerable progress with reference to debt financing.
After the latest stipulation of lenders on the enhancement of security mechanism, the Zambian company has been able to obtain the approval of the Government of Zambia for a callable guarantee against the utility’s payment obligation for power purchase,” Mr Prasad said.
Commerce, Trade and Industry Minister Margaret Mwanakatwe said Government will pursue financial closure of Maamba Collieries Limited before the end of this year,
Financial closure occurs when all the project and financing agreements have been signed and all the required conditions contained in them have been met.
It enables funds like loans, equity and  grants to start flowing so that project implementation can actually start.
Ms Mwanakatwe said in Lusaka that Maamba Collieries was owned 35 per cent by ZCCM-IH and was at the moment non-callable, a financial security that cannot be redeemed early by the issuer.
The issuer of a non-callable bond subjects itself to interest rate risk because, at issuance, it looks in the interest rate it will pay until the security matures.
“Maamba Collieries is non-callable. We are pursuing financial closure to be ready and complete by the end of this year,” Ms Mwanakatwe said.
Nava Bharat Ventures Limited was likely to have achieved financial closure by last month end for the 300-Mw coal-fired thermal power project being set up in Zambia.
The company has already signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) for a 20-year period with the Government of Zambia.