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THE market welcomed the commissioning of new mining equipment at Hwange Colliery Company Limited mid last month with much joy. The heavy duty equipment, including enormous dozers and front-end loaders, was bought from India and Belarus at a cost of $31 million. It is meant to mark the first stage in the long-anticipated resuscitation of the country’s biggest colliery and one of the largest and iconic mines in the country.
Production had plummeted to a low level, 300,000 tonnes per month but the new equipment should help ramp it up to 450,000 tonnes monthly. The fall in output meant reduced revenue for the company, thus at some point, workers went for up to 12 months unpaid. With reduced output, the market was generally starved of coal.
HCCL is strategic to the economy; the coal it produces drives local industry from tobacco farming, thermal power production to minerals processing. Without it, industry stops, effectively.
Thus, the government, the major shareholder with a 38 percent stake, as well as other investors, have in recent years, been looking for ways to revive the giant mine. It is for this reason that Vice-President Phelekezela Mphoko had to perform the honours last month of commissioning the equipment.
However, no sooner had he done so than reports filtered through that the equipment, particularly that acquired from India, was “second-hand” or “poorly made” and wasn’t working to required standard. Critics started to laugh about it, thinking that HCCL had fallen victim to a multi-million dollar swindle.
That wasn’t the case, most fortunately for everyone. It was explained that the leaks of hydraulic oil in some machines was expected during the commissioning phase of the equipment.
In the Senate last week, Mines and Mining Development Deputy Minister, Cde Fred Moyo, a former managing director of HCCL with a close grasp of the inner workings of the mine, reported that, BEML Equipment, the Indian company that supplied equipment worth $13 million to the colliery, had seconded three senior employees to help in taking corrective action.
We are gratified by the speed with which authorities and the Indian supplier responded to the challenge, reassuring the market, workers at HCCL who want their company to rise again for their welfare to improve and the nation at large, that the challenge was a sincere one and was being attended to.
“Three executives from BEML Equipment are on the mine supervising the repairs of the problem machines. These are: chief general manager —manufacturing; chief general manager — research and development; deputy general manager — quality engineering,” said Cde Moyo.
“The first two batches of spares were airlifted from India and received on the mine on 14th July, 2015. Replacement of the faulty hydraulic components commences in earnest and three machines were rectified successfully and availed on July 16. These include one track dozer, one front end loader and one wheel dozer. Work is on-going on the following machines: two front end loaders and one wheel dozer while rectification work should be completed by July 17.”
Cde Moyo gave Parliament a detailed explanation of the problems on the front-end loader and wheel dozers saying they were a result of modifications on the hydraulic circuit where a check valve had been designed to improve the operating cycle times of the machines.
“This modification however resulted in high operating pressures leading to seal and oil cooler failures. The same problems were experienced by another customer who procured the same machines in India,” he said.
Dispelling murmurs that HCCL had spent borrowed money on second-hand equipment, Cde Moyo said the machinery was new and fully warranted.
The ministry took the necessary role in keeping the nation informed about the state of the equipment. HCCL itself tried to offer an explanation, but the public did not trust them. BEML Equipment also attempted, but the public did not readily accept the explanation.
However, with the government’s explanation and practical steps that BEML Equipment and HCCL have taken much of the misgivings have been quelled.
Workers at the mine, industry and the economy now look forward to speedy completion of remedial work being taken for HCCL to resume work.
The asset has almost limitless potential. The deposit produces the right coal that the market wants and there is more potential for growth for the government to grant HCCL more concessions if necessary. Also, the government recently announced that it would help the company clean up its balance sheet by converting the debt owed to it into equity.
Overall, we are encouraged by the unity of purpose in efforts to revive HCCL. One would expect that this would be replicated to other strategic companies and parastatals such as the National Railways of Zimbabwe and NewZim Steel. They are the rock upon which this economy is built and once they tick, the economy does the same.
Online Reporter