adminAccording to our yesterday’s issue of Chronicle, Cabinet guaranteed the investor that the initial deal signed between the Government and Essar Group last year stands.
According to the original deal, Essar Group would take 53 percent of NewZim Steel (former Ziscosteel’s manufacturing arm) and 80 percent of NewZim Minerals (former Buchwa Iron Mining Company mining arm) while the Government takes the remaining shares in both firms.
Essar Africa Holdings Limited, apparently, is impressed by the latest arrangement and has reportedly agreed to pay the workers before Christmas.
However, there are chances that workers may receive the news with pessimism and fail to accord the development the enthusiasm it deserves. This is because the revival of Ziscosteel, now NewZim Steel, has made many false starts ever since President Mugabe launched the new steel company in August last year.
We demand that this time around, all the parties concerned be sincere in honouring the pact and stop arguments that stalled the project and resulted in workers going for almost a year without salaries after the investor suspended payments in March this year.
The Redcliff-based giant steel company is the heart and soul of the Midlands province’s economy. Many downstream companies like Lancashire Steel, Haggie, Steelmakers and Eureka in Kwekwe, Zimcast in Gweru, depend directly on NewZim Steel products. Giant fertilizer company, Sable Chemical Industries, also sells the bulk of its oxygen from its electrolysis process to NewZim Steel.
The importance of NewZim Steel to the country’s economy can, therefore, not be overemphasised. We have lost so much time fighting over the project losing track of the bigger picture: the growth of our economy through revival of industries and job creation.
We say no more dilly-dallying on the NewZim Steel project. We can no longer afford fights between sister ministries — that of Mines and Mining Development and NewZim Steel’s parent ministry that of Industry and Commerce.
The two ministries should not lose focus of the bigger picture that stands to benefit Redcliff town, Midlands province and the country at large.
To the Inclusive Government, which has been viewed in some quarters as ineffective and disorganised, the NewZim Steel project offers a chance to redeem itself.
Redcliff families deserve better lives. They cannot continue living like paupers, failing to send their children to school when we have an investor who is committed to pump life into the ailing steel giant.
Industry and Commerce Minister Welshman Ncube said at the launch last year that they expected the rebirth of Zisco to produce its first bar of steel after eight months from the date of the launch at the latest.
This means NewZim could have produced its first bar in either April or May this year. The NewZim Steel project is now running behind schedule and as such there is no room for further delays.
Let’s all stand up and be counted in supporting the NewZim Steel project, a project that is expected to create more than 5 000 new jobs in direct employment at both the Redcliff and Chivhu plants once operations commence, lest history will judge us harshly.
Online Reporter