Gold projected to contribute US$800m to fiscus by 2013

according to figures from the Chamber of Mines.
This is a drastic improvement from the US$334,2 million that was recorded in 2010 and US$627 million projected for this year.
It is not clear, however, whether the chamber’s projections have taken into account the proposal
by Finance Minister Tendai Biti to review upward royalties for gold from the current 4,5 percent to 7 percent.
Chamber of Mines president Mr Winston Chitando has repeatedly called upon the Government to reconsider the proposal (including that of platinum).
Improvements in the sector’s financial contribution has largely been driven by capacity growth in a number of the larger mines, some of which have reached full capacity, namely Blanket Mine, Freda Rebecca and Casmyn Mining.
However, small gold producers have also played a significant part.
Statistics indicate that small gold producers have been ramping up production from the beginning of the third quarter.
Total gold deliveries from the small-scale players increased from 126,5kg in June 2011 to 388,1kg in October.
There was also a notable increase between September and October, as gold deliveries by the small-scale players increased by 49 percent from 260,1kg in September.
Interestingly, gold deliveries from the primary producers fell by 11 percent in October to 770,2kg.
According to the African Development Bank, gold output from the country’s small-scale producers has helped the country’s overall deliveries to rise for November by contributing over 50 percent to total output.
“The role of small-scale players in the gold sector is becoming more pronounced in the mining industry. There has been a noticeable increase in small-scale activity in gold production since the beginning of the third quarter,” said the AfDB in a report released last month.
The Zimbabwe Miners’ Federation, the representative body for small-scale miners, has since called for the Government to improve their operating environment in respect of new incentives, provision of appropriate machinery and financial backing.