S. Korean firm acquires stake in Maranatha

Zimbabwe’s Anchor Holdings.
In a statement, the company said the deal was facilitated by a need to increase ferrochrome supply to the steel giant in a bid to cut the costs of manufacturing stainless steel products. The main ingredients of stainless steel include nickel and chrome.
But the company could not provide further details of how much Posco would pay for the stake.
Posco is the third largest steel-making company in the world. Its latest bid to acquire a stake in Maranatha is in line with the company’s strategy of building a solid portfolio of chrome producing assets.
This means on completion of the deal Posco would be getting its ferrochrome from Maranatha. 
Posco imports around 430 000 tonnes of ferrochrome and Zimbabwe has enough chrome ore.
Maranatha is the country’s third-largest ferrochrome company, with an output capacity of 80 million tonnes a year. It also owns a mine with reserves of 7 million tonnes of chrome. It has a capacity of 28 000 tonnes of ferro-chrome.
According to the Chamber of Mines of Zimbabwe, there are over 4 000 registered chromite mining claims that are current. Of these claims, indigenous Zimbabweans hold 46 percent with the balance held by five large-scale mining companies.
Major players in chromite production include Zimasco, Zimbabwe Alloys and Maranatha.
The chrome-smelting facilities process chrome ore into high-carbon ferrochrome, low-carbon ferrochrome and ferrosilicon chrome. Annual production of chrome ore is about 500 000 tonnes.
The Chamber of Mines says there are effective synergies between large- and small-scale operators. In some instances, large-scale operators enter into tribute agreements with small-scale miners for the production of chrome ore on claims owned by large-scale operators.
Zimbabwe’s chrome ore grades range between 42 percent and 48 percent. Chromite is mined through the Great Dyke, especially in the Darwendale, Lalapanzi and Mutorashanga areas.
But the Government last year banned all chrome ore exports, encouraging the local beneficiation of the ore before exports can be effected.