Phikwe dares to dream again as billions pledged in BCL deal :: Mmegi Online

The revival of Selebi-Phikwe received a major boost recently, with the revelation that BCL Mine’s new owner, Premium Nickel Resources Botswana, plans to inject P5 billion towards sprucing up infrastructure at the old mine in preparation for reopening.

Last week, the High Court approved the takeover of certain key assets from the copper and nickel mine by Premium Nickel Resources Botswana (PNRB), a firm headed by former BCL boss, Montwedi Mphathi. PNRB is wholly owned by Premium Nickel Resources, a Canadian base metal developer backed by resource investors in that country and elsewhere.

A wholly government-owned entity, BCL Ltd was liquidated in October 2016, with its main asset, BCL Mine, weighed down by high operational costs, bulging debt and low base metal prices. In Selebi- Phikwe, at least 4,300 workers lost their jobs while the town’s economy collapsed as incomes from mineworkers and procurement by the mine disappeared.

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Phikwe dares to dream again as billions pledged in BCL deal

The revival of Selebi-Phikwe received a major boost recently, with the revelation that BCL Mine’s new owner, Premium Nickel Resources Botswana, plans to inject P5 billion towards sprucing up infrastructure at the old mine in preparation for reopening.

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