Johannesburg - Trade union Solidarity has welcomed the news that China African Precious Metals (CAPM) has taken control of Pamodzi Gold's Orkney mine.
"Solidarity hopes that CAPM will get operations at the mine going as soon as possible and will be able to provide jobs for the hundreds of employees who lost their jobs...," said Solidarity's general secretary Gideon du Plessis.
"It would be to CAPM's advantage to always be honest with its employees and to not be selective with the truth."
In a statement on Wednesday, Pamodzi's liquidators said CAPM now exercised control over all the assets and the day-to-day operations at the mine.
CAPM is 74% owned by Superb Gold, with 26% owned by a broad-based black economic empowerment consortium led by Elias Khumalo.
Khumalo is reportedly a business associate of President Jacob Zuma.
Miningmx reported in August 2011 that CAPM's bid was worth R150m.
In October 2009, Aurora Empowerment Systems was singled out as the preferred bidder for Pamodzi's Orkney and Grootvlei mines when the company went bankrupt.
It undertook to invest R600m in the mine, but after workers went without salaries for months and mine assets were stripped, Aurora's status as preferred bidder was cancelled on May 26, 2011.
Aurora's directors include Zuma's lawyer Michael Hulley, former president Nelson Mandela's grandson Zondwa Mandela, and Zuma's nephew Khulubuse Zuma.