HAR - Harmony - Harmony is granted the conversion of old order mining rights Release Date: 10/12/2007 09:00:04 Code(s): HAR HAR - Harmony - Harmony is granted the conversion of old order mining rights
into new order mining rights for all of its South African mining operations
Harmony Gold Mining Company Ltd
Incorporated in the Republic of South Africa
Registration number: 1950/038232/06
JSE share code: HAR
ISIN: ZAE000015228
("Harmony")
HARMONY IS GRANTED THE CONVERSION OF OLD ORDER MINING RIGHTS INTO NEW ORDER
MINING RIGHTS FOR ALL OF ITS SOUTH AFRICAN MINING OPERATIONS
Johannesburg. Monday 10 December 2007. Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited
(Harmony) announced today that the Department of Minerals and Energy (DME) has
approved and granted the conversion of its old order mining rights into new
order mining rights in terms of the Minerals and Petroleum Resources
Development Act (MPRDA), Act 28 of 2002.
Harmony has been granted 13 new order mining rights, in terms of the MPRDA,
which cover all our South African gold mining operations: Evander Operation;
Doornkop Operation; Randfontein Operations; Kalgold Operation; Orkney
(ARMgold) Operations; Tshepong Operation; Target Operation; Bambanani
Operation; Free State Operations; St Helena Operations; and Joel Operation.
The consultation process between Harmony, the DME and the municipalities
resulted in enhanced local economic development (LED) commitments from
Harmony`s various operations for the mining communities. The LED programmes
focus on poverty alleviation; job creation, infrastructure and community
development, which include low cost housing development; utilisation of vacant
mining land for LED; job creation through environmental rehabilitation
projects and mining of mining dumps and slimes dams.
Community skills development includes education infrastructure development;
education promotion through programmes such as internship and mining community
bursary schemes; SMME development; agricultural enterprise development;
supplier development; health infrastructure development which will cover
mainly primary health care facilities.
LED programmes that will benefit labour sending communities have also been
identified through consultations with the relevant communities and the DME.
Acting Chief Executive Graham Briggs welcomed the DME`s decision, and says,
"The granting of Harmony`s mining rights for our South African mining
operations will create stability and long term sustainability of our
business."
He continues, "The granted mining rights and the commitments therein will also
ensure that significant development will be made at the mining communities
where our operations are located, and the labour sending communities from
where many of our employees are recruited. The local economic development
projects and programmes identified in our social and labour plans will go a
long way to contribute to creating a better life for all concerned."
The signing and execution of converted mining rights started in the Free State
on 30 November 2007. The first mining right to be granted to Harmony covers
the Target Operation. The DME and Harmony plans to execute all the converted
Free State mining rights by 21 December 2007. Harmony has been granted seven
mining rights in the Free State.
Harmony has also commenced with the process of signing and executing all the
other granted mining rights at the other DME regions where our operations are
located including North West, Gauteng and Mpumalanga, which we anticipate will
be concluded by the end of January 2008.
The granting of the new order Harmony mining rights is the culmination of the
journey that Harmony and the DME have travelled to ensure compliance with
various aspects of the MPRDA which include the development of employees; mine
community and rural development; improving housing, living conditions and
nutrition for employees; preferential procurement and enterprise development;
management of downscaling and retrenchment and promoting BBBEE or HDSA
ownership. The focus now shifts to implementation of the commitments,
undertakings made and continuous compliance with the MPRDA. We believe that
the DME will continue to work closely with Harmony, as it does with other
stakeholders in the mining and labour sending communities, in our quest to
create value and contribute to a vibrant, profitable, safe, and environment-
friendly mining industry in South Africa.
ends.
Issued by Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited
10 December 2007
For more details contact:
Graham Briggs
Acting Chief Executive
on +27(0)11 411 2012
or
Amelia Soares
General Manager, Investor Relations
on +27 11 411 2314 or
+27 (0)82 654 9241
Sponsor
Merrill Lynch South Africa
Date: 10/12/2007 09:00:04 Supplied by www.sharenet.co.za
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