Former type Public holding company Founder Dan Gertler Parent organization Katanga Mining | Headquarters Douglas, Isle of Man Founded July 2006 | |
Fate Merged into Katanga Mining Limited Defunct July 2008 (8 years ago) (2008-07) Number of locations Katanga Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo Area served Democratic Republic of the Congo |
Nikanor Plc was a publicly quoted holding company for Global Enterprises Corporate (GEC) with assets in the rich Copper Belt region in Katanga Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Contents
- Timeline summary of transactions
- Nikanor Plc and DRC Copper and Cobalt Project DCP
- Nikanor Plc and KOV Komoto Oliveira Virgule
- Nikanor and Katanga Mining Limited
- References
Nikanor Plc was incorporated in 2006 with its registered head office in Douglas, Isle of Man. Nikanor's stock was listed on the London Stock Exchange's Alternative Investment Market in London in July 2006. The initial public offering raised $400 million, and Nikanor's market capitalization reached $1.5 billion.
Emile Mota, President Joseph Kabila's former chief of staff, and Simon Tuma-Waku were on the senior management team of Nikanor. Tuma-Waku was Minister of Mines and Energy under President Joseph Kabila, who promulgated the new mining code in 2002. (Mining Journal 2008).
In May 2007, Beny Steinmetz, Dan Gertler and the Gertner Group, Nikanor's three main stakeholders, launched a hostile take over bid for Nikanor, which valued Nikanor's shares at £6.00, the price when it floated. was presented by the Cosaf Ltd consortium, (which also includes the Swiss trader and Gertler's long-time associate, Glencore International AG and UK equity fund, RP Capital Partners) presented the bid which was opposed by those shareholders in Nikanor not involved in the bid. (Mining Journal 2008)."
In January 2008, Nikanor was merged into Katanga Mining Limited. Katanga paid US$452 million in cash to Nikanor shareholders. Nikanor planned on participating in the consolidation of the companies operating in the Zambian-Democratic Republic of Congo copperbelt region. In January 2008 Katanga Mining Company (KMC) acquired Nikanor PLC for $452m.
In a 2011 article by Reuters, journalists described how Glencore and Dan Gertler partnered in Nikanor from 2007 until its final merger with Katanga Mining.
In June 2007, "Glencore and partner Dan Gertler, an Israeli mining magnate, paid GB£300 million for a quarter-stake in mining company Nikanor, which was seeking to revive derelict copper mines next to Katanga Mining's properties. That deal gave Glencore exclusive rights to sell all Nikanor's output -- an "offtake" agreement.... [Then, o]n Christmas Eve 2008, ... [having] lost 97 percent of its market value over the previous six months ... in the depths of the global financial crisis and ... running out of cash, Katanga accepted a lifeline it could not refuse. [Glencore] wanted control. For about US$500 million in a convertible loan and rights issue, Katanga agreed to issue more than a billion new shares and hand what would become a stake of 74 percent to Glencore. ... [By early 2011], with copper prices regularly setting records above US$10,000 a ton, Katanga's stock market value [had reached] nearly US$3.2 billion.... [Since the Glencore acquisition], Katanga ... is reaping the benefit of the surging markets and its wealthy, powerful owner. After losing US$108 million in 2009, it posted an annual profit of US$265 million in 2010."
Timeline summary of transactions
Nikanor Plc and DRC Copper and Cobalt Project (DCP)
On September 9, 2004, Global Enterprises Corporate signed a joint-venture (JV) agreement with the state-owned Gécamines to rehabilitate and operate the Kananga and Tilwezembe mines. The deal was ratified by Joseph Kabila's presidential decree. The final joint-venture structure was held 75% by Global Enterprises Corporate and 25% by Gécamines, with GEC undertaking to invest $300–$400m in a new leaching plant, with projected output to reach 200,000 tons of copper a year, based on its interests in the huge KOV (Komoto Oliveira Virgule) (Sergeant April 4, 2007)." The DRC Copper and Cobalt Project (DCP), Katanga Mining Ltd: Toronto (TSX:KML) Glencore: London (LSE:GLEN) properties were located next to Katanga Mining's properties near Kolwezi. Global Enterprises Corporate Ltd. and Gécamines formed a subsidiary named DRC Copper and Cobalt Project (DCP), 75% owned by Global Enterprises Corporate Ltd. and 25% by Gécamines.
Nikanor Plc and KOV (Komoto Oliveira Virgule)
KOV (Komoto Oliveira Virgule) is a "massive open cast copper-cobalt project comprising the world-class assets Tilwezembe and Kananga deposits and the Kolwesi concentrator in the DRC's Katanga province (Sergeant April 4, 2007)." In 2006 exploitation permits for the assets were transferred to the two company's subsidiary DRC Copper and Cobalt Project (DCP). Gertler and Steinmetz placed Global Enterprises Corporate Ltd's 75% share in KOV (Komoto Oliveira Virgule), an open cast copper-cobalt project including the Tilwezembe and Kananga deposits and the Kolwesi concentrator, into Nikanor Plc., registered in the Isle of Man.
Nikanor and Katanga Mining Limited
In January 2008 Nikanor was merged into Katanga Mining Limited, when the latter acquired it for $452 million. Katanga Mining Limited TSX:KAT operates a major mine complex in the Democratic Republic of Congo producing refined copper and cobalt with the "potential of becoming Africa's largest copper producer and the world's largest cobalt producer (Katanga Mining February 11, 2009 Katanga paid US$452 million in cash to Nikanor shareholders. Nikanor planned on participating in the consolidation of the companies operating in the Zambian-Democratic Republic of Congo copperbelt region.