Zambia: Glencore under investigation for allegedly making a corrupt payment to a political party in Zambia
Summary
Date Reported: 23 Oct 2022
Location: Zambia
Companies
Mopani Copper Mines Plc (Part of ZCCM Investments) - Subsidiary , Glencore - Parent CompanyProjects
Mopani - OperationAffected
Total individuals affected: Number unknown
Public entity: ( Number unknown - Location unknown , Mining , Gender not reported ) , Community: ( Number unknown - Location unknown , Mining , Gender not reported )Issues
Payments to governments , CorruptionResponse
Response sought: Yes, by Journalist
External link to response: (Find out more)
Action taken: A Glencore spokesperson said: “Glencore made the decision to exit Mopani in 2020. Glencore engaged in good faith negotiations with the Zambian government over an extended period (2020-2021) to agree a mutually acceptable transaction which was openly and transparently disclosed to all stakeholders.”
Source type: Regulatory action
"Glencore faces probe over alleged payment to Zambian political party", 23 October 2022
"Zambia’s Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has launched an investigation in connection with a matter relating to an alleged $3m (£2.65m) payment made by commodities giant Glencore to a political party in the southern African country.
In a statement, the Zambian corruption watchdog said the investigation is centred on the circumstances under which Glencore allegedly paid the $3m sum before leaving Zambia in 2021 by selling its stake in its local Mopani Copper Mines subsidiary.
Glencore’s exit saw the multinational sell its stake in Mopani to Zambia’s state-owned mining company ZCCM for a sum of just $1 last year, through a deal that saw the Zambian government controlled company take on $1.5bn worth of the mining operation’s debt.
The watchdog noted it had interrogated Zambia’s former defence minister Davies Chama as part of its investigation into the $3m payment...
A Glencore spokesperson said: “Glencore made the decision to exit Mopani in 2020. Glencore engaged in good faith negotiations with the Zambian government over an extended period (2020-2021) to agree a mutually acceptable transaction which was openly and transparently disclosed to all stakeholders.”
“Any suggestion of improper conduct relating to the sale of Mopani to ZCCM-IH is baseless,” the Glencore spokesperson added."