‘I never left Zim’: Kalaa Mpinga

TINASHE MAKICHI 

Asa Resource Plc former majority shareholder and founder, Kalaa Mpinga, says he is still active in the Zimbabwean market with thriving investments in the private sector.

Mpinga was booted out from Asa Resources (formerly Mwana Africa) board in 2015 after a hostile takeover by the Chinese shareholder, China International Mining Group Corporation.

Mpinga tells Business Times that Zimbabwe remains a favoured investment destination for him despite his acrimonious exit from one of the country’s biggest mining houses.

“I never left Zimbabwe following my departure from Mwana Africa [now
Asa]. I  have some investments in Zimbabwe but more on the private sector side, which is why I cannot disclose much about what I am doing in Zimbabwe at the moment. I see opportunities in Zimbabwe,” Mpinga said.  Well-placed sources say that the tycoon holds some mining assets in Zimbabwe particularly in chrome.

Mpinga has an interest in South Africa construction firm, Group Five, which was involved in some construction work in Zimbabwe. He says he has however since retired as an independent non-executive director. The construction firm is now under administration after misappropriation of funds and corporate governance breaches were flagged.

Mpinga, who is a national of the DRCongo  has held a number of senior positions in different locations around the world, with his career including working for Bechtel Corporation in San Francisco and Anglo American Corporation of South Africa from 1991.

In 1995, he joined the New Mining Division, responsible for exploration and the acquisition of resources in Africa. He was appointed a director of Anglo American Corporation in 1997.

He left the group in December 2001 to pursue business opportunities in mining, and founded Mwana Africa Holdings (Proprietary) Limited, the forerunner of Mwana Africa in 2003.

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Back to top button