A Chinese mining firm just got booted from a deal in Zimbabwe after a High Court decision. The company, Ming Chang Sino Africa Mining Investment, along with Fuel Africa and an individual named Wang Ke, got removed from a mining agreement with Gwampa Mining. Justice Bongani Ndhlovu in the Commercial Division ruled that their shares were given out illegally. The court ordered their names stripped from the share register of DGL Investment Number 5, which held the mining claims.
Here is the backstory. Gwampa Mining, set up back in 2009, made a deal with Eagle Italian Shoes and the Ming Chang and Fuel Africa companies. The plan was to jointly work on claims owned by DGL. The agreement had some big requirements that needed to happen first. These conditions included taking on a debt worth four point three million dollars and signing a formal shareholder agreement. Only after that could Gwampa hand out any shares.
But the court found that DGL Investment Number 5 issued the shares directly, skipping Gwampa entirely. This happened even though nobody ever signed the required shareholder pact or paid the necessary capital. The allotment also threw in extra shares and gave some to Wang Ke, who was not even part of the original deal. Gwampa argued this meant the whole agreement was legally worthless from the start.
Ming Chang tried to fight back in court. They claimed they paid off the multi-million dollar debt and even fronted another one point two million as a loan. They said they were the main money and operators for the mine. The judge was not buying it. Justice Ndhlovu stated Ming Chang had the job of proving those payments, but showed zero paperwork as evidence. He called their defense bare denials, pointing out that no proof of royalty payments or a written shareholder deal existed either. The judge said Gwampa's paperwork was coherent and the other side's claims were unsupported.
The final order removed the three parties from the share register and canceled their shares. The Registrar of Companies has to make it official. Ming Chang Sino Africa Investment, Fuel Africa, and Wang Ke also have to cover the legal costs for the case.
Here is the backstory. Gwampa Mining, set up back in 2009, made a deal with Eagle Italian Shoes and the Ming Chang and Fuel Africa companies. The plan was to jointly work on claims owned by DGL. The agreement had some big requirements that needed to happen first. These conditions included taking on a debt worth four point three million dollars and signing a formal shareholder agreement. Only after that could Gwampa hand out any shares.
But the court found that DGL Investment Number 5 issued the shares directly, skipping Gwampa entirely. This happened even though nobody ever signed the required shareholder pact or paid the necessary capital. The allotment also threw in extra shares and gave some to Wang Ke, who was not even part of the original deal. Gwampa argued this meant the whole agreement was legally worthless from the start.
Ming Chang tried to fight back in court. They claimed they paid off the multi-million dollar debt and even fronted another one point two million as a loan. They said they were the main money and operators for the mine. The judge was not buying it. Justice Ndhlovu stated Ming Chang had the job of proving those payments, but showed zero paperwork as evidence. He called their defense bare denials, pointing out that no proof of royalty payments or a written shareholder deal existed either. The judge said Gwampa's paperwork was coherent and the other side's claims were unsupported.
The final order removed the three parties from the share register and canceled their shares. The Registrar of Companies has to make it official. Ming Chang Sino Africa Investment, Fuel Africa, and Wang Ke also have to cover the legal costs for the case.
