The acquisition of Optimum Coal Holdings (OCH) by Tegeta Exploration and Sources was one particular of the main functions that induced the institution of the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into allegations of condition capture, and was a central concentration of the Community Protector’s report ‘State of Capture’, produced in Oct 2016.
The Public Protector (PP) found that the acquisition was pursued by illegal implies and funded nearly completely by proceeds of criminal offense.
The fee came to the identical finding, as outlined in Part VI Vol III of the Zondo Report (webpages 80 to 95).
The top helpful entrepreneurs of Tegeta ended up:
- The Guptas directly or indirectly held 65.13%
- Duduzane Zuma indirectly held 19.49%
- Salim Essa indirectly held 6.73%
- Ronica Ragavan indirectly held 6.49%
- Ashu Chawla and other Gupta workers indirectly held 2.16%.
The criminal job of getting OCM
The prison shenanigans resorted to by puppets of the Guptas have already been described in the Eskom area of the Zondo report.
Really briefly:
Brian Molefe, seconded to Eskom in April 2015, “immediately set about scuppering innovative negotiations involving Eskom and Glencore” around a penalty levied by Eskom.
Molefe and Eskom board chair Dr Ben Ngubane desired to suspend all mining licences to Eskom.
Then-minister of mineral sources Ngoako Ramatlhodi refused, and in September 2015 former president Jacob Zuma changed him with Mosebenzi Zwane.
Molefe also scuppered the sale of the The best possible Coal Mine (OCM) to the Phembani Team.
On 22 November 2015 Eskom board member Mark Pamensky oiled the way, and advised Atul Gupta that “Oakbay should be certain that a affliction precedent for the OCH acquisition sale ought to be Eskom’s withdrawal of the R2.17 billion penalty claim” and recommended Atul how to get the offer to be approved by the Eskom board.
Examine:
When Glencore turned down a R1 billion present from Oakbay for OCM on 25 November 2016, the Section of Mineral Resources beneath Zwane issued spurious notices beneath the Wellbeing and Protection Act in an attempt to shut down Glencore mines.
Glencore caved, and then Tegeta experienced to occur up with the funds.
Former Eskom executives Matshela Koko and Anoj Singh “prepared a enthusiasm for Eskom to prepay Tegeta R1.68 million” for a year’s provide of coal, irrespective of the actuality that Hendrina appeared to be oversupplied.
The Eskom board unanimously adopted the resolution to pre-pay out the coal in December 2015, even though this was evidently in the interests of Tegeta and not Eskom.
By early April 2016, Tegeta was quick of R600 million, and Eskom created a further prepayment of R659 million. The board signed off, and the payment was rushed by on 13 April 2016 by Singh and Molefe.
The R2.1 billion for The best possible was sourced from legal resources
Tegeta paid the buy price for The best possible of R2.1 billion on 13 April 2016.
The money applied for the acquisition were for the most component proceeds of crime, in-depth beneath:
| Supply | Amount |
| Eskom pre-payment | R660m |
| Eskom payment to Tegeta | R68m |
| Oakbay ‘loan’ to Tegeta | R158.5m |
| Albatime ‘loan’ to Tegeta | R104.5m |
| Trillian Asset Management ‘loan’ to Tegeta | R152m |
| Centaur Mining ‘loan’ to Tegeta | R842.2m |
| Tegeta’s residual money in Lender of Baroda account | R100.5m |
| Full | R2 085.7m |
- The Albatime personal loan consisted of the unlawful payment of R42 million from Regiments Capital and R56.2 million stolen from the Transnet Next Defined Advantage Fund (TSDBF).
- The Trillian payment provided an sum of R93.4 million that was unlawfully compensated by Transnet.
- Albatime transferred R110 million into a set deposit account at Financial institution of Baroda, which the financial institution made use of as stability to progress a bank loan of R105.5 million to Tegeta.
- Trillian’s bank loan of R152 million arrived from the funds stolen from the TSDBF.
- Resources stolen from the TSDBF amounting to R160.2 million have been transferred into a mounted deposit account at Financial institution of Baroda, which the financial institution used as stability to advance a financial loan of R104.5 million to Tegeta.
- Centaur Mining obtained the quantity of R842.2 million from back again-to-again facilities the resource was laundered proceeds of crime.
- Noteworthy, Duduzane Zuma’s advantageous desire of 19.49% equates to a profit of R342.8 million from criminally sourced funds.
It is a criminal offence to acquire proceeds of crime
The Zondo Commission referred to Part 2 of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (Poca), which would make it a felony offence to receive proceeds of crime.
The commission is of the check out that there are reasonable grounds to feel that Duduzane Zuma, Salim Essa, Ronica Ragavan, Ashu Chawla and members of the Gupta family could be guilty of contravening Part 2 of Poca.
Read through Elements 5 and 6 of the Zondo Report: