By: African mining market

A US court has dismissed a case brought by two Mauritian companies seeking to enforce a decade-old arbitration award against a Zimbabwean state-owned miner.

The US Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit, ordered the case brought by Amaplat Mauritius Ltd. and Amari Nickel against the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC) be dismissed, citing a lack of jurisdiction.

The Mauritian firms approached the US court after the Zimbabwean company ignored an arbitration order and a court ruling to pay.

The International Court of Arbitration in Zambia in 2014 ordered ZMDC to pay $42.9 million to Amaplat and US$3.9 million to Amari, with 5% annual interest, for cancelling a nickel and platinum joint venture in the southern African nation.

In 2019, the Zambian High Court granted the two companies permission to enforce the arbitration award, which would have allowed them to seize the state miner’s assets.

Zimbabwe’s Secretary for Mines and Mining Development Pfungwa Kunaka welcomed the outcome.