Murowa mine owner dies in a plane crash
PERISHED: Indian business mogul Harpal Randhawa fatally crashed near Zvishavane,
Indian business mogul Harpal Randhawa, who had vast gold, diamonds and coal mining interests in Zimbabwe, has died with his son in a fatal small plane crash which killed all six onboard, friends of the tycoon told The NewsHawks.
Randhawa and his son died in a small RioZim plane which was on its way from Harare to Murowa Diamonds (now RZM Murowa) a few hours ago.
This was not the first time a RioZim/Murowa small plane was involved in an accident. In February, a Piper 31 Navajo aircraft owned by RZM Murowa was force landed in a farm field about 16 kilometres away from Beatrice south of Harare.
Randhawa, the founder of the US$4 billion private equity firm GEM Holdings, had a big stake in RioZim.
After global mining giant Rio Tinto plc left Zimbabwe in 2015 after 60 years in Zimbabwe, RioZim acquired its 78% stake in Murowa Diamonds and its 50% holding in the Sengwa Colliery mine.
Rio Tinto, the British-Australian multinational company that is the world’s second-largest metals and mining corporation, also owned the Sengwa coal fields with RioZim on a 50-50 partnership. RioZim was incorporated on August 29, 1956 as Rio Tinto Southern Rhodesia Ltd.
It was set up initially to develop and mine the Empress Nickel deposit in the Midlands and was the first mining operation to be set up outside Europe by Rio Tinto plc.
RioZim separated from Rio Tinto plc in 2004 and became a wholly-owned Zimbabwean company which produces gold, coal, toll refines nickel, copper and now involved in diamonds.
The company is listed on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange.
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