Allied Timbers receives equipment worth US$13m

27 Jun, 2021 - 00:06 0 Views
Allied Timbers receives  equipment worth US$13m

The Sunday Mail

Martin Kadzere
Senior Business Reporter

Deals between Zimbabwe and Belarus are paying off after Allied Timbers Zimbabwe (ATZ) took delivery of equipment worth US$13 million under a vendor finance arrangement which is expected to boost the company’s core operations, a senior official said.

The transaction is part of several facilities Zimbabwe is getting from Belarus to support of productive sectors.

These include a farm mechanisation deal worth US$56 million. Hwange Colliery Company also acquired mining equipment from Belarus around 2016.

The deals were initiated by President Mnangagwa when he was Vice President in 2015. In 2018, both Zimbabwean and Belarussian governments agreed for the latter to supply Zimbabwe with machinery and equipment for agriculture and timber industry.

In October last year, President Mnangagwa commissioned the first batch of farm equipment under a deal with Belarus. It included 163 tractors, 19 combine harvesters and low bed haulage trucks.

“The equipment has arrived and will be commissioned by the President on 10 July,” Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister, Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndlovu told The Sunday Mail Business in an interview on Tuesday.

“It is going to be a game-changer in the industry given that Allied Timbers is a major player in the timber industry. The new equipment will definitely unlock a lot of potential,” he added.

ATZ is 100 percent owned by the Government. It was born out of the Forestry Commission in 2003 and the idea was to separate regulatory activities from commercial activities.

The intention was to enable both institutions to effectively pursue their mandates, with funds from the commercial division to assist in funding regulatory functions.

As a result of the unbundling, the commercial wing gave rise to Forestry Company of Zimbabwe, later rebranded to Allied while regulatory activities were reconstituted into Forestry Commission. The company controls about 60 percent of Zimbabwe’s commercial forests.

Minister Ndlovu said the new equipment will boost Allied core operations including timber harvesting, surveillance and road maintenance to enable easy accessibility to operations.

In an interview, ATZ chairman Mr Itai Ndudzo said the equipment would be officially handed over by the shareholder next month.

Allied has more than 10 estates in Manicaland, Midlands and Matabeleland provinces. It has the largest timber resource base in Zimbabwe; Northern Timbers situated in the Nyanga area, Southern Timbers in Gwendingwe, Chimanimani and Mtao pole plantations.

Its multiple land use capacity is exploited in the provision of holiday accommodation, mushroom production and grazing. Northern region strives for excellence in the provision of forest products and services to its diverse stakeholders. It has a strong human resource base which complements skilled, experienced and professionalism

Share This:

Survey


We value your opinion! Take a moment to complete our survey

This will close in 20 seconds