KUMBA Iron Ore’s Sishen Iron Ore Company Community Development Trust (SIOC) Employee Share Ownership Trust has snapped up shares worth R131.6 million in the company.

The company’s SOIC, ESOP and Semela employee share ownership schemes all benefit from dividends paid by Kumba Iron Ore.

Last week, Kumba Iron Ore confirmed that the SIOC employee share ownership trust had purchased shares in the company on behalf of employee members.

“In compliance with the JSE Limited listings requirements, shareholders are advised that the SIOC Employee Share Ownership Plan Trust has, in accordance with the rules of the scheme, purchased Kumba shares in the open market on behalf of the beneficiaries of the Trust,” the company said on Friday.

On July 24, the SIOC trust purchased 174,651 shares in Kumba at a weighted average purchase price of R404.93, giving a total transaction value of R70.7 million. The following day, the Trust purchased an additional volume of shares worth R60.9m at a weighted average price of R399.50 per share.

Kumba Iron Ore says it pays dividends to all shareholders, including its employees through the employee and community share ownership schemes. About 380,000 people in the company’s host communities benefit from this.

This comes against the backdrop of Kumba Iron Ore’s right-sizing of its operations in line with reducing mining volumes and production to more closely match Transnet’s logistics performance.

In March this year, Kumba entered into a consultation period with trade unions and affected employees facilitated by the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA).

The CCMA process has now been concluded and the new structure finalised in two months ago.

“Recruitment for all roles is expected to be completed during August 2024. The rightsizing of our business impacts approximately 490 roles and approximately 160 service partners,” the company said last week.

As part of the company’s reconfiguring, its Sishen and Kolomela mines will now be operating as an integrated complex.

“Comprehensive support has been provided through our Employee Assistance programmes, which provide job application and interview preparation skills training. In addition, our employee wellness programmes provide counselling, financial and legal advice and mental health support,” it said.

– BUSINESS REPORT