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Vedanta welcomes South African court decision to block Zambia mines sale

New Delhi: Vedanta Resources Thursday welcomed a South African court's decision to block sale of its mines in Zambia, saying the company is committed to resolving the current situation through arbitration.

Earlier this week, South Africa's high court ordered Zambia to halt sale of Vedanta Resources' Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) until a final decision is made through arbitration.

"Vedanta welcomes the decision by judge (Leicester) Adams, and emphasises its commitment to resolve the current situation through arbitration," it said.

Further, the company said it is unable to comment on the process currently underway in Zambian courts.

"This is in compliance with the guidance provided by Justice Banda-Bobo in the Lusaka High Court on July 4, 2019, after concerns were raised about the parties making public comments about ongoing court proceedings," it added.

According to the statement, South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg has granted Vedanta Resources an urgent interim interdict against KCM's minority shareholder ZCCM and KCM's provisional liquidator. Before the court, Vedanta had contended that ZCCM breached KCM's shareholders' agreement by pursuing winding-up proceedings against KCM in Zambia instead of using the agreed-upon dispute resolution mechanisms in the agreement, it said.

The granting of the interim interdict means that ZCCM is obliged to suspend its legal actions in Zambia where it is attempting to force through a final liquidation of KCM, the statement said. Under an agreement, Vedanta had approached the South African court that selected Johannesburg as the seat of arbitration in case of a dispute, according to a source.

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