News: ZIM UPDATE 1-Zimbabwe's Zimplats gives mining land to government, ending dispute

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HARARE, June 6 (Reuters) - Impala Platinum's Zimbabwean subsidiary said on Wednesday it had agreed to give up nearly half of its mining land to the government and that in turn it had received two mining leases valid for the life of its operations.

The agreement ends a dispute that had been going on since 2013, when the southern African nation, under former president Robert Mugabe, unsuccessfully tried to seize the land from Zimplats (ZIM) , the country's biggest platinum miner.

Zimplats said in a statement it had released 23,903 hectares of its mining claims to support the government's efforts to enable participation by other investors in the platinum mining industry in Zimbabwe.

New President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who took over from Mugabe in November after a de facto army coup, is trying to woo foreign investors into the country and break with policies pursued by the 94-year-old Mugabe.

Zimplats' platinum output last year slid to 281,080 ounces from 290,410 ounces in the previous year.

The company said it had been issued two separate mining leases which took effect on May 31. The leases replace the special mining lease it was granted earlier and which was due for renewal in August 2019.

"The two mining leases issued to the operating subsidiary are valid for the life of Zimplats' mining operations and they secure the operating subsidiary's mining tenure," Zimplats said.