Liberty Coal has fired back in a heated exchange with Mantengu Mining CEO Michael Miller, calling his recent criminal allegations against the company “delusional fantasies” and threatening legal action unless he retracts.
In a sharply worded statement released Friday, Liberty Coal responded to Miller’s Thursday media release and a 19-page document titled “Summary of Criminal Complaint”.
Miller’s complaint names Liberty Coal, several Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) executives, and others as part of an alleged share manipulation syndicate targeting Mantengu.
Delusional fantasist
“Liberty Coal’s position, simply and briefly, is that Mr Miller, the CEO of Mantengu, is a delusional fantasist who has, for what can at its kindest only be ascribed to some form of unhinged narcissism, allowed his personal failings in that position to lead him down a rabbit-hole of baseless allegations concerning Mantengu’s parlous share performance.”
The company even suggested Miller seek “appropriate medical advice, support or supervision for his condition”. Liberty Coal rejected the accusations entirely, calling them defamatory and unsupported.
The statement continued: “Mr Miller, on behalf of Mantengu, seemingly solely based on inferences he has chosen to draw without a shred of factual evidence, has, however, chosen to make far-reaching and defamatory allegations not merely of untoward but criminal conduct by various parties, including Liberty Coal, which can cause serious financial and reputational harm to those he has targeted.”
Liberty Coal warned that it and other accused parties would pursue “full redress in law from both him personally and Mantengu for such harm”.
Share price
Addressing claims about Mantengu’s share price, Liberty Coal was unequivocal: “Liberty Coal, as the owner of the Optimum Colliery coal mining complex, neither trades in nor mines chrome, has no interest in Mantengu, its business or Mr Miller, and before Mr Miller, during 2024, chose to develop his current fiction to explain the poor performance of Mantengu’s share price, was not even aware of its existence.”
The company continued: “It is apparent to Liberty Coal that Mr Miller is perfectly capable on his own, without any involvement of Liberty Coal, of ruining Mantengu’s business and of destroying any remaining shareholder value if simply left to his own devices.”
Mantengu announced Thursday that it had lodged a criminal complaint with the Hawks, South Africa’s elite police investigative unit. The complaint names high-profile JSE executives and alleges a scheme to manipulate Mantengu’s share price, also drawing subpoenas for the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA).
This comes after a two-year standoff between Mantengu and the country’s financial regulators. According to Mantengu, the saga began in June 2023, when the company was tipped off about a syndicate aiming to disrupt its acquisition of the Blue Ridge Platinum mine. Mantengu claims it immediately reported this and began its own investigation.
Potential share manipulation
By February 2024, Mantengu said its analysis “identified signs of potential share manipulation” and sought to inform shareholders via the Stock Exchange News Service (SENS). However, the company alleges the JSE refused its request to issue a market warning, which led Mantengu to go public.
Miller stated: “Mantengu has been under a systematic and sustained attack from manipulators intentionally driving its share price down. The company’s shareholders should be protected by the JSE. But not once, throughout our two-year investigation, has the JSE had one tangible discussion with Mantengu.
“In fact, the opposite has occurred, where the JSE is investigating Mantengu for breaching various aspects of the JSE Listings Requirements whilst hampering its investigation. This is not the kind of behaviour akin to a bourse that should be the pinnacle of good governance.”
Mantengu’s share price has collapsed from around R140 per share to about 0.45 cents since announcing the Blue Ridge acquisition, which Miller claims should have boosted its value.
Liberty Coal on Blue Ridge
Addressing speculation about its interest in Blue Ridge, Liberty Coal stated: “A simple check with Sibanye would have confirmed to him that Liberty Coal, having initially expressed interest in Blue Ridge as a potential acquisition by SEAM to bolster its working asset portfolio, formed the view in May 2023 that it was not financially viable. As such, Liberty Coal has had no interest in the Blue Ridge project, directly or indirectly, ever since.”
Liberty Coal has demanded a public retraction and apology from both Mantengu and Miller by close of business on Monday, and threatened further legal action.
