Billy Rautenbach

He first started expanding his family business, Wheels of Africa, Rautenbach turned his focus of car design and it greatly increased the market share of Hyundai in South Africa. Circa 2004, tax evasion charges were soon leveled against him by the South African authorities resulting in asset forfeiture worth 50 million rands, which forced him to leave South Africa. The National Prosecuting Authority failed to secure a conviction and withdrew the charges two years later. Although his personal assets were returned, the legal battles against tax evasion charges cost him the Hyundai business and brought significant negative publicity.

In 2006, Central African Mining & Exploration Company plc (CAMEC), a company Rautenbach became involved with, listed on the London Stock Exchange, acquired various mining operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).[1]

With the assistance of his father's trucking business, contacts in transporting minerals, and using innovative mining techniques, he successfully mined state-owned companies and attracted the attention of the government. He developed a different technique and out-mined the state company in a very short period of time: "We did it very selectively. We slowed down the process and picked it out in very high grade and with very little investment". Billy's unorthodox approach was successful, and showed the massive inefficiency of the state-run enterprises. In 1998, Laurent Kabila offered him a chance to lead state-owned Gecamines. Despite initial reluctance, he finally accepted, and in doing so, successfully turned around the fortunes of the company by cutting costs and improving efficiencies. However, the rebel-infested country began to create trouble for the Congolese government who, in a search of funds, issued allegations of misappropriation of corporate assets. Rautenbach has denied any allegations of financing the DRC war, logically stating that he was in business in the Congo long before the war broke out: "I started mining in the Congo about a year before the war started. So all of a sudden, the war is there because of me. It's unbelievable."[2] "We were very active there in getting the production going, in turning around things. We were possibly affecting people's commercial interests ... I set up a little mine there, and out-produced the major cobalt producers in the world in one year. They spend billions of dollars putting up a plant and I come there as a farmer – me and my dad – and we got the stuff out of the ground". However, stories continued circulating: allegations that he was Robert Mugabe's right-hand man, that he had bribed Kabila into securing his mining concessions, and that his mines were financing Zimbabwe's soldiers in the DRC. To date, there have not been any substantiation on claims of Rautenbach's links to Mugabe and the European Union struck him off the targeted sanctions list in February 2012.[3]

In June 2018, Rautenbach, owner of Zimbabwe Bio Energy (ZBE), became embroiled in a legal battle with joint venture stakeholders at Nuanetsi Ranch Limited, who are accusing Rautenbach of "sabotage, looting and making unilateral decisions without the consent of Nuanetsi Ranch Board".[4] Rautenbach has significant game-ranching investments in Mwenezi, but his company, ZBE, currently faces numerous allegations relating to the "abuse of workers, arbitrary dismissals and non-payment of salaries".[4] The 308,000 hectare cattle and wildlife management ranch is a trust property, established by former Vice President, Dr Joshua Nkomo. In a letter to Zanu PF spokesperson, Simon Khaya Moyo, Nuanetsi Ranch chairperson, Dr Liberty Mhlanga, condemns Rautenbach's alleged misconduct: "We have taken Billy to High Court to seek his urgent eviction because he is looting Nuanetsi Ranch's cattle and wildlife without consulting my Managing Director whom he should be working with on the Ranch [...] He has continued to loot and destroy the Ranch. I am not sure where his power is from", reads part of the letter, which is dated 4 April 2018.[4]

In favour of sustainable development, Rautenbach saw to it that CAMEC created employment for over 5,000 people at its Luita plant. At an average of five people per household, 25,000 people are currently being sustained as a result of this operation. The latter also saw the completion of an expatriate staff village of 3,000 people – fondly known as Billyville by employees and contractors – with over 200 houses, recreation facilities, staffing hostels, and a 2,000 m² office complex. Moreover, millions of dollars were reinvested into the DRC to uplift the communities surrounding CAMEC's operations. These projects included renovations to a clinic and the provision of necessary medical equipment, and the construction of a crèche and primary school. Construction also included a technical college to educate 3,600 children in the skills needed at the processing plant such as mechanics, electronics and welding to help alleviate the skills shortages in the DRC. Further CSI initiatives included the reconstructing of local infrastructure i.e. the 80 km national road between Kolwezi and Likasi previously damaged by floods more than 15 years ago; power lines of 23 km from the town of Fungurume to Luita, and a state of the art water treatment system providing 40,000 litres of drinkable water per day was constructed in an area previously known for cholera. The company also commissioned and built two dams of 50,000 m³ and 1,5 million litres respectively.[5] CAMEC's mining and production operation at Luita also helped create business opportunities for local contractors such as brickmaking plants.

Rautenbach's greatest achievement to date has been in mobilizing investment towards bio-ethanol leading to the construction of the Green Fuel Chisumbanje ethanol plant modeled along the lines of Brazil's biofuel cane industry. The ambitious project is a build, operate and transfer partnership between government represented by the Agricultural Rural Development Authority (Arda), Green Fuel Investments (headed by Rautenbach) and two other investment partners – Rating Investments and Macdom Investments. The 20-year pact was signed in February 2009. The project is the biggest so far in Africa.[6] Some sections of the media claim that the project was a land grab because of the huge tracts of land bought by the investors, however, repeated monitoring visits by officials from the Zimbabwean government, the World Bank and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization qualified the industrial development as necessary for the poverty stricken district. The ethanol project has subsequently set records for Zimbabwe as being the first African country with flexi-fuel vehicle technology using blends of up to 85% ethanol and reducing the country's fuel import bill, creating over 4,500 jobs and leading Zimbabwe to a greener economy.[7] By contributing to the production of ethanol based fuel, Green fuel has helped the country to save at least $2 million every month in fuel imports. However, the mandatory fuel blending imposed by the government on behalf of Green Fuel has been met with disdain and viewed as a symbol of Rautenbach's far reaching influence on the ZANU-PF led government.[8]

Rautenbach lives on his farm on the outskirts of Harare with his family, and is involved in natural land conservation. He and his son Conrad do rally racing in their spare time.[20]