MOSCOW, April 28 (RAPSI) - Norilsk Nickel Group is going to initiate legal proceedings in Botswana seeking to collect more than $277 million from the country’s government over asset selling transaction, the company announced on its website on Friday.

Norilsk Nickel (Nornickel) intends to sue the government of Botswana “in respect of its involvement in the reckless trading of BCL Limited and BCL Investments Proprietary Limited (together “BCL”), with a view of recovering $271 million plus damages and other costs that are owed to Norilsk Nickel in relation to the sale of a 50% interest in the Nkomati mine in South Africa and $6.4 million that are owed to Norilsk Nickel in relation to the sale of the Tati mine in Botswana. The Government of Botswana is the ultimate shareholder of BCL through its corporate vehicle MDCB,” the statement reads.

The notice of legal proceedings has been served on Botswana’s Attorney General, Minister of Mineral Resources, Green Technology and Energy Security, and the Minister of Finance, according to Nornickel.

In October 2014, Norilsk Nickel agreed to sell its enterprises in Africa to BCL.  In September 2016, BCL was to purchase Nkomati, however, the company and Botswana’s government have not made attempts to complete the deal, thus breaking the agreement concluded with the Russian party. Later, authorities of Botswana initiated the procedure of BCL’s provisional liquidation aiming to avoid obligations, Norilsk Nickel claims.

Norilsk Nickel is a diversified ore mining and smelting company, and the world's leading nickel and palladium producer. It operates industrial facilities in the Norilsk industrial region and on the Kola Peninsula in Russia, Finland, the United States, Australia, Botswana and South Africa. Norilsk Nickel has its own global network of representative and sales offices in Russia, the UK, China, the U.S. and Switzerland.