The Minerals Council South Africa has filed an application for the judicial review and setting aside of certain clauses of the 2018 Mining Charter published by the Minister of Mineral Resources in September last year.
This after failing to reach a compromise on certain provisions that are “problematic for the industry and would be detrimental to its sustainability”.
“The Minerals Council and its members remain fully committed to transformation of the mining sector in South Africa, with the aim of achieving job creation, economic growth, competitiveness and social upliftment and development,” said Minerals Council CEO, Roger Baxter.
“But these goals will only be realised through a minerals policy framework that conforms to the rule of law and principles of legality, and by administrative action which is lawful, reasonable and procedurally fair and consistent in all respects with provisions of the country’s legislation.”
He said most aspects of the Charter represented a reasonable and workable framework, but that the provision that the charter did not fully recognise the continuing consequences of previous empowerment transactions, particularly in respect of mining right renewals and transfers of these rights, remained untenable.