PRETORIA (miningweekly.com) – South Africa's Mineral Resources Minister Susan Shabangu has upheld the awarding of the prospecting rights to Imperial Crown Trading (ICT) 289, and the JSE-listed Kumba Iron Ore (KIO) has expressed its disappointment at the decision.

KIO's sole remaining option is to continue to challenge the award in the courts.

KIO, headed by CEO Chris Griffith, says in a media release that its Sishen Iron Ore Company (SIOC) subsidiary remains of the view that its challenge against the rights granted to ICT is justified, and it will continue to pursue the matter in the High Court.

Shabangu told journalists that she had conveyed her decision to uphold the granting of the prospecting rights to ICT and that it would be up to KIO to make a statement on the decision.

KIO, an Anglo American subsidiary, confirms that it received a letter from the Minister on Friday in which she stated that she was going along with the decision of the former deputy drector-general of the Department of Mineral Resources, Jacinto Rocha.

KIO says that SIOC lodged the appeal to the Minister because it believes that there are irregularities in the ICT prospecting rights application and also in the award of those prospecting rights to ICT.

Shabangu says that it is now up to the courts to pronounce on the matter.

She intends to amend "gaps and weaknesses" in the existing Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act and will put proposals to the Cabinet soon.

KIO makes the point that the Minister noted that "only a competent court" is able to review the ICT decision.

SIOC initiated the High Court Review against the grant of the right to ICT in May and KIO says that its subsidiary will file its supplementary affidavit shortly.

ICT is expected to file its answering papers during September 2010, KIO adds.

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