Mineral Resources Minister Ngoako Ramatlhodi says he would prefer that the country’s laws on oil and gas exploration be split from mining legislation.

“The key thing is to try to separate the oil and gas from your traditional mining – in other words, have a separate Bill for that,” he said last week in an interview on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland. “If I could achieve that, I would be very happy. We must check the legal position to see if that can be done.”

President Jacob Zuma declined to sign changes to the 2002 Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Amendment Bill on the grounds that the Bill might violate the Constitution and referred it back to Parliament on January 16. Oil and gas explorers including Total and Exxon Mobil have opposed the provisions, saying they are too vague and would undermine business.

“I would want to stay with the principles that have been agreed upon with regard to the old Bill, by the stakeholders: government, the industry, the chamber, unions,” Ramatlhodi said.

Anglo American Platinum, the world’s biggest producer of the metal, which is a unit of Anglo American, is selling four mines and possibly two joint ventures in South Africa, which Ramatlhodi said he saw as an opportunity to allow “real ownership by indigenous people”.

“I am talking the language of a national champion of sorts,” he said. “Anglo American, BHP Billiton – they were originally born in South Africa but they outgrew us. I want something that can replace them in a significant way so you can change the patterns of ownership of mines.”

South Africa has black economic-empowerment legislation to make up for discrimination during the apartheid era, when nonwhite South Africans were hindered from participating in the economy. The laws include compelling the sale of stakes in companies to nonwhite citizens.

“We should be content to discuss the principles and let the companies follow those broad principles because they are private transactions,” Ramatlhodi said. “I would hesitate to interfere to the extent where one says ‘go and choose one’. That is not right.”