MC Mining CEO David Brown
Photo by: Creamer Media
South Africa’s Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) has granted MC Mining a mining right for its 74%-owned Chapudi coking and thermal coal project, in the Limpopo province.
The Chapudi project, together with the Mopane and Generaal projects, comprise the company’s longer-term Greater Soutpansberg Project (GSP) situated in the Soutpansberg Coalfield.
The GSP is located within close proximity to the Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone (SEZ), an area designated by government to focus on energy and metallurgical processing, besides others.
The Chapudi mining right is the first of the three GSP mining right applications to be granted. These applications were submitted to the DMR during 2013.
The Chapudi project alone contains over 6.3-billion gross tonnes in situ of inferred coal resources and supports MC Mining’s strategy to be a substantial producer of hard coking coal, used in the steel manufacturing process and typically attracting a significantly higher sales price compared with thermal coal.
“The granting of the mining right for the Chapudi project is a key step in unlocking value from MC Mining’s significant coking and thermal coal assets and positions the GSP to be a potential long-term coal supplier to the planned Musina-Makhado SEZ,” MC Mining CEO David Brown commented in a statement issued on Tuesday.
The Mopane and Generaal projects’ mining right applications are at an advanced stage, with the company expecting these to be granted in the near future, following which it will start with the various studies required for the outstanding water and environmental regulatory approvals, he indicated.
“We continue to advance our flagship Makhado hard coking and thermal coal project and the November 2018 agreement to acquire the Lukin and Salaita properties facilitates the completion of geotechnical and related infrastructure studies for the proposed colliery.”
Moreover, recent Makhado project milestones include the conclusion of a hard coking coal offtake agreement, while negotiations for the remaining hard coking coal, as well as the thermal coal and funding initiatives are progressing, he noted.