The contract for the much-awaited South African mining rights licensing cadastral system is expected to be signed in July, Mineral Resources and Energy deputy director-general of corporate services Hilda Mlhongo told the Portfolio Committee on Mineral Resources and Energy in the National Assembly on May 23.

As part of the tender process for the cadastral system, State Information Technology Agency (Sita), in collaboration with the DMRE, has been mandated to procure a mining licensing system.

The tender was advertised through the Sita website and subsequently closed on May 5. The bid evaluation process began on May 15. Upon its conclusion, this evaluation process will be subjected to an audit process in line with the Sita procurement standard operating plan.

Currently, the Sita supply chain management and DMRE are carrying out a technical mandatory and functionality evaluation of the submissions, along with demonstrations of the proof of concept.

Next week, they will look into pricing and black economic empowerment, whereafter a report will be compiled, and authorisation processes within Sita will begin.

Ultimately, the recommendation sign-off date is set for July 5.

Mhlongo cautioned, however, that the audit process could result in delays as this has occurred in the past. However, she reassured committee members that she expected a smooth process.

“We believe the process up to this point has been managed in such a way as to ensure there are no issues. We do not anticipate any issues. We are very optimistic that the process should be able to get us to where we want to get,” she said.

The new cadastral mining licensing system, which will be customised to South Africa’s needs, is expected to enhance efficiency and transparency in the application, granting and management of prospecting and mining rights or permits, thereby increasing the level of mining investment confidence in South Africa.

Through this system, the DMRE has said it seeks to improve the accuracy and accessibility of all relevant information by all stakeholders. Further, the system is expected to empower the DMRE to accelerate the processing of applications within a more reasonable timeframe.