Cabinet has announced its approval of an Exploration Strategy for the Mining Industry of South Africa; however, it does not seem to have been released for public comment and its actual legal nature is unclear.

The strategy proposes a collaboration between the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) and the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) to ensure exploration provides for the inclusion of emerging exploration companies.

It also reinforces the research role to be played by research institutions such as Mintek and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, and the need for a skills development programme.

The strategy was first announced in October 2019, followed by Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe stating a few months later government’s aspiration to garner 5% of global exploration spend within five years.

AmaranthCX director Paul Miller says now, more than two years later, the country has limited time left to achieve this goal.

“One can only imagine that the contents of this strategy document will be incredible, if it is to grow exploration spend in the country at least fivefold from R1.2-billion a year currently to the targeted between R6-billion and R8-billion a year,” he notes.

In a post-Cabinet meeting statement, government said the strategy was a product of broader consultation between government, industry and other social partners. However, Miller, as a seasoned mining consultant, affirms that the strategy did not undergo a “broad consultation” process, as the content of the strategy remains to be seen by many stakeholders.

He adds that, while it is a positive move for the IDC to become involved, its few hundred million rands of assistance, albeit welcome and necessary, will not move the dial towards the R6-billion exploration spend South Africa needs to keep its mining sector alive.

“Our industry, barring single exceptional assets, has 20 years of operations left at current resources. Additionally, a Tier 1 deposit takes at least 15 years to develop from its date of discovery. It is imperative to get exploration going now,” Miller tells Engineering News & Mining Weekly.

Minerals Council South Africa communications head Allan Seccombe confirms that the council was involved in drafting the original exploration strategy document, but says it has not had sight of the Cabinet-approved version.

The council does not yet have information on when, or whether, the strategy will be published for public comment.