JOHANNESBURG – The Constitutional Court will hand down judgment on Thursday in an application for leave to appeal against a decision on the mining rights of properties in Kuruman, in the Northern Cape.

The application was brought by the Mineral Resources Minister, her director general and deputy director-general, the department's regional manager and Imperial Crown Trading (ICT).

Judgment was reserved when the application was heard in the Constitutional Court in September.

Before the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA) came into effect, Sishen Iron Ore Company and Arcelor Mittal SA (AMSA) both held undivided shares of a mining right in the properties on which Sishen's mine was located, and which were issued in terms of the Minerals Act.

Sishen held 78.6% of the shares and AMSA 21.4%.

The MPRDA entitled holders of mineral rights under the previous legislation to convert their old order mining rights within five years of the Act coming into operation. If they failed to do so the rights expired.

Sishen converted its shares, but AMSA did not.

ICT applied for a prospecting right in respect of AMSA's share. Sishen applied for a mining right in respect of AMSA's expired share.

The Mineral Resources Minister granted a prospecting right to ICT and declined Sishen's application for mining rights.

Sishen applied to the high court in Pretoria to have the decision reviewed and for the setting aside of the granting of the prospecting rights to ICT.

AMSA, which joined as a party, sought a declarator to the effect that Sishen had been granted 100% mining rights when it was converting its shares.

The high court found Sishen had been granted full mining rights and, therefore, set aside the grant of the prospecting right to ICT.

The State applicants and ICT unsuccessfully appealed against the order in the Supreme Court of Appeal.

The matter was then taken to the Constitutional Court.