JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The Chamber of Mines’ (CoM’s) application to seek clarity on certain aspects of the Mining Charter has been postponed as Pretoria High Court Judge Pierre Rabie mulls the consolidation of the case with that of law firm Malan Scholes.
The High Court on Tuesday heard arguments by Malan Scholes to have the CoM’s declaratory order combined with its own court case as the law firm moved to have the Mining Charter declared unconstitutional and invalid.
“The chamber’s original application on behalf of its members for a declaratory order providing guidance on the principles applicable to the interpretation of the ownership aspect of the Mining Charter has been postponed as the court reserved judgment,” the CoM said in a statement.
The CoM had opposed the consolidation of the action as it did not seek the same legal outcomes as Malan Scholes.
“The industry has been, and continues to be, committed to the achievement of all the transformation objectives of the Mining Charter, but does, however, seek clarity on the interpretation of one critical issue related to the continuing consequences of empowerment transactions,” the chamber explained.
CoM CEO Roger Baxter said significant progress had been made by industry in all the charter’s pillars, including meeting and exceeding the ownership target in aggregate, with empowerment levels of 38% achieved on average by the CoM’s members.
“The value of empowerment transactions since 2000 amounts to R205-billion in 2014 money terms, resulting in meaningful economic value transfer of R159-billion,” he said.
A decision on the allocation of costs would be made when the judgment was given.