Podcasts about minerals council

John Maytham is joined by Dr Ross Harvey, mining analyst and Chief Research Officer at Good Governance Africa, to unpack the storm brewing over the draft amendments to the Minerals and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA). Speaking at the Junior Mining Indaba, critics slammed the bill as a throwback to the controversial 2017 “Zwane Bill”, accusing the Department of Minerals and Petroleum Resources of repeating past mistakes. Presenter John Maytham is an actor and author-turned-talk radio veteran and seasoned journalist. His show serves a round-up of local and international news coupled with the latest in business, sport, traffic and weather. The host’s eclectic interests mean the program often surprises the audience with intriguing book reviews and inspiring interviews profiling artists. A daily highlight is Rapid Fire, just after 5:30pm. CapeTalk fans call in, to stump the presenter with their general knowledge questions. Another firm favourite is the humorous Thursday crossing with award-winning journalist Rebecca Davis, called “Plan B”. Thank you for listening to a podcast from Afternoon Drive with John Maytham Listen live on Primedia+ weekdays from 15:00 and 18:00 (SA Time) to Afternoon Drive with John Maytham broadcast on CapeTalk https://buff.ly/NnFM3Nk For more from the show go to https://buff.ly/BSFy4Cn or find all the catch-up podcasts here https://buff.ly/n8nWt4x Subscribe to the CapeTalk Daily and Weekly Newsletters https://buff.ly/sbvVZD5 Follow us on social media: CapeTalk on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@capetalk CapeTalk on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ CapeTalk on X: https://x.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CapeTalk567 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stephen Grootes speaks to Peter Leon, mining expert and partner at Herbert Smith Freehills, about the Minerals Council’s disappointment as the MPRDA bill proceeds without industry feedback. The Minerals Council South Africa has raised concerns after the government moved ahead with changes to the MPRDA without considering industry input. In other interviews, Harmony CEO, Beyers Nel and David McKay, Editor at Miningmx discuss Harmony’s $1 billion acquisition of MAC Copper, owner of Australia's CSA copper mine, as part of its strategy to expand its global footprint and diversify into copper production. The Money Show is a podcast hosted by well-known journalist and radio presenter, Stephen Grootes. He explores the latest economic trends, business developments, investment opportunities, and personal finance strategies. Each episode features engaging conversations with top newsmakers, industry experts, financial advisors, entrepreneurs, and politicians, offering you thought-provoking insights to navigate the ever-changing financial landscape.    Thank you for listening to a podcast from The Money Show Listen live Primedia+ weekdays from 18:00 and 20:00 (SA Time) to The Money Show with Stephen Grootes broadcast on 702 https://buff.ly/gk3y0Kj and CapeTalk https://buff.ly/NnFM3Nk For more from the show, go to https://buff.ly/7QpH0jY or find all the catch-up podcasts here https://buff.ly/PlhvUVe Subscribe to The Money Show Daily Newsletter and the Weekly Business Wrap here https://buff.ly/v5mfetc The Money Show is brought to you by Absa     Follow us on social media   702 on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TalkRadio702 702 on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@talkradio702 702 on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/talkradio702/ 702 on X: https://x.com/CapeTalk 702 on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@radio702   CapeTalk on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@capetalk CapeTalk on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ CapeTalk on X: https://x.com/Radio702 CapeTalk on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CapeTalk567 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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This week on Talking Wealth, Fil and Pedro unpack the Minerals Council of Australia's latest report on the commodity demand outlook for 2030. They reveal why certain resources will dominate global markets, which ones are set to soar, and how savvy investors can capitalise on this long-term trend. Don't miss this insightful look into the future of commodities and wealth creation!

This week on Talking Wealth, Fil and Pedro unpack the Minerals Council of Australia's latest report on the commodity demand outlook for 2030. They reveal why certain resources will dominate global markets, which ones are set to soar, and how savvy investors can capitalise on this long-term trend. Don't miss this insightful look into the future of commodities and wealth creation!

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The ANC Youth League will today picket outside the Minerals Council South Africa in Rosebank, Johannesburg, in protest against the retrenchment of mineworkers and other industrial job losses. The demonstration, In collaboration with the National Union of Mineworkers Youth Structure, seeks to pressure authorities to take immediate action to prevent further job losses and safeguard workers' livelihoods. The protest comes in response to ArcelorMittal's recent announcement to shut down its steel business, affecting its Newcastle and Vereeniging plants, as well as its rail and structures operation, which puts 3,500 jobs at risk. To discuss this further Elvis Presslin spoke to ANCYL President, Collen Malatji

Nosipho Radebe speaks to Hugo Pienaar, Chief Economist at Minerals Council of South AfricaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Noluthando Mthonti-Mlambo speaks to Hugo Pienaar, Chief Economist at Mineral Council of South AfricaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What are the dynamics behind the sudden raft of economic security challenges Australia is confronting? What policy and institution settings need to be redesigned for the new world we find ourselves in? How can Australia look to diversify its trade and resources in order to steer clear of global supply chain tensions? In this session, Jeffrey Wilson, Tania Constable, Swati Dave, Darren Lim, Helen Mitchell, and Christopher Flynn assess Australia's economic readiness to deal with future strategic shocks and the importance of building economic resilience, securing supply chains, and protecting critical sectors. Dr Jeffrey Wilson is the Director of Research and Economics at Australian Industry Group Tania Constable PSM is the CEO of the Minerals Council of Australia Swati Dave is the Advisory Board Chair at the Centre for Australia-India Relations Dr Darren Lim is a Senior Lecturer at the ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences Helen Mitchell is a Sir Roland Wilson Scholar at the ANU National Security College Christopher Flynn is a Partner at Gilbert + Tobin Show notes ANU National Security College academic programs: find out more Full version with Q&A - Economic security: shocks, preparedness and resilience Unlocking economic security: A strategic playbook for Australia by Helen Mitchell Note: This episode was recorded during NSC's Securing our Future conference on 9 April 2024. We'd love to hear from you! Send in your questions, comments, and suggestions to NatSecPod@anu.edu.au. You can tweet us @NSC_ANU and be sure to subscribe so you don't miss out on future episodes. The National Security Podcast is available on Acast, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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This audio is brought to you by Wearcheck, your condition monitoring specialist. South Africa's 30 years of democracy has changed the character of this country's mining industry profoundly, Minerals Council South Africa emphasised in a report that highlights the industry's significant advance since the dawning of democracy in 1994. Importantly, South Africa's highly regarded mine employees earn among the most competitive wages in the major job sectors, with tens of thousands of employees now direct partners in mining companies through employee share ownership programmes and profit-sharing schemes. Mining is providing employees with profound opportunities to improve their lives and livelihoods as well as those of their families. Steadfastly, the South African mining sector has increased workforce diversity, improved health and safety, crucially, and provided far-reaching training and education to develop skilled employees in tandem with innovation and technology developments. Prior to 1994, black mineworkers were prevented from securing managerial positions, women were barred by law from operational activities, and mineworker pay was kept low. Thirty years on, South African mining has an unrelenting focus on transformation and inclusion as it strives to address its legacy. "We have made enormous progress in the past three decades since 1994," Minerals Council South Africa CEO Mzila Mthenjane highlighted in a release to Mining Weekly. While significant strides in the transformation of management, the inclusion of women in all aspects of mining, and improved health and safety are acknowledged, the need for ongoing effort is recognised. "We have more to do and we're intent on establishing a modern, inclusive, and transformed industry, which will expand, adding more meaningful jobs, both within the sector and downstream value chains and increasing our significant contribution to South Africa's society and economy," Mthenjane stated. OVERWHELMINGLY HISTORICALLY DISADVANTAGED Against the backdrop of 83% of employees in the mining industry being historically disadvantaged South Africans (HDSA), the Mining Charter 2018 - which was negotiated between government, unions and the industry - set a target of HDSAs holding 60% of middle and senior management roles, which the industry has come close to reaching, with 57% of middle management and 58.4% of senior management now made up of HDSAs, However, to reflect economically active population demographics, the industry has more work to do on its transformation journey to be more inclusive and reflective of the country's demographics. While in 2003, shortly before the Mining Charter came into effect, women accounted for only 3% of the workforce, women made up 19% of mining employees in 2023, up from 17% in recent years. Also in 2023, the mining industry was one of the few economic sectors to grow employment, adding 7 600 jobs, providing work to more than 477 000 people and accounting for 4.7% of formal employment. Salaries grew by R12-billion to R186.5-billion and over the past 15 years, increases in wages across the mining sector have been above the consumer price index (CPI), reflecting both the real wage gains in the sector by employees and a consistent narrowing of the earnings gap between lower and higher income employees. Communities are also beneficiaries of the community benefit schemes that invest in infrastructure and community needs, above and beyond the compliance requirements of the Social and Labour Plans. Some R7-billion a year is spent on human resource development, which includes mandatory, operational and safety training as well as education and skills development. SAFETY ADVANCE Since 1994, the number of mining fatalities has fallen by 88% to 55 in 2023, with major breakthroughs in fall-of-ground-related fatalities. Safety is the foremost concern of the Minerals Council and its members, with CEOs meeting frequently through a CEO Zero Harm Forum to share learnings and inte...

This audio is brought to you by Wearcheck, your condition monitoring specialist. Minerals Council South Africa is focused on increasing the domestic demand for green hydrogen, which it sees as contributing to the kickstarting of the hydrogen economy in South Africa. "The applications that we're looking at are stationary as well as mobility applications of using hydrogen within the mining industry," Minerals Council modernisation and safety senior executive Sietse van der Woude outlined during last week's Hydrogen Economy Discussion covered by Mining Weekly. "The stationary applications may not make economic sense today but if you look at the future trends in terms of reliability and electricity price trends, then stationary applications can very well be a feasible option in the future," Van der Woude pointed out during a panel discussion facilitated by Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa (IDC) industry development planner Mahandra Rooplall, and in which Science and Innovation Department chief science and technology representative Dr Rebecca Maserumule as well as Bambili Energy CEO Zanele Mavuso Mbatha participated. Rooplall reported that the IDC had been driving the development of the hydrogen industry for several years in facilitating the discussion on regional and global developments, technology, original equipment manufacturer (OEM) advances and implications for the mining industry. Van der Woude pointed out that when it came to mobility application, heavy mine trucks could not be powered enough by electric means. "So, we need to look at alternative ways and the hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are an opportunity in that regard," he added. In spelling out the hydrogen opportunity, Maserumule identified the six African countries that had hydrogen strategies as Algeria, Kenya, Mauritania, Morocco, Namibia and South Africa amid more than 50 countries worldwide having hydrogen strategies. The projected global numbers for hydrogen production show seven-million tons of green hydrogen or its derivative being produced a year by 2030, 32-million tons by 2040 and 72-million tons by 2050. Maserumule drew attention to this being based on expected exports into Europe and Asia, which did not have sufficient renewables or which did not have the comparative advantage. Africa securing 15% of that market would amount to one-million tons of green hydrogen by 2030, seven-million tons by 2040 and just under 19-million tons by 2050, a part of which would be domestic consumption. "What's most exciting is that those numbers point to a cumulative investment by 2050 of $400-billion on the African continent for hydrogen production," Maserumule highlighted. This does not include OEMs and other portions of the supply chain. The export value for the African continent would be a $15-billion-a-year increase in African export value in 2050. "The most exciting socioeconomic benefit is the 30-million job years that will be created by 2050 on the African continent if the continent is able to capture 15% of the global hydrogen economy. In identifying the barriers to that, Maserumule spoke of Africa having a globally top comparative advantage for renewable energy production, with only China, Australia and Chile beating most of the African countries. But unlike grey hydrogen, which South Africa produces in large quantities, one of the challenges of green hydrogen production is the intensive capital expenditure (capex) that is required. While the cost of coal or natural gas has a considerable impact on grey hydrogen, the capex required for renewables and electrolysers has a major impact when it comes to the cost of green hydrogen. There is a considerable gap between the cost of investment in developed countries compared with the cost of development in undeveloped countries. South Africa's average internal rate of return, or IRR, is well positioned at between 11% and 14%. Being chased is the levelised cost of hydrogen, with grey hydrogen at $2/kg and ...

This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a leading supplier of products, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. Organised business says the appointment of a permanent executive team at Transnet - led by CEO Michelle Phillips, who has been acting in the role since September and who has been with the utility for 20 years - will enhance stability in the relationships between Transnet and the business sector and accelerate the implementation of the Transnet Recovery Plan. Phillips' appointment was announced by Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan on February 28 alongside that of Nosipho Maphumulo, who has been appointed CFO. "We have, over the past months, seen a much-needed improvement in the relationship between the country's transport and logistics authorities and those businesses whose existence is dependent on efficient and effective logistics," Busa president Mxolisi Mgojo said in a statement. Likewise, Business Leadership South Africa CEO Busisiwe Mavuso said Phillips had demonstrated decisiveness and an ability to get things done over the past six months, during which business had intensified its collaboration with the utility in support of its recovery. "Phillips knows what business and government are trying to achieve with the Business for South Africa freight and logistics partnership. "She was the acting CEO when we achieved a 45% reduction in vessels anchored outside Durban port and a 36%reduction in the waiting time to anchor for container vessels," Mavuso added. The Minerals Council South Africa, whose members raised grave concerns about the utility's previous leadership, also congratulated Phillips and Maphumulo on their appointments and suggested that "green shoots" were showing in relation to Transnet's turnaround. "The Minerals Council notes Ms Phillips's commitment to implementing the Transnet Recovery Plan, which includes sustainable cooperation with the private sector to improve operational efficiencies," the council said in a statement, noting that mining accounted for about 80% of Transnet Freight Rail's annual revenue. The Minerals Council and its members were actively involved in four corridor optimisation processes to stabilise the performances of the railways serving the coal, chrome, iron-ore and manganese mines, with miners having resorted to more expensive road transport in many instances. "Returning bulk commodities to rail is a priority for the mining industry." Mgojo, who is also CEO sponsor of Business for South Africa's transport and logistics focal area, stressed that the progress made to date represented but the first step in addressing the crisis. "Stability is essential to sustain the good work being done," he added, noting that the poor performance of the country's rail networks and ports was costing the economy an estimated R1-billion per day, with about R50-billion lost in the minerals sector alone in 2023. Business is participating in the National Logistics Crisis Committee set up by President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2023 to improve Transnet's operational performance, implement rail and port reforms and to create enabling conditions for the freight transport system to operate effectively. "Though we are not yet close to the realisation of our ultimate objectives, there have been tangible and encouraging advances," Mgojo said. In particular, Busa highlighted the approval by Cabinet in December of the Freight Logistics Roadmap and the Rail Private Sector Participation framework, the establishment of an Interim Infrastructure Manager by Transnet Freight Rail, and the signing of mutual cooperation agreements allowing customers to assist with the procurement of spare parts. It also noted the approval of a R47-billion guarantee facility for Transnet by the National Treasury, the deployment of technical experts from business into Transnet, and the implementation of best practices into day-to-day operations. "We expect that with skilled and exper...

This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a leading supplier of products, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. Organised business says the appointment of a permanent executive team at Transnet - led by CEO Michelle Phillips, who has been acting in the role since September and who has been with the utility for 20 years - will enhance stability in the relationships between Transnet and the business sector and accelerate the implementation of the Transnet Recovery Plan. Phillips' appointment was announced by Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan on February 28 alongside that of Nosipho Maphumulo, who has been appointed CFO. "We have, over the past months, seen a much-needed improvement in the relationship between the country's transport and logistics authorities and those businesses whose existence is dependent on efficient and effective logistics," Busa president Mxolisi Mgojo said in a statement. Likewise, Business Leadership South Africa CEO Busisiwe Mavuso said Phillips had demonstrated decisiveness and an ability to get things done over the past six months, during which business had intensified its collaboration with the utility in support of its recovery. "Phillips knows what business and government are trying to achieve with the Business for South Africa freight and logistics partnership. "She was the acting CEO when we achieved a 45% reduction in vessels anchored outside Durban port and a 36%reduction in the waiting time to anchor for container vessels," Mavuso added. The Minerals Council South Africa, whose members raised grave concerns about the utility's previous leadership, also congratulated Phillips and Maphumulo on their appointments and suggested that "green shoots" were showing in relation to Transnet's turnaround. "The Minerals Council notes Ms Phillips's commitment to implementing the Transnet Recovery Plan, which includes sustainable cooperation with the private sector to improve operational efficiencies," the council said in a statement, noting that mining accounted for about 80% of Transnet Freight Rail's annual revenue. The Minerals Council and its members were actively involved in four corridor optimisation processes to stabilise the performances of the railways serving the coal, chrome, iron-ore and manganese mines, with miners having resorted to more expensive road transport in many instances. "Returning bulk commodities to rail is a priority for the mining industry." Mgojo, who is also CEO sponsor of Business for South Africa's transport and logistics focal area, stressed that the progress made to date represented but the first step in addressing the crisis. "Stability is essential to sustain the good work being done," he added, noting that the poor performance of the country's rail networks and ports was costing the economy an estimated R1-billion per day, with about R50-billion lost in the minerals sector alone in 2023. Business is participating in the National Logistics Crisis Committee set up by President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2023 to improve Transnet's operational performance, implement rail and port reforms and to create enabling conditions for the freight transport system to operate effectively. "Though we are not yet close to the realisation of our ultimate objectives, there have been tangible and encouraging advances," Mgojo said. In particular, Busa highlighted the approval by Cabinet in December of the Freight Logistics Roadmap and the Rail Private Sector Participation framework, the establishment of an Interim Infrastructure Manager by Transnet Freight Rail, and the signing of mutual cooperation agreements allowing customers to assist with the procurement of spare parts. It also noted the approval of a R47-billion guarantee facility for Transnet by the National Treasury, the deployment of technical experts from business into Transnet, and the implementation of best practices into day-to-day operations. "We expect that with skilled and exper...

    Clement speaks to Mzila Mthenjane, CEO of the Minerals Council of South Africa to reflect on the outcomes of the 2024 Mining Indaba. Mthenjane gives his synopsis on the state of mining in the country. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This audio is brought to you by Wearcheck, your condition monitoring specialist Minerals Council South Africa is looking at the possibility of promoting permanent aerial mesh support throughout the mining industry as part of its fall of ground action plan. The Minerals Council has a robust fall of ground action plan that targets several dimensions on the biggest contributor to mining incidents. "Many mines have adopted permanent aerial mesh support and we're looking at further adoption," Minerals Council head: safety and sustainable development Dushendra Naidoo said in response to Mining Weekly during a media briefing at Investing in African Mining. As part of the fall of ground action plan, the Minerals Council is also looking at the testing of exoskeletons, wearable devices designed to bolster human performance in physically demanding tasks by supporting various body parts, including the hands, lower and upper back, legs, shoulders and arms. This reduces the amount of energy required when lifting and carrying heavy objects and holding heavy tools. While exoskeletons are already being used to help workers in a range of industrial applications globally, ranging from painting buildings to warehousing and car manufacturing, not much has been said about how they might be used in mining - one of the most dangerous and labour-intensive industries. "That's quite a key intervention. We're testing quite a range of these systems to assist in the barring process. So essentially that removes a person from the unsafe rock that could potentially fall," said Naidoo. Barring is the removal of loose rocks from the walls and ceiling of an underground mine using a long steel pole, is notoriously risky work, with many fall-of-ground deaths being attributed to this process over the years. Barring causes significant strain on the back, shoulders and arms of even the strongest and most physically fit mineworkers. This makes them unable to do the job effectively for more than a few minutes at a time, after which they become too tired to continue. This can negatively affect the barring and, consequently, put other workers in jeopardy. Having an exoskeleton can possibly alleviate the need for barring rights close to high-risk areas. "That's one of the key things that we are going to be testing this year," Naidoo said. Eight exoskeleton systems from around the world are under scrutiny to see what best option for South Africa's mining industry in terms of implementation, practicality, and cost. The Isidingo rockdrill is viewed as drilling cleanly, neatly, and simply. Its lightness is key for adaptation for female employees to use underground. "If you can drill cleanly, neatly, and simply, you can make the blast a far more efficient process by having a cleaner blast. "Another key thing as part of the fall of ground action plan is we have a rock engineering technical committee comprising skilled people who have been in the industry for many years with very heavy rock engineering expertise. "They are involved in this programme and their input is key to guide the process and to look at the best way forward. "We're also looking at seismic monitoring, systems patented in the past that involve acoustic monitoring of the rock and telling way ahead of time wat is happening ahead at the face," he added. Cleaner cutting systems that can mitigate the need for blasting are also being studied. These could facilitate the clean excavation of rock and are also being looked at for low-profile mining. In 2021, there were 22 fall of ground fatalities, in 2022, these fell to six and then doubled to back up to 12 last year. "But if you have a look at the trend, which you must never under-estimate, the hard work that the members are putting in. Its's not a quick pause and tomorrow things will be safe. "It doesn't work like that. We've got a huge number of programmes. How much effort does it take to come to a trend, to really see that we're on the road to zero harm. "It's n...

Tania Constable, Minerals Council of Australia CEO talking about the Federal Government trying to pass skeptical Industrial Relations changes. This would allow militant unions onto job sites without background check entry permits.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This audio is brought to you by Wearcheck, your condition monitoring specialist. Noise-induced hearing loss has displaced tuberculosis (TB) and silicosis as the top priority health threat of the South African mining industry. "I'm emphasising noise-induced hearing loss because the other diseases have gone down markedly whereas as noise-induced hearing loss has not gone down as much," Minerals Council South Africa health department head Dr Thuthula Balfour revealed on day-two of the Investing in African Mining Indaba in Cape Town. The lowest number of occupational diseases reported to date was 1 924 in 2021. The 15 years from 2008 to 2021 saw a massive upwards-of-75% decrease in occupational diseases, with the biggest fall being in TB and silicosis and a lesser fall in noise-induced hearing loss, Balfour told a Minerals Council media briefing in which CEO Mzila Mthenjane, Japie Fullard, Dushendra Naidoo and Sietse van der Woude participated. While noise-induced hearing loss has overtaken TB and silicosis, it must be remembered that coal workers are exposed to lung disease from coal dust, Balfour pointed out at the media briefing covered by Mining Weekly. Of concern are the significant numbers of mine employees who continue to be exposed to noise levels above 85 decibels and key interventions to eliminate noise at the source are under way. Balfour urged that companies to desist from supplying equipment with excessive noise levels as the earmuffs meant to be worn to shield employees from loud sound tend to not be worn efficiently especially during high humidity and high temperature conditions. The elimination of excessive noise is being driven very aggressively "and we are finding a lot of progress", Balfour disclosed. Being targeted in particular are noisy rockdrill held close to the ear and through partnership, drills that emit far less noise are emerging. Coincidentally, the less noisy rockdrills on offer are also considerably lighter in weight, which has opened the way for women to become rockdrill operators.

This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a leading supplier of products, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. The domestic mining industry is looking at 2024 as a year of stabilisation, rather than growth, says Minerals Council South Africa CEO Mzila Mthenjane. The industry continues to face persistent challenges such as loadshedding, an ailing logistics sector, and a declining commodity market. Mthenjane spoke at a Minerals Council media briefing, held on Monday morning ahead of the Investing in African Mining Indaba 2024 in Cape Town. Council data, released on Monday, shows that the mining industry's contribution to South Africa's gross domestic product declined to 6.2% in 2023, down from 7.3% in 2022. Total primary sales dropped from R883.5-billion in 2022, to R786.2-billion last year. Overall, mining input costs in South Africa increased by 8.6% year-on-year in 2023 - well above inflation - softening from 13.8% in 2022. Minerals Council chief economist Hugo Pienaar noted that there were some "very small, initial green shoots" visible in terms of Eskom energy supply as 2024 kicked into gear. "Let's hope it continues." Pienaar was hopeful that the next 12 to 18 months could see an improvement in both the frequency and severity of loadshedding. He warned, however, that seeing an uptick in the logistics system would take longer. Pienaar said the Council was seeking the rapid appointment of permanents CEOs in all Transnet executive positions, and for the permanent infrastructure manager to be announced as soon as possible. "This will be the vehicle through which the concessioning of private sector involvement on rail is likely to be driven. "In a very optimistic scenario this manager is probably up and running by April, May, and then the concessioning needs to start." Pienaar also emphasised that Transnet would need funding support from national government, and that such support should be announced in Budget 2024. "Transnet's turnaround plan cannot work if there are no funds from national government." Jobs in Jeopardy Minerals Council president Nolitha Fakude said the mining industry was being "severely and negatively affected by the crisis in energy, logistics and crime". She noted that crime and corruption remained a pervasive challenge for the industry, in terms of not only personal safety for the mining sector's employees, but also around the issue of illegal mining. "If these three areas are not driven in a very focused manner by government, business and other stakeholders, it is going to be very difficult to stabilise the economic environment that we need to unlock job opportunities, but more importantly, protect current jobs." She noted that a failure to address these challenges would be "disastrous", not only for the mining sector, but for the economy as a whole. Fakude added that the mining industry paid R186.5-billioin in wages in 2023, up from R174.2-billion in 2022. Employment also rose slightly, to 477 000 people, up from 469 353 in 2022. As for the rollout of a long-awaited electronic mining cadastre, Pienaar said the Council was awaiting more detail on government's announcement last week of the preferred bidder to design and implement a functioning cadastre for South Africa. "Timelines would be useful. At best, it would be implemented in 2025." Pienaar noted that the rollout of the cadastre could be a game changer for exploration spending in the country. A minerals cadastre lists available mining or prospecting rights, properties currently under a mining or prospecting right, and the expiry of currently held rights and the ownership of these rights. It allows companies to apply for exploration, prospecting, mining and related rights, and for the regulator to process such applications. Looking ahead, Pienaar said an easing in global inflation could see a softening in interest rates in the second half of 2024, which could see economic conditions improve in 2025.

This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a leading supplier of products, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. The domestic mining industry is looking at 2024 as a year of stabilisation, rather than growth, says Minerals Council South Africa CEO Mzila Mthenjane. The industry continues to face persistent challenges such as loadshedding, an ailing logistics sector, and a declining commodity market. Mthenjane spoke at a Minerals Council media briefing, held on Monday morning ahead of the Investing in African Mining Indaba 2024 in Cape Town. Council data, released on Monday, shows that the mining industry's contribution to South Africa's gross domestic product declined to 6.2% in 2023, down from 7.3% in 2022. Total primary sales dropped from R883.5-billion in 2022, to R786.2-billion last year. Overall, mining input costs in South Africa increased by 8.6% year-on-year in 2023 - well above inflation - softening from 13.8% in 2022. Minerals Council chief economist Hugo Pienaar noted that there were some "very small, initial green shoots" visible in terms of Eskom energy supply as 2024 kicked into gear. "Let's hope it continues." Pienaar was hopeful that the next 12 to 18 months could see an improvement in both the frequency and severity of loadshedding. He warned, however, that seeing an uptick in the logistics system would take longer. Pienaar said the Council was seeking the rapid appointment of permanents CEOs in all Transnet executive positions, and for the permanent infrastructure manager to be announced as soon as possible. "This will be the vehicle through which the concessioning of private sector involvement on rail is likely to be driven. "In a very optimistic scenario this manager is probably up and running by April, May, and then the concessioning needs to start." Pienaar also emphasised that Transnet would need funding support from national government, and that such support should be announced in Budget 2024. "Transnet's turnaround plan cannot work if there are no funds from national government." Jobs in Jeopardy Minerals Council president Nolitha Fakude said the mining industry was being "severely and negatively affected by the crisis in energy, logistics and crime". She noted that crime and corruption remained a pervasive challenge for the industry, in terms of not only personal safety for the mining sector's employees, but also around the issue of illegal mining. "If these three areas are not driven in a very focused manner by government, business and other stakeholders, it is going to be very difficult to stabilise the economic environment that we need to unlock job opportunities, but more importantly, protect current jobs." She noted that a failure to address these challenges would be "disastrous", not only for the mining sector, but for the economy as a whole. Fakude added that the mining industry paid R186.5-billioin in wages in 2023, up from R174.2-billion in 2022. Employment also rose slightly, to 477 000 people, up from 469 353 in 2022. As for the rollout of a long-awaited electronic mining cadastre, Pienaar said the Council was awaiting more detail on government's announcement last week of the preferred bidder to design and implement a functioning cadastre for South Africa. "Timelines would be useful. At best, it would be implemented in 2025." Pienaar noted that the rollout of the cadastre could be a game changer for exploration spending in the country. A minerals cadastre lists available mining or prospecting rights, properties currently under a mining or prospecting right, and the expiry of currently held rights and the ownership of these rights. It allows companies to apply for exploration, prospecting, mining and related rights, and for the regulator to process such applications. Looking ahead, Pienaar said an easing in global inflation could see a softening in interest rates in the second half of 2024, which could see economic conditions improve in 2025.

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Everett Waller is a member of the Osage Nation and chairman of the Osage Minerals Council, which on December 20, 2023, won a federal lawsuit that requires Enel to remove 84 wind turbines it built in Osage County at an expected cost of $300 million. In this episode, Waller explains why the tribe continued the legal fight against Enel for 12 years, its plan to collect compensatory damages from the company, why he is “ecstatic” about the ruling, and why he believes it will “be a landmark case, spoken about long after I'm dead.” (Recorded December 29, 2023.)   

This audio is brought to you by Wearcheck, your condition monitoring specialist. The growth of investment in fresh new greenfield mining projects is lagging badly and the contribution of the South African mining industry to the national economy has more than halved in the last two decades, Minerals Council South Africa's latest Facts and Figures 2022 point out. Net fixed capital formation figures show a mining industry bumping along a growthless greenfield path. Investment in the mining sector has largely been directed towards maintaining current operations. This is reflected in the 30%-higher gross fixed capital formation investment, which centres on brownfield growth in existing lease areas. In contrast, net fixed capital formation investment in mining averaging a low 4% from 1993 to 2022. (Also see attached graph.) A major upturn is required in net fixed investment is required because what has been mined has to constantly be replaced with a new find to prevent this finite-horizon industry from fading away. In stark contrast to other sectors of the South African economy, mining has consistently struggled to achieve and maintain positive growth. In fact, mining is the only sector of the South African economy that has averaged a negative 0.4% growth rate since 1994 in the face of all other sectors having grown, Facts and Figures 2022 highlights. Stay-in-business brownfield investment in existing lease areas can only go on for so long, making new greenfield investment essential if mining is to continue to be a meaningful economic multiplier. An indication of mining's magnitude of mining is provided the sector remaining a trillion-rand industry for the second consecutive year when measured in production value. While the contribution to South Africa's gross domestic product (GDP) was 1.9% higher at R483.3-billion, and direct payments into the fiscus totalled R99.1-billion, mining could have contributed 35% to 50% more to the fiscus in an environment of improved logistics performance and electricity security. It would thus made the necessary cash flow available for the government to invest in much-needed socio-economic infrastructure, such as education, health, roads and railways to drive economic development. Production in the year to December 2022 was 6.9% lower than in 2021. What is more, 2022 production performance was 6.7% lower when compared to pre-Covid levels. "Our industry is in decline, a trend which should be of concern to the nation," new Minerals Council CEO Mzila Mthenjane stated. "The value at stake for the nation is too large for the Minerals Council not to play a leading role in reversing this trend," Mthenjane added. Minerals Council is working closely with its business peers, government and other stakeholders to ensure sustainable and pragmatic solutions to the infrastructural and logistics constraints faced by the industry - while addressing the deteriorating security environment. "If these blockages are resolved, with the inclusion of the private sector, the mining industry's role as a key contributor to the wellbeing of the South African economy and livelihoods of people of South Africa will be fully unlocked. We believe and will continue to uphold our vision of #MiningMatters because it really does," Mthenjane emphasised in the release to Mining Weekly. Needed ultra-urgently is an efficiently working proven cadastre as well as an incentive framework to ensure the promotion of mining exploration.

Noluthando Mtthonti-Mlambo speaks to Lerato Tsele of the Minerals Council about driving Zero Harm in mining.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This audio is brought to you by Wearcheck, your condition monitoring specialist,. The world over, green hydrogen is being recognised as the most effective route towards combating the climate crisis in the most holistic way possible, with Minerals Council South Africa highlighting the collaboration of South Africa's leading platinum mining company with a local grey hydrogen producer and a car company with 30 global production site and a 140-country sales network. Collaborating in the trialling of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are Anglo American Platinum, BMW Group South Africa and Sasol South Africa in the trialing of fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) in which the green hydrogen is converted into clean electricity by platinum catalysts. "As countries around the world reduce their environmental footprint by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and address climate change concerns, green hydrogen is a vital component in the shift towards green energy sources," the Minerals Council stated in its release to Mining Weekly. For South Africa, which is the largest supplier of platinum group metals (PGMs), the use of green hydrogen in the auto sector is an important development that could generate demand of up to five-million ounces of platinum group metals (PGMs) a year if hydrogen fuel cells are used in 10% of the global car market. This will underpin job security for the 175 000 people employed in the PGM mining sector. Coinciding with the Minerals Council media release were several other local releases and many global newsbreaks emphasising green hydrogen's far-reaching momentum. As reported by Engineering News at the weekend, South Africa's Eastern Cape, Northern Cape and Western Cape provinces have agreed to team up in a bid to position South Africa as a global hub for the production of green hydrogen and derivative products, as well as to produce the components required in the green hydrogen value chain, ahead of the finalisation of South Africa's Green Hydrogen Commercialisation Strategy. In addition, steel producer ArcelorMittal South Africa is moving ahead with a study into the production of green hydrogen directly reduced iron (gHDRI) at its mothballed Saldanha Steel Works, in the Western Cape. The JSE-listed group has signed a memorandum of understanding with an as yet unnamed "developer of transformational energy solutions" to advance the production of gHDRI at the plant. On Monday, Charbone Hydrogen of Canada announced the launching of the construction of the first phase of Toronto-listed company's green hydrogen production facility in Quebec This followed the energy company with Australia's iron-ore mining group Fortescue has announced plans to build a 550 MW electrolyser at its Gibson Island Project in Brisbane, a platinum-based proton exchange membrane electrolyser as well as European company Lhyfe, a world pioneer in the production of green and renewable hydrogen for transport and industrial applications, turning the first sod for the construction of a hydrogen production plant in the German city of Schwäbisch Gmünd. This plant will be the first to supply hydrogen directly to an industrial park. It is also the first in a network of many plants that will be operated by Lhyfe, which is setting out to deliver green hydrogen in bulk in Germany and France by 2025. In addition, Fortescue and Plug of the US have started the initial diligence process for Fortescue to take up to a 40% equity stake in Plug's Texas green hydrogen plant and for Plug to take up to a 25% equity stake in Fortescue's proposed Phoenix green hydrogen plant. The World Platinum Investment Council, with its eye on the demand for platinum that the green hydrogen rollout will generate, expects one-million FCEVs to be on China's roads by 2035 and that one in eight newly registered commercial vehicles worldwide will be powered by hydrogen fuel cells by 2030. The broad-based commercial adoption of FCEVs could add more than three-million ounces to yearly platinum...

Mining industry players are gathered at the Joburg indaba to discuss the future of the mining sector. Business Day Tv caught up with the CEO of the Minerals Council, Mzila Mthenjane for his views of the current state of the mining sector.

Bertus Bierman, CEO of Lebalelo Water Users Association on mining companies in South Africa working with the government on a water project, to supply major platinum and chrome operations, and several hundred thousand people with drinking water.   On The Money Show Explainer, Henk Langenhoven, Minerals Council chief economist on the mining industry shrinking as demand for precious metal for just transition is on the rise.   On the Friday File, Gert-Johan Coetzee, fashion designer on why he is in Paris studying Luxury Handbag design.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I'll somehow re-emerge in the mining sector at some point in the future, outgoing Minerals Council South Africa CEO Roger Baxter said on Tuesday, when spoke to Mining Weekly in a Teams interview. At the end of this month, Baxter will hand over to incoming CEO Mzila Mthenjane, who will inherit a Minerals Council that has been profoundly elevated to new heights of transformative safety, race, gender, and minerals diversity advancement. (Also watch attached Creamer Media video.) When Baxter joined the overwhelmingly pale and male Chamber of Mines back in 1992, there were 551 fatalities compared with 49 in 2020/ 2023, the lowest level in South African mining's recorded history. While the chamber was dominated by the gold mining industry with a bit of coal and diamond mining thrown in, today's members of the rebranded Minerals Council mine 60-plus different minerals, representing 90% of the value of mineral production in South Africa and more than 90% of employment. Moreover, the Minerals Council's 32-member board has been led by a lady president for the last three years and is race and gender diversified. Changes at employment equity and ownership levels mean that significant numbers of black South Africans, who have earned their stripes in the sector, today own and manage operations across a broad front. Involved today are 72 500 women versus virtually no women before. In partnership with the Mandela Mining Precinct, the Department of Science and Technology and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, modernisation has been advanced through an expenditure of R500-million in the last five years. Mining Weekly: What regulatory environment does mining need in South Africa to be able to compete on a level footing with other mining jurisdictions? Baxter: What's important to state is that the regulatory framework is just one aspect. If you look at the Fraser Institute survey report on South Africa for 2022, the worst ranked area for us was security, and we are focused on the issues around improving the security environment in South Africa, but we need government to come to the party on that. Two or three of the other critical issues are around the fact that our logistics has fallen by 40% over the last five years and we don't have reliable electricity supply. Those factors, which were very much to our advantage five to ten years ago, have now become negatives in the Fraser Institute survey report. We can have the best regulatory environment in the world, but if we're not sorting out crime, logistics and the heartbeat of the economy, which is electricity supply, we're not going to be able to grow mining. On the regulatory front, we do need a transparent online off-the-shelf cadastral system that is very easily accessible for free, with all the precompetitive geological information, showing who's got what prospecting right, so you can go in and apply. We need to have the regulatory framework organised in a way that it takes no more than two to three months to get the prospecting right versus the current 354 days, which simply doesn't work, particularly for venture capital exploration. We need to get all the backlog of the regulatory approvals cleared out the way, which the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) has now committed to do. We need to have a exploration plan, and a lot more incentives around venture capital funding. In our view, this should be the flow-through shares equivalent, which is borrowing from the Canadian model, to get venture capital funded exploration ignited in South Africa, to unlock a pipeline of new exploration projects, which could unleash more investment in the mining sector. Those are the areas that we've been certainly engaging government on and the Minister did say last week that the five preferred candidates for the cadastral system have been being listed and they're going to be looking at choosing one of them by the end of July, so let's see what happens. If given the right envi...

Lethabo Exploration, which started out as an exploration company, has since transitioned into mining iron-ore in Limpopo, and has secured an offtake agreement. Lethabo is 100% South African black-owned and to date, it has been 100% self-funded, which means the company has no external debt-funding obligations, Lethabo Exploration CEO Mandy Malebe told the Junior Indaba this week. (Also watch attached Creamer Media video.) “Lethabo's truly a first of its kind, with its director and executive body being local people born and bred in rural Limpopo, in the district of Sekhukhune, and having mining rights for projects and greenfield exploration in Sekhukhune, which takes in the areas such as Steelpoort and Burgersfort. That's home and it's also home to our mining projects. “Being local people from Sekhukhune and mining in our home area, our commitment to the development that we want to see there is personal because of the background that we have and also being exposed to the poverty there,” Malebe said in a presentation covered by Mining Weekly. Lethabo is affiliated to Minerals Council South Africa, of which it has been a member since 2020, and Malebe serves as one of the deputy chairs of the Exploration and Junior Miners Leadership Forum on the Junior and Emerging Miners Desk. At last week's Minerals Council annual general meeting, Malebe was appointed as a council board member. It is also associated to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), where it participates in the entrepreneurial accelerator programme, sponsored by Minerals Council South Africa. This programme is designed to help businesses to access investors and capital, as well as access funding through the option of listing on the JSE, which is seen as essentially increasing South Africa's employment status as a nation and contributing to the economy. The social economy which is within Lethabo's immediate reach is that of Sekhukhune, where it holds mining rights for iron-ore, vanadium, chrome, platinum-group metals, titanium and andalusite. Its mining rights cover the farms Malekskraal, Waterkop and Mecklenburg, situated on the eastern limb of the Bushveld Complex. For mining continuity, it has secured the mining rights on the farms Waterkop and Mecklenburg, which are neighbouring farms along the R37 provincial route, and mining rights for iron-ore and its byproducts at Malekskraal. The three farms together cover 8 370 ha. “As a self-funded company from inception to date, our progress and project development has been dependent solely on the success of other non-mining-related projects that we run and have used to provide capital. “This is extremely difficult and challenging, especially because mining requires such high volumes of cash injection, not to mention the costs incurred to outsource expert opinion through consultants, geologists and surveyors,” Malebe explained. Lethabo set out in 2007 when its first prospecting rights application was submitted to the Department of Minerals Resources and Energy (DMRE), finally executing its mining rights this year, “so that's after 16 years of being on the receiving end of bureaucracy, litigation, no-access to funding and limited access to markets. “As an emerging mining company, being black-owned and being women-led does not make us immune to the challenges that are common to the industry – access to markets, capital, human capital, and the DMRE's legitimate intervention at a regional level. We are too young a company to even comment on the access's real issues,” Malebe said. Malekskraal is the only site where site establishment has been done, the construction of a weighbridge has been competed and opencast mining operations has begun. Implementing this project was the outcome of many debates where Lethabo was faced with potential buyers resisting to commit to a project that had no existing operations. With no access to project funding for mining, Lethabo resorted to starting “where you are, with what you have. Again, our su...

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This episode, Candice and Felicity dive into the world of cleaner fuel alternatives and the incredible potential of uranium! They're thrilled to have John Borshoff as our guest, a mining executive and geologist with over four decades of uranium industry experience. Did you know that a single pellet of uranium can produce the same amount of electricity as one ton of coal, three barrels of oil, or 17,000 cubic feet of natural gas?John began his career with German uranium miner Uranerz, where he worked for 17 years before founding Paladin Energy Ltd in 1993. Under his leadership, Paladin grew from a junior explorer to a multi-mine uranium producer valued at over US$5 billion. John spearheaded the development of the first two conventional uranium mines in two decades, and oversaw numerous successful market transactions before leaving Paladin in 2015.With a Bachelor of Science in Geology from the University of Western Australia, John is a Fellow of both the Australian Institute of Company Directors and the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. He serves as a member of the Uranium Forum within the Minerals Council of Australia and sits on the Council of the Namibian Chamber of Mines. This is the first part in a two-episode series on uranium, when we learn about its crucial role in our quest for clean energy.Follow Talk Money To Me on Instagram, or send Candice and Felicity an email with all your thoughts here. Felicity Thomas and Candice Bourke are Senior Advisers at Shaw and Partners, and you can find out more here. *****In the spirit of reconciliation, Equity Mates Media and the hosts of Talk Money To Me acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respects to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people today. *****Talk Money To Me is a product of Equity Mates Media. This podcast is intended for education and entertainment purposes. Any advice is general advice only, and has not taken into account your personal financial circumstances, needs or objectives. Before acting on general advice, you should consider if it is relevant to your needs and read the relevant Product Disclosure Statement. And if you are unsure, please speak to a financial professional. Equity Mates Media operates under Australian Financial Services Licence 540697.Talk Money To Me is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of No Ordinary Wednesday, Henk Langenhoven, Chief Economist of the Minerals Council of South Africa, Tertia Jacobs, Investec Treasury Economist, and Denys Hobson, Head of Logistics at Investec for Business, discuss the extent of the Transnet crisis, its impact on the economy and possible solutions. No Ordinary Wednesday with Jeremy Maggs

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Henk Langenhoven, Chief Economist of the Minerals Council of South Africa joins Investec's Treasury Economist and Power & Infrastructure team to discuss the impact of loadshedding on the mining sector and the wider economy. Learn more

Henk Langenhoven, Chief Economist of the Minerals Council of South Africa joins Investec's Treasury Economist and Power & Infrastructure team to discuss the impact of loadshedding on the mining sector and the wider economy. Learn more · Investec Focus South Africa

In this special 300th podcast episode edition we chat to Neal Froneman, CEO of Sibanye StillWater, who are a multinational mining and metals processing company with a diverse portfolio of mining and processing operations and projects and investments across five continents. They have established themselves as one of the world's largest primary producers of platinum, palladium, and rhodium and is also a top tier gold producer and recently have moved into the battery minerals. Neal has a wealth of experience in the industry working for the likes of Goldfield, Harmony Gold, Gold One and Uranium One during his career before taking the helm of CEO at Sibanye Still-Water. He also serves as the VP of the Minerals Council in South Africa. So in this special 300th episode, we get to know Neal, what he has achieved, his vision, his wisdom and the journey of Sibanye StillWater and what the future holds for them. We like to thank all the guests that have appeared on the show and all the listeners and mining community for your support and encouragement on this journey. We couldn't of produced this podcast without you, so thank you again. Please keep sharing this content and podcast through out the world so the mining community can be informed, inspired and educated in what goes on in our industry. Happy Mining KEY TAKEAWAYS There has been a dramatic shift in the power structure within the mining sector. The word ahead is far more diverse and inclusive, and allows for more talent to shine through. Creating true shared value for all stakeholders happens when a company is profitable and sustainable, and led by people who care about the future as well as the present. The only way that the mining sector can move into the world of tomorrow, is if we have leaders who embrace the new and allow thought to prevail over tradition. Delivering true economic value is the same as nurturing a tree. We must plant in fertile soil and ensure a steady flow of nutrients. BEST MOMENTS 'There's a very significant soft side to us' 'Management has always seemed like an exclusive club' 'I see it as my duty to create an environment where people from different backgrounds can work together' 'Creating an empowering background, promoting teamwork, inclusivity and diversity, has been a very big part of our success' VALUABLE RESOURCES   Dig Deep – The Mining Podcast on iTunes Neal Froneman - https://www.sibanyestillwater.com/about-us/leadership/neal-froneman/ VALUABLE RESOURCES mailto:rob@mining-international.org https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-tyson-3a26a68/ http://www.mining-international.org https://twitter.com/MiningConsult https://www.facebook.com/MiningInternational.org https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC69dGPS29lmakv-D7LWJg_Q?guided_help_flow=3 ABOUT THE HOST Rob Tyson is the Founder and Director of Mining International Ltd, a leading global recruitment and headhunting consultancy based in the UK specialising in all areas of mining across the globe from first-world to third-world countries from Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Australia. We source, headhunt, and discover new and top talent through a targeted approach and search methodology and have a proven track record in sourcing and positioning exceptional candidates into our clients' organisations in any mining discipline or level. Mining International provides a transparent, informative, and trusted consultancy service to our candidates and clients to help them develop their careers and business goals and objectives in this ever-changing marketplace. CONTACT METHOD rob@mining-international.org https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-tyson-3a26a68/ Podcast Description Rob Tyson is an established recruiter in the mining and quarrying sector and decided to produce the “Dig Deep” The Mining Podcast to provide valuable and informative content around the mining industry. He has a passion and desire to promote the industry and the podcast aims to offer the mining community an insight into people's experiences and careers covering any mining discipline, giving the listeners helpful advice and guidance on industry topics.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

State-owned freight utility Transnet and the Minerals Council South Africa have agreed to form joint collaborative structures to ensure all possible actions are taken to stabilise and improve the throughput of South Africa's rail and ports systems. Transnet recognises the integrated nature of the mining industry as part of the logistics system and has agreed to mutually focus on stabilising the whole system's performance. The parties agree that stabilisation and recovery of the ports and railways are in the interest of all parties in the value chain. The entities will establish an oversight panel and a recovery steering committee, as well as continue with the work being done through channel optimisation teams for each of the country's major commodities – coal, iron-ore, manganese and chrome. The oversight panel will include principles and office bearers of the Minerals Council and the Transnet board, while the recovery steering committee will be jointly chaired by Minerals Council president Nolitha Fakude and Transnet chairperson Popo Molefe. The five-a-side recovery steering committee will also comprise Transnet board members, the Minerals Council CEO and CEOs of companies that produce bulk commodities. The channel optimisation teams, which already exist, will continue seeking priority practical solutions to improve flows across the system organised across corridors. Fakude says the council is determined to find practical solutions to the rail and port challenges of the country and to ensure that all producers enjoy inclusive growth that comes from an improved logistics system. Molefe adds that Transnet looks forward to an equally open and constructive relationship with the Minerals Council and key Transnet customers to stabilise the performance on the channels, for the benefit of the country.

Geotechnical monitoring radar systems company Reutech Mining has been revealed as the winner of the Rock Hazard Identification and Safe Removal Innovation Challenge, an initiative by the Mandela Mining Precinct (MMP) and the Minerals Council South Africa, supported by mining companies Sibanye-Stillwater and Impala Platinum (Implats). During the first quarter of the year, the Minerals Council and the MMP set out to identify novel solutions in rock hazard identification and safe rock removal for further development, testing and piloting at Sibanye and Implats' mines, with a focus on the reduction in falls-of-ground (FoGs) and improved worker safety. A call for proposals in the rock hazard identification category resulted in the submission of solutions featuring ground-penetrating radar technology, thermal and acoustic imaging, light detection and ranging-compatible drones and millimetre-wave synthetic aperture radar imaging for real-time rock mass quality inspection, among others. In November, a panel of judges representing the MMP, the Minerals Council, Sibanye and Implats shortlisted the top seven submissions. Earlier this month, the shortlisted submissions underwent a final round of judging at a virtual “pitching den” event. This culminated in the announcement of Reutech as the winner, with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research's Advanced Internet-of-Things group, Tata Consultancy Services Research, and drone company Flyability being named runners up. Other finalists in the challenge were Stratafy, Ramjack Technology Solutions and RockMass Technologies. The Rock Hazard Identification and Safe Removal Innovation Challenge was undertaken as part of the FoG Action Plan (FoGAP), a programme developed and approved by the Minerals Council's CEO Zero Harm Forum, in conjunction with the MMP's Advanced Orebody Knowledge (AOK) programme. The FoGAP's objective is to eliminate FoG fatalities, which have historically been cited as one of the leading causes of worker fatalities within the mining industry, while the AOK programme seeks to improve geological confidence at and beyond the rockface. “We are incredibly encouraged by the significant reduction of fatalities due to FoGs this year and hope this is a great step toward reaching zero fatalities – but the work is not done,” Minerals Council safety and sustainability senior policy analyst Lerato Tsele said. MMP director Johan le Roux added that innovation has been shown to directly enhance performance in the environmental, social and governance space – the clearest evidence of this being improvements in health and safety and the significant progress made to date towards achieving zero-harm for the mining workforce.

Jordan Murray dissects Business News' latest executive remuneration survey and discusses trends and highlights from this year's data. Plus the latest on Dave Kelly, Allen Caratti and Minerals Council of Australia.

The Minerals Council of Australia is calling on the government to rule out a mining tax.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the impasse between Transnet and its two recognised unions – the United National Transport Union (Untu) and the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) – continues, organised business has called for a “swift, sustainable resolution”, as mining exporters warned that they were losing R815-million every day the strike continued. In a joint statement, Business Unity South Africa (Busa) and Business Leadership South Africa rejected short-term solutions, such as temporarily increasing levies, which they said could have unintended consequences. “We need a quick, sustainable resolution to this strike, not ad hoc solutions,” Busa CEO Cas Coovadia said. “The strike risks severe damage to the economy not just in the short term but also the longer term if it drags on and South Africa's reputation for logistics gets further tarnished.” Both organisations rejected earlier media reports suggesting that they would support a so-called ‘Avoidance of Strike Levy'. They also expressed anxiety over the prospect of the strike enduring for more than a few days, warning that cargo ships would not only skip slots at South African ports but start taking South African ports out of schedules in the months ahead. “This will add significant costs to either airfreight items or truck goods to and from other African ports – which will add to the inflation pressures South Africans are facing.” Minerals Council South Africa, meanwhile, estimated that bulk mineral exporters were losing R815-million daily, because they had been unable to rail and load 357 000 t of iron-ore, coal, chrome, ferrochrome and manganese onto ships. “On average, South Africa exports about 476 000 t of bulk minerals a day worth R1.06-billion. “We estimate that just 120 000 t of minerals worth R261-million are being exported daily, [given that] mineral export harbours are operating at between 12% and 30% of their daily averages,” the council said in a statement. As with the other orgnaised business formations, the council also warned that the damage caused by the strike was not only limited to the immediate losses and could have longer-term consequences, including damaging South Africa's reputation as a reliable supplier to global markets. “The Minerals Council is deeply concerned that the labour action at Transnet will compound the losses our bulk mineral exporting members are already experiencing because of Transnet struggling to meet targeted annual tonnages on its rail network and throughput at ports.” The council has estimated previously that there had been an export loss of R50-billion on an annualised basis this year for iron-ore, coal, chrome, ferrochrome and manganese exporters as measured by delivered tonnages against contracted rail volumes. “In contrast, R151-billion could be gained in additional exports, with the concomitant benefits of employment in mining increasing by 40 000 jobs to 500 000, the fiscus benefiting from improved tax revenue and higher revenues for Transnet if all rail and ports systems were optimally and efficiently run at design capacity.” EXTREMELY CONCERNED In a separate joint statement, Ministers Pravin Gordhan, Thulas Nxesi and Thoko Didiza said they were “extremely concerned” about the negative impact of the strike on the South African economy. “It is the view of government, that it will be in the interests of the country to find a speedy resolution to this impasse and for parties to continue to engage and, where appropriate, to employ the facilitation services of the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA). “Our country cannot afford further job losses in other sectors of the economy and the interruption of imports and exports to and from South Africa,” the three Ministers said. Despite this growing pressure, Untu and Satawu have indicated they were likely to reject the latest three-year offer tabled by Transnet following two days of CCMA-facilitated negotiations. The wage offer, which Transnet said would b...

As the impasse between Transnet and its two recognised unions – the United National Transport Union (Untu) and the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) – continues, organised business has called for a “swift, sustainable resolution”, as mining exporters warned that they were losing R815-million every day the strike continued. In a joint statement, Business Unity South Africa (Busa) and Business Leadership South Africa rejected short-term solutions, such as temporarily increasing levies, which they said could have unintended consequences. “We need a quick, sustainable resolution to this strike, not ad hoc solutions,” Busa CEO Cas Coovadia said. “The strike risks severe damage to the economy not just in the short term but also the longer term if it drags on and South Africa's reputation for logistics gets further tarnished.” Both organisations rejected earlier media reports suggesting that they would support a so-called ‘Avoidance of Strike Levy'. They also expressed anxiety over the prospect of the strike enduring for more than a few days, warning that cargo ships would not only skip slots at South African ports but start taking South African ports out of schedules in the months ahead. “This will add significant costs to either airfreight items or truck goods to and from other African ports – which will add to the inflation pressures South Africans are facing.” Minerals Council South Africa, meanwhile, estimated that bulk mineral exporters were losing R815-million daily, because they had been unable to rail and load 357 000 t of iron-ore, coal, chrome, ferrochrome and manganese onto ships. “On average, South Africa exports about 476 000 t of bulk minerals a day worth R1.06-billion. “We estimate that just 120 000 t of minerals worth R261-million are being exported daily, [given that] mineral export harbours are operating at between 12% and 30% of their daily averages,” the council said in a statement. As with the other orgnaised business formations, the council also warned that the damage caused by the strike was not only limited to the immediate losses and could have longer-term consequences, including damaging South Africa's reputation as a reliable supplier to global markets. “The Minerals Council is deeply concerned that the labour action at Transnet will compound the losses our bulk mineral exporting members are already experiencing because of Transnet struggling to meet targeted annual tonnages on its rail network and throughput at ports.” The council has estimated previously that there had been an export loss of R50-billion on an annualised basis this year for iron-ore, coal, chrome, ferrochrome and manganese exporters as measured by delivered tonnages against contracted rail volumes. “In contrast, R151-billion could be gained in additional exports, with the concomitant benefits of employment in mining increasing by 40 000 jobs to 500 000, the fiscus benefiting from improved tax revenue and higher revenues for Transnet if all rail and ports systems were optimally and efficiently run at design capacity.” EXTREMELY CONCERNED In a separate joint statement, Ministers Pravin Gordhan, Thulas Nxesi and Thoko Didiza said they were “extremely concerned” about the negative impact of the strike on the South African economy. “It is the view of government, that it will be in the interests of the country to find a speedy resolution to this impasse and for parties to continue to engage and, where appropriate, to employ the facilitation services of the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA). “Our country cannot afford further job losses in other sectors of the economy and the interruption of imports and exports to and from South Africa,” the three Ministers said. Despite this growing pressure, Untu and Satawu have indicated they were likely to reject the latest three-year offer tabled by Transnet following two days of CCMA-facilitated negotiations. The wage offer, which Transnet said would b...

The Minerals Council South Africa and the Mandela Mining Precinct plan to announce the finalists of an open innovation challenge – championed by Sibanye-Stillwater and Impala Platinum – to identify high-potential innovations for real-time rock hazard identification and loose rock removal in South African mines. The challenge forms part of the Mandela Mining Precinct's Advanced Orebody Knowledge programme, which is aimed at providing mine planners, rock engineers, geologists and other decision-makers with information and knowledge that will contribute to optimal extraction and zero harm objectives. It also forms part of the Minerals Council's Elimination of Fall of Ground (FoG) Fatalities Action Plan, which is a holistic approach that encompasses technical and human elements supported by the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy, the Mine Health and Safety Council, as well as organised labour and suppliers. The action plan, which was approved in July 2021, includes a financial investment of R46-million over five years. The open innovation challenge, which was first announced on August 12 and which will close on October 12, was an invitation to identify and implement new technology that will enable the development of user-friendly solutions for improving geological confidence at the face, while also making the underground mining environment safer during the removal of loose rocks after blasting and during cleaning before workers enter the area for drilling. The finalists will be announced in early November. The challenge seeks to address a two-fold problem – identifying the rock features that could be potentially hazardous and then safely supporting or removing them. “For falls of ground safety, statistical analysis revealed a lot of accidents happened during the barring process. This is why we needed to search for whatever technologies, instruments and systems are out there that can help remove loose rock in the safest possible way – preferably remotely, without people being exposed,” Minerals Council safety and sustainable development senior policy analyst Lerato Tsele tells Mining Weekly. She explains that the business case for the Minerals Council on this project centered on saving lives, adding that Sibanye-Stillwater and Impala platinum mines have availed themselves to pilot whatever tool or equipment or technology emerges from the challenge. South African underground narrow, tabular gold and platinum mines have the highest FOG risks. Intense fracturing often occurs owing to high stresses encountered at depth and the structural complexity of these orebodies. This fracturing is also exacerbated by the drill-and-blast method that is traditionally practiced in hard-rock narrow reef mines. The combination of faults, joints and shallow-dipping fractures occurring in tabular stopes can compromise the integrity of the hanging wall, resulting in rock mass instabilities. These instabilities, if untreated, may result in hazardous FoGs. This is why they are typically the target of safe-making and support activities during mining. The identification and visualization of geological structures and hazards on the face by mining personnel is typically limited to in-person visual and physical examination and the ability to identify hazards and risks ahead of the face are limited. A new, better leading practice is being sought for frontline workers in hard rock, tabular, underground mining to more accurately identify and visualize hazards relating to rock faults, joints and fractures. Once unstable and unsafe rocks have been identified, it is necessary to support or remove them safely. The method of using a pinch bar to sound the rock to establish its integrity and then using it to remove the rock exposes the worker directly to the hazard, not to mention it being physically demanding. A new tool to safely remove a loose rock from the rock mass in a controlled manner is required to ensure zero harm to those tasked with carrying out m...

Roger Baxter, CEO at Minerals Council of South Africa explains how Transnet's declining infrastructure in rail and ports is costing the mining sector billions.      David Lewis, co-founder of Corruption Watch on why he believes that the government should consider having its own HR department, dedicated to appointing senior public servants, in order to avoid future State Capture.     Warren Ingram, personal financial advisor and executive director at Galileo Capital discusses how the ongoing interest rate hikes will impact you.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The biggest opportunity mining has as an industry is to help the world to transition to a net-zero carbon world, Minerals Council South Africa president Nolitha Fakude said on Wednesday. Fakude, who is also chairperson of Anglo American's management board in South Africa, highlighted this during her keynote address at the Joburg Indaba, covered by Mining Weekly. “With climate change and the global energy transition well underway, it is many of the metals and minerals which we produce right here in South Africa that are required to support this transition – and our abundant sun and wind resources give us yet another wonderful opportunity to produce and benefit from renewable energy sources,” said Fakude. Minerals Council members have a pipeline of 6.5 GW of sustainable energy projects worth more than R100-billion. “But the question we hear others ask of us remains: will South Africa's policymakers, and indeed the mining industry, organise themselves enough and in time to really benefit from this enviable position? “If we do, then we truly have the power and potential to be the lighthouse industry for South Africa. “Not only would we catalyse the much-needed growth and socio-economic development that our country so desperately needs, but we would also create a pathway and model for other industries to follow suit while helping South Africa's own decarbonisation journey as we, together, fight global climate change. “This requires a shift in our thinking and ways of working together, away from who we are to what we must become,” she said. “Many factors are impacting our ability and confidence to invest, which include complex regulatory framework. Policy support, regulatory certainty on energy production and efficient robust state-owned institutions are all essential – and so too is the rule of law, security, and the rooting out of corruption. “It is critical for the government to allow the private sector to participate fully in revitalising the potential of key infrastructure in water, energy, and logistics. Partnerships between the public and private sectors are essential to unlock our full mineral potential to create jobs, wealth, and opportunities for future generations. “Within our locus of control, however, is also the willingness to truly collaborate – bringing together labour, government, business, communities, and civil society to enhance our confidence, support the country's investment prospects and secure a just energy transition,” said Fakude. In this regard, Anglo American and EDF Renewables announced a partnership agreement incorporating joint venture company, Envusa Energy, that will develop a regional renewable energy ecosystem in South Africa. The agreement includes the launch of 600 MW of wind and solar projects as a first step towards generating 3 GW to 5 GW of renewable energy. “The ecosystem also illustrates how mining can serve as a springboard for unlocking national growth and development potential. Across our industry, many other companies are on the same path – signalling a commitment to not only making the energy transition real but just and inclusive as well. “The energy transition is not going to be sustainable or just if we do not invest in advancing the economic inclusion of women and young people. “I believe that as the energy transition gains pace, we as an industry can play a leading role in building a more collaborative and inclusive economy – one that places people and the principle of shared prosperity at the heart of development,” said Fakude.

South Africa's geological prospectivity is fantastic with only 15% of the country's surface area having been mapped at a high resolution of 50 000 to 1 geophysical level. Moreover, the world of geology has changed a lot in the last 20 years. “The people that find the deposits these days are the mathematicians and statisticians who sit in little offices looking at the geological abnormalities using algorithms to do so, and then send the geologists to go and find the deposit,” Minerals Council South Africa CEO Roger Baxter told the Joburg Indaba on Wednesday. That compared with 20 years ago when it was typically hands-on geologist type work. Baxter displayed slides that highlighted South Africa's potential geological opportunities in chrome, platinum group metals, gold, iron-ore, titanium minerals and diamonds. On mining in South Africa being a sunset or sunrise industry, he said: “We've got an incredibly world-class mining sector, business capability that is hard to deny at a global level, and a committed and patriotic business sector, which really matters for this country, and wants to see South Africa succeed. “We've got significant research, development and innovation capacity, a pipeline of skills from world-class educational facilities and in some areas great infrastructure but we're just not getting our service levels on that infrastructure that we need,” Baxter said. Having recently returned from Australia, he noted that mining engineering was no longer offered at any of the universities in Queensland, compared with South Africa, which had a surplus of mining engineers coming out of universities. But these could not be employed because the country was failing to grow the mining sector at a sufficiently fast pace – “and we should be doing something about that”. Direct engagement with the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) on how South Africa can have a world-class cadastral system and exploration plan in place. “We are making progress. It has been a little bit frustrating from the point of view of the pace of the progress, but it's not due to a lack of effort,” Baxter said, adding in response to a question that he had had a discussion on the setting up of a cadastre with the Mineral Resources Minister's special advisor, the Deputy Minister and the Deputy DG in charge of policy at the Africa Downunder conference in Perth. “It's an interesting place to engage your government and there was agreement that we need to get the cadastre sorted out quickly. The Minerals Council's position remains very clear – buy a new off-the-shelf cadastral system. We've got two world-class cadastral system companies that operate in South Africa. You don't have to develop a brand new bespoke system that will take you three years to get operational “We're talking about an off-the-shelf system will probably take six months to iron out a few of the edges and get working and you want a transparent cadastral system that gives you all the preconverted geological information. “You also want a licensing system linked to that cadastral system that works on much shorter timelines. Many mining companies tell me they applied two years ago for a prospecting right and I'm still waiting, or they find that the application lost or given to someone else. “When you've got full transparency, you can make a lot of progress. But at least the DMRE has admitted that Samrad is dysfunctional. Can we see an off-the-shelf system being procured? That's something we're really pushing for from our side,” said Baxter As reported by Mining Weekly last month, while South Africa does not have such a commercially available cadastre, fellow African countries that are already thriving on one include Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Guinea, Kenya, Libya, Malawi, Mauritania, Mozambique and Zambia. Worse still is that the Proudly South African supplier of the system to these countries has opted to walk away from the DMRE's ten...

In today's episode Pablo Miller and Chris Le Messurier chat to Executive Director from the Minerals Council of Australia, the Victorian Division, James Sorahan. There is a resurgence in Mining in Victoria & James explains what is happening. www.triplem.com.au/shows/mining-hqSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Guy Leitch, Editor at SA Flyer Magazine updates Bruce Whitfield on jet fuel shortages at OR Tambo International. Tebello Chabana, Senior Executive Public Affairs & Transformation at Minerals Council South Africa talks about the Mining Indaba that has kicked off in Cape Town and bemoans red tape that causes the mining sector R100-billion investments. Then, Thando Thabethe, Radio presenter and actress talks about her relationship with money. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Thuthula Balfour | Minerals Council South Africa In this episode WiMSA chairperson, Petro du Pisani, speaks to Dr. Thuthula Balfour, Head of Health for the Minerals Council South Africa. Dr Balfour has headed and coordinated the South African mining industry's response to the COVID-19 pandemic during 2020. She is also a WiMSA patron and she leads the Minerals Council's Women in Mining Task Team. Thuthula explains how she ended up working in the mining industry. We talk about the Minerals Council's white paper on women in mining, which has lead to a number of workstreams being executed by the women in mining task team. These workstreams include: - A gender & diversity reporting platform - Reaffirming zero tolerance for gender-based violence - Diversity and Inclusion Policies - Unconscious bias training to transform culture Thuthula explains what it means for her to be a WiMSA patron, and she talks about her vision for women in mining in the South African mining industry. Learn more about the Minerals Council · Connect with Thuthula on LinkedIn · Become a WiMSA member now · Website · Connect with WiMSA on Facebook · Briony Liber Coaching · Connect with WiMSA on LinkedIn · Solid Gold Podcasts