The key enabler of transparency in applying for prospecting rights and mining rights is a cadastre system. Everyone in the know is insistent that a prospective country like South Africa simply... 

There is nothing more off-putting than needless red tape and there is nothing more encouraging than a government role out the red carpet to would-be investors. Red tape kills the growth and jobs... 

The aspiration to provide green hydrogen as an alternative to fossil fuel energy has extended so far that the first site for an offshore pilot platform to produce green hydrogen at sea was... 

It was good to hear from South Africa’s Industrial Development Corporation last week that South Africa’s green hydrogen positioning statement is being drafted for presentation at the upcoming 27th... 

Large companies need to be credited for adopting a positive new approach to communities. Mining companies in particular are collaborating with all stakeholders far more meaningfully. Social and... 

Southern Africa owes a debt of gratitude to Namibia for taking the lead in the drawing up of the hydrogen atlas for the region. The generosity of the German government to fund the project also... 

The positive steps taken by coal mining and marketing company Thungela to plant trees in the coal province of Mpumalanga is exemplary. The company has a stretch target to plant a million trees in... 

For South Africans, energy security and energy sovereignty are there for the taking because of its superior sun, prime wind, available land, metal endowment, ready-made experience, skills already... 

With renewable sun, wind and water energy, power generation capacity can be increased in smaller portions, it can be done by the private sector, it is investable so banks back it, 18 months after... 

The unveiling by President Cyril Ramaphosa of several far-reaching energy interventions has the potential to set the country on a once-in-a-generation economic growth path. South Africa not only... 

The call by the National Planning Commission for 5 000 MW of energy storage in South Africa could create new local industries and a wonderful addendum to the just energy transition. Long-duration... 

South Africans need to keep an ear out for the letter PEM – proton exchange membrane – when it comes to hydrogen. We want PEM electrolysers and we want PEM fuel cells because PEM technology... 

If one looks at the energy storage options available today, one must be excited about green hydrogen. The storage options are batteries, hydrogen and pumped water storage. As pumping and storing... 

South Africa has everything going for it to turn the green electron and green molecule revolution into a major new industrial pillar that effectively creates within itself the just energy... 

Systems must be put in place to ensure that bureaucracy does not halt much-needed economic investment. One system that could be considered is for, say, exploration and mining licence applications... 

Coega and Prieska, in South Africa, and Lüderitz, in Namibia, are locations were green hydrogen and green ammonia projects are planned in Southern Africa – and correctly so. The region has got what... 

South Africa’s long-standing mining history has failed to bring with it the types of minerals exploration cultures that are prevalent in other main mining jurisdictions. The bulk of the exploration... 

An export business is as good as its logistics, which is invariably a combination of public and private sector involvement. Government should not tolerate decimation of foreign exchange flow and... 

The World Meteorological Organisation shows that planet earth is increasingly likely to experience global warming of 1.5°C within the next five years because of record greenhouse gas levels.... 

It is not just governments that have realised the need for private sector investment in their countries, but it is also an era in which the private sector is adding a far more responsible touch to... 

The Investing in African Mining Indaba has emerged from the pandemic with a new tangible sense of African cohesion. The four presidents of South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, and the Democratic... 

The stand of the World Coal Association and its members on a just energy transition is a display of important pragmatism at this point in the world’s fight against climate change. Chairperson July... 

Energy planning, execution and delivery are long-term pursuits, and those in position now must be given space to finish the job. The current batch of energy executives are having to deal with... 

Driving around Germany in a fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) presents no problem these days. Hydrogen refuelling pumps are there for even small privately owned fuel cell electric vehicles. From a... 

One senses that much more effort is made by South Africa’s soccer teams to appoint their coaches than the government puts in to appoint key directors-general. Former President Kgalema Motlanthe is... 

Former Finance Minister Trevor Manuel once promised to introduce a flow-through scheme to incentivise minerals exploration but instead gazetted a scheme that finance boutiques seemed to like. Not a... 

Something like 16 to 19 manganese mining operations have been licenced by government over a period of years without a word being mentioned by government and very little coming through from the... 

Energy-intensive ferrochrome smelting operations are choosing to go green in an exemplary manner. Firstly, they are making the full use of their obnoxious offgases by converting the carbon dioxide... 

The government lifted the limit on the generation of non-government renewables energy and, in no time at all, the private sector delivered plans for a Koeberg-equivalent of mainly clean solar... 

Those who have for too long consistently stood in the way of South Africa seizing mining opportunities should be moved out of the way fast. There was a time when a deputy director general revealed... 

During its Covid-worsened economic crisis, South Africa would have had nothing to fall back on without the massive contribution of its far-reaching mining industry. This contribution is massive and... 

Mining companies listed on local and global bourses are not normally associated with the informal sector, but association is very real in the case DRDGold. The Johannesburg- and New York-listed...