Deals and growth in the mining industry will grind to a halt if Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane succeeds in his proposal to restrict the granting of all new mining and prospecting rights as well as the transfer of rights. Mining lawyers immediately labelled Zwane’s actions as ultra vires or beyond those powers stipulated in the section of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act he relied on in Wednesday’s notice, arguing the Chamber of Mines had a strong legal case to contest or interdict Zwane’s actions. "The intended decision appears to be ultra vires or, at the very least, an irrational and unreasonable exercise of the minister’s power under section 49(1) of the act," said Nicola Jackson, a partner at Fasken Martineau. "The section relied on requires the minister to identify the land, specific mineral or class of minerals. It does not permit a blanket moratorium in respect of applications for the entire country and in respect of all minerals, effectively ha...
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