CHRIS BARRON: How mining’s lifeblood is drying up
You can’t exploit minerals you haven’t found, and exploration is flatlining, says Minerals Council economist Hugo Pienaar
16 March 2025 - 08:50
StatsSA’s latest figures showing that capital expenditure in local mining was down almost 10% last year and that exploration is barely happening are a “horror show”, says Hugo Pienaar, chief economist of Minerals Council South Africa.
“The combination of the fixed investment number down by 9.6% in real terms, and the minerals exploration number, is a bit of a horror show for our mining sector,” he says. “The fact that companies pulled back on investment quite significantly, and at the same time we’re not spending nearly enough on exploration.”..
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