8 February 2016

"There is an ebb and flow to life; there are highs and lows. There are sunny days and grey days, summers and winters. The 2016 Mining Indaba comes at a time when the mining industry is in its winter season, a season which some have characterised as a crisis."

With these words Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane opened the annual Investing in African Mining Indaba in Cape Town this morning. The Mining Indaba, as it is known, runs from 8 to 11 February, and is attended by the leading mining companies as well as juniors, government representatives, ministers and civil societies, mining engineers and others invested in the continent.

The indaba comes during a slump in commodities, with mines shedding jobs and mining houses cutting costs.

More importantly the minister said this....

In concluding his opening address, the minister turned to diversification into other new areas of exploration, which stakeholders in the industry had said was necessary.

"South Africa has relatively good prospects for upstream oil and gas development, including shale gas. We are encouraged by the level of interest expressed in in this emerging industry and the government has already strengthened the regulatory framework relating to oil and gas development."

Speaking at the press conference following his speech, he said three companies had made five applications for hydraulic fracturing for shale gas in the Karoo. The government was "looking at those applications", he said, but would not be drawn further.

The African continent was indeed the right address for investment directed towards mining and minerals development in line with the African Mining Vision, he concluded.

SouthAfrica.info reporter

Read more: http://www.southafrica.info/news/conferences/mining-indaba-080216.htm#.Vrq6t5Uo4dU#ixzz3zjhTI4FX