NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
FOR WRITTEN REPLY
QUESTION NUMBER 2185
DATE OF PUBLICATION IN INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER: 6 NOVEMBER 2009
(INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER NUMBER 27)
Adv H C Schmidt (DA) to ask the Minister of Mineral Resources:
Whether any mineral has been declared a strategic mineral in terms of the
applicable legislation in the 2008-09 financial year; if not, what is the
position in this regard; if so, (a) what minerals, (b) on what date in each
case and (c) for what reason in each case? NW2893E
REPLY
No
a) Falls off
b) Falls off
c) Falls off
Background Information
The interpretation of the question is that it flows from the previous oral
response in respect of State Owned Mining Company, in which the department
indicated that the company will focus on strategic minerals. There are
currently no provisions in legislation for declaration of any mineral as
strategic, other than the inference on uranium as a strategic mineral in
the Nuclear Policy of June 2008 as well as Minister Sonjicaâs and Alec
Erwin statements in parliament at the time.
In light of challenges of energy deficit, priority of classification of
minerals as strategic is currently on energy commodities, viz. coal,
uranium, fluorspar, thorium, zirconium and platinum. To this extent, the
department has drafted strategies on both uranium and coal and is
prioritising finalisation of these strategies, which will be translated
into the minerals being declared strategic.
It is the intention of the department to declare all minerals of the people
of the Republic of South Africa strategic to support government programmes
such as Beneficiation, Infrastructure Development and National Industrial
Policy Framework.[pic]