[miningmx.com] – BHP Billiton, the world’s largest mining company, said it remained committed to South Africa and planned to spend nearly $1bn in capital expenditure this year, said BDLive citing Xolani Mkhwanazi, chairman of BHP Billiton South Africa.
“Contrary to reports, BHP Billiton remains committed to South Africa, and our plans to expand our (aluminium) and manganese operations prove that,” said Mkhwanazi.
BHP Billiton has commissioned a $500m manganese smelter in Klipspruit, south of Johannesburg, BDLive said.
It was also one of the petroleum companies that was issued with a prospecting right by the Department of Energy in 2010 to explore for oil on South Africa’s west coast. According to Mkhwanazi, about $97m has been earmarked for this project, the online publication said.
