[miningmx.com] — THE proposed listing of Peter Skeat’s Galaxy Gold on the JSE has been delayed by uncertainties surrounding the amended mining charter and associated mining legislation.
Galaxy was scheduled to list by the end of September, but it seems unlikely to make that deadline according to Rene Hochreiter, a partner in Allan Hochreiter – the corporate consultants to Galaxy.
Hochreiter commented: “There is an issue around the status of the mining rights for Galaxy which is under discussion with the JSE.
“The JSE has declined to list Galaxy and we are appealing against that decision.’
That was confirmed by John Burke, executive director of issuer services for the JSE who said: “There is an issue with the mining rights and, hopefully, it will be sorted out soon.’
Galaxy’s asset is the former Agnes Gold Mine near Barberton which was previously owned by Mzi Khumalo through a company called African Pioneer Mines (APM) which is in liquidation.
Skeat bought the mine from APM for R17m when it was put up for auction in 2008.
Hochreiter said APM still owned the old order mining rights for Agnes, but these were to be transferred to Galaxy and converted into new order mining rights as required by the legislation.
Sources told Miningmx that the JSE’s stance has resulted from the confusion surrounding the status of mining rights and prospecting rights as well as the DMR’s action in slapping a six month moratorium on the issue of new prospecting licences.
In particular, the JSE is concerned about the developments at Kumba Iron Ore and Lonmin where prospecting rights were granted by the Department of Mineral Resources over sections of operating mines.
Both Kumba and Lonmin are taking legal action over the awards after minister of Mineral Resources Susan Shabangu declared that the prospecting licences had been correctly applied for and correctly awarded.
Shabangu put the situation down to “ambiguities’ in the Minerals and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA) which she intended revising early next year.
According to a source the JSE is concerned that a mining company might list on the exchange only to be subsequently stripped of its main asset which is its mining title. That would severely prejudice the interests of shareholders.
The source said the JSE had referred Galaxy’s appeal to a panel of independent experts who were liaising with the DMR.
It is not clear at this stage what the implications of the JSE’s stance might be for other proposed new mining listings on the bourse.
