[miningmx.com] — THE Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry will in the next two weeks begin a process that will investigate the mining rights issues concerning ArcelorMittal South Africa (Amsa), Kumba Iron Ore and Imperial Crown Trading (ICT).
Committee chairperson Joanmariae Fubbs said in a statement that they would be calling experts in from the Competition Commission, manufacturing owners, economists, academics, and other key people to share views on the impact of a strategic iron ore and manufactured steel sector.
The Amsa issue featured prominently during recent public hearings held by the committee on the Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP2).
“We cannot allow the negative pricing impact of steel to erode IPAP2 and impact negatively on the poor and workers,” it said in a statement.
Kumba is currently contesting the awarding of prospecting tights to ICT in the South African courts after the then little-known company was awarded the rights over the 21.4% interest in the Sishen iron-ore mine previously held by Amsa.
Amsa’s failure to renew its mining licence was sited as the reason for Kumba’s cancellation of a nine-year agreement that allowed the steel maker to receive 6.25 million tons of Sishen’s iron ore on a cost-plus-three percent basis.
While Kumba continued to supply the raw material it insisted that Amsa pay commercial prices, which led to Amsa threatening to shut down its Saldanha Steel plant, lay off staff and halt exports.
Government later intervened and the two parties now have an interim pricing agreement in place until the end of July next year.
