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If you need to publish a mining notice in South Africa, the requirement flows from the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act 28 of 2002 and its supporting regulations. Applications for prospecting rights, mining rights, mining permits and environmental authorisations require public notice before they can proceed.
Also read: How to publish a legal notice in South Africa.
Statutory basis for the mining notice
The MPRDA, read with the National Environmental Management Act 107 of 1998 and its associated regulations, requires public notification at several stages of the mining lifecycle. Section 10 of the MPRDA prescribes consultation with interested and affected parties, and the regulations require publication in the Gazette and a newspaper circulating in the area where the right is sought.
Mining notices that require publication
The most common are notices of application for a prospecting right under Section 16, a mining right under Section 22 and a mining permit under Section 27. Environmental authorisation applications under NEMA add a further round of publication. Each carries its own commenting period and procedural calendar, and missing a Gazette deadline delays the entire application.
What a mining notice must contain
A mining notice typically identifies the applicant, the type of right or permit applied for, the property description and farm number, the commodity sought, the duration of the application and the address for written comments. Missing any of these elements gives the regulator grounds to return the notice and re-set the commenting clock.
Where the mining notice in the Government Gazette is published
The mining notice runs in the legal notices section of the Government Gazette, with the paired newspaper publication appearing concurrently. An online newspaper, such as Nuusflits, satisfies the circulation requirement nationally and gives a clean proof of publication for the regulator’s file.
Timing and the commenting period
The commenting period under the MPRDA and the NEMA regulations runs from the publication date. A late or non-compliant mining notice in the Government Gazette delays issuance of the right or permit and, in environmental matters, can require the entire process to restart. Submission to the Government Printing Works closes the Friday before the publication week.
Mining notice Government Gazette publication evidence
Once published, the Government Notice number, page reference and edition date in the eGazette, paired with the proof from the online newspaper, form the publication evidence the regulator requires. Without that combined record, the application cannot proceed.
Legal Notice Publishing handles the full process for you. Contact jana@legalnotice.co.za or click here.
