FAQ's |
+ How long will my prospecting right last? Propsecting rights are issued on the premis of 5 years first, then a renewed period of 3 years. The total therefore is 8 years. It does happen that according to your propsecting work programme the propsecting will last about 3 years then the Department issues the first right for only 3 years. In this case you still qualify for a 3 year renewal making it 6 years in total. + Can I sell my prospecting right? No you may not. After this answer you may think that you can and just need to find the way. The long answer, like the short answer is: 'you may not'. Look at the licence conditions which you agreed to when you received your right and in there you commited to not sell you prospecting right. + How long does it take to get a prospecting right in South Africa? Prospecting rights, in South Africa, should take 300 calendar days to be awarded. Since moving to the 1-System the timeframes has been regulated. From this answer we can discuss the variations that occur and then understand why it has never made 300 days. Deviations triggered by the applicants:
The above does not mean that the problem only lay with the applicant. The competent and commenting authorities also contribute towards delays.
Another part of the loss of time is the public that riggers delays. These take many forms but the stock in trade has been:
The South African mineral right regime therefore aims for 300 days but the reality is to always plan for 700+ days. + What does it cost to get a prospecting right in South Africa? You have not said if you are applying afresh or if you are attmepting to purchase one. Applying anew A budget of R220,000 is a reasonable estimate of the costs. Added to this is a further budgt of R50,000 for the rehab quantum. Purchasing Here you are at the mercy of a few things. Is it a good geology propsect? What is your level of desperation? I have seen properties on offer at the R100-million mark. This is entirely unrealistic for several reasons. Write to us to discuss this further, being mindful that in South Africa it is not actually possible to sell or buy a propsecting right in the traditional sense of it being a product. What you are buying is a right, much like an option. + Do I need a specialist study when I do a prospecting right? Specialists are required by the Department. The ill usually indicate what speciailsits are required however there are early guidelines that can be followed and you can determine for yourself which specialists to contract in. . + Why is it taking so long to get my prospecting right executed? The stages are simple, rightsare applied for and when you have been approved, you have the final three steps to cover. Granting – Execution –Registration. The granting occurs when the Department issues you with a letter that says something to the effect ‘your right has been granted’. This granting letter can come with some conditions, for example, ‘we require 6 copies of your regulation map’, or ‘make payment of your guarantee and first years prospecting fees’. Once tose steps are done you progress to the Executon stage. The longest we say from granting to execution was 2013 (granted) to 2017 (executed) because the Department did not process the application. When we were made aware of the situation it took us 6 weeks to get execution sorted. The delays can be caused by:
If all the above is in place then the right is executed within a 4 week window.
+ How can I find out who has the mineral rights on my farm and also for which minerals? You are not explaining the level of detail in the ‘who’ and you are not saying where you live. You are also not saying how soon you need to know the answer. I will answer and in between make allowances for different parts of the country.
There are many variations on this question and level of details. For example you could find the applicant is a Trust in which case a different route is required to find those ‘owners’. In our experience this is a process of often 4 months but as long as 18 months. Maybe this is too long in which case, you want to first do a search of the DMR SAMRAD database.
Alternatively contact us for a quote and we set the ball rolling, do the follow ups and send you the information as it becomes available. We are asked to provide information to attorneys or estate agents when farms are being bought/sold and can provide the information as required, to the level of detail required.
Ask a question
|
Back | Back to top |