en.Wedoany.com Reported - South Africa's Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources granted a mining right on August 7 for the Bengwenyama Platinum Group Metals—Chromium Project, with an initial validity period of 30 years, renewable upon application after expiry. The permit covers a 5,280-hectare mining area in Limpopo Province, South Africa, and authorizes the extraction of platinum group metals, chromium, gold, copper, cobalt, silver, and nickel, among other minerals.
The project is held by Miracle Upon Miracle Investments, with Southern Palladium owning a 70% stake in the company and the Bengwenyama Traditional Council holding the remaining 30% on behalf of the local community. The project is located on the eastern limb of South Africa's Bushveld Igneous Complex, encompassing two farms: Nooitverwacht 324 KT and Eerstegeluk 327 KT.
The approval of this mining right completes a key permitting step for the project since its application was submitted in 2023. Southern Palladium submitted the mining right application on September 29, 2023, which was accepted by the competent authority in October of the same year; the project's environmental permit was obtained in 2025, and the company subsequently submitted an environmental guarantee for mine rehabilitation and environmental restoration to the competent authority.
Under the optimized pre-feasibility study plan, the project is proposed to be developed in two phases. Phase one plans an annual production of over 200,000 ounces of platinum group metals; phase two, upon reaching steady-state production, plans an annual production of over 400,000 ounces of platinum group metals and approximately 1 million tonnes of high-grade chromite concentrate. The optimized pre-feasibility study completed in 2025 estimates the project's after-tax net present value at US$857 million.
Southern Palladium's board has approved the commencement of early works, including open-cut boxcuts and decline ramps, by the end of 2026, though such construction remains conditional on completing waste management and water use permitting procedures. Due to metallurgical test results, plant design optimization, and heavy rainfall in the first half of 2026, the project's definitive feasibility study is rescheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2027.
