JOHANNESBURG: South Africa’s radical AMCU union on Friday said that it had agreed in principle to a deal to end the country’s longest-ever mining strike, a day after platinum producers announced the agreement.
“In principle we have agreed to the offer,” Joseph Mathunjwa, the leader of the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union, told the SAPA news agency.
“There are still issues that we need to consult with the employer,” the agency quoted him as saying.
A local union leader said earlier the conditions include the rehiring of a group of workers who were fired in April after striking illegally.
Mathunjwa’s comments came a day after South Africa’s three main platinum producers — Anglo American Platinum, Impala Platinum and Lonmin — said that they had struck a deal in principle that union leaders would now take to members for final approval.
The strike at South Africa’s platinum mines began in January, when tens of thousands of workers downed tools demanding higher wages, and has crippled the sector.
The new wage offer for lowest-paid workers includes a 1,000-rand ($90, 70 euro) raise in monthly salary for two years, then 950 rands for the following three years, according to a statement from Impala Platinum.
The deal would be backdated to July last year for Implats and Amplats, while Lonmin would implement the raises from last October.
This would practically double the current minimum wage of 5,500 rand to 10,500 rand ($980, 720 euro) by July 1, 2017, and effectively preempt further strikes for the next five years.
Other worker categories would get an 8.0-percent raise for 2013 and 2014, then 7.5 percent the next three years.
“Our proposal is basically for a 1,000 rands a month for five years, Implats spokesman Johan Theron told AFP.
“But the feedback we are receiving from the mass meetings is that they are saying perhaps they only want the first three years and maybe not all the five years.”
This would suggest the workers might consider a fresh strike and negotiations within three years.
The offer would fall short of the 12,500 rand ($1,160, 860 euros) the workers demanded, a figure used as rallying cry over the past two years that propelled AMCU to prominence.
The employers were still awaiting AMCU’s official response, said Theron.
The five-month work stoppage helped push the country’s economy into contraction in the first quarter of this year, the first time since the global economic crisis five years ago.
South Africa holds around 80 percent of the world’s known platinum reserves, and platinum group metals raked in 9.0 percent of export earnings last year.
The Fitch ratings agency on Friday revised South Africa’s outlook to negative from stable, and affirmed its credit rating at “BBB”, near the bottom of the investment-grade scale. partly because of the effect that the strike has had on the economy.
Fitch said South Africa’s outlook for growth had deteriorated after a 0.6-percent contraction in the first quarter of this year, and it revised its 2014 GDP growth forecast down to 1.7 percent from the 2.8 percent that it issued during the last country review in December 2013.
The agency said that the government “faces a challenging task to raise the country’s growth rate and improve social conditions, which has been made more difficult by the weaker growth performance and deteriorating trends in governance and corruption.”
“This will require an acceleration of structural reforms,” it said.
The agency also voiced concern over President Jacob Zuma’s new cabinet, appointed after general elections last month returned his African National Congress to power and secured him a second term in office.
“In Fitch’s view, the track record of some key ministerial appointments and shortcomings in administrative capacity mean this is subject to downside risks.”
The country’s Treasury noted that the government is aware of the “challenges South Africa faces.”
It said the government has “prioritized” an ambitious National Development Plan which will kickstart the economy and reduce poverty by 2030, notably through major infrastructure projects.
The program was approved in 2012, but implementation has been piecemeal in the face of fierce opposition of left-leaning government allies, which brand it too neoliberal.
S. Africa union agrees to deal to end longest-ever mining strike
S. Africa union agrees to deal to end longest-ever mining strike
First EU–Saudi roundtable on critical raw materials reflects shared policy commitment
RIYADH: The EU–Saudi Arabia Business and Investment Dialogue on Advancing Critical Raw Materials Value Chains, held in Riyadh as part of the Future Minerals Forum, brought together senior policymakers, industry leaders, and investors to advance strategic cooperation across critical raw materials value chains.
Organized under a Team Europe approach by the EU–GCC Cooperation on Green Transition Project, in coordination with the EU Delegation to Saudi Arabia, the European Chamber of Commerce in the Kingdom and in close cooperation with FMF, the dialogue provided a high-level platform to explore European actions under the EU Critical Raw Materials Act and ResourceEU alongside the Kingdom’s aspirations for minerals, industrial, and investment priorities.
This is in line with Saudi Vision 2030 and broader regional ambitions across the GCC, MENA, and Africa.
ResourceEU is the EU’s new strategic action plan, launched in late 2025, to secure a reliable supply of critical raw materials like lithium, rare earths, and cobalt, reducing dependency on single suppliers, such as China, by boosting domestic extraction, processing, recycling, stockpiling, and strategic partnerships with resource-rich nations.
The first ever EU–Saudi roundtable on critical raw materials was opened by the bloc’s Ambassador to the Kingdom, Christophe Farnaud, together with Saudi Deputy Minister for Mining Development Turki Al-Babtain, turning policy alignment into concrete cooperation.
Farnaud underlined the central role of international cooperation in the implementation of the EU’s critical raw materials policy framework.
“As the European Union advances the implementation of its Critical Raw Materials policy, international cooperation is indispensable to building secure, diversified, and sustainable value chains. Saudi Arabia is a key partner in this effort. This dialogue reflects our shared commitment to translate policy alignment into concrete business and investment cooperation that supports the green and digital transitions,” said the ambassador.
Discussions focused on strengthening resilient, diversified, and responsible CRM supply chains that are essential to the green and digital transitions.
Participants explored concrete opportunities for EU–Saudi cooperation across the full value chain, including exploration, mining, and processing and refining, as well as recycling, downstream manufacturing, and the mobilization of private investment and sustainable finance, underpinned by high environmental, social, and governance standards.
From the Saudi side, the dialogue was framed as a key contribution to the Kingdom’s industrial transformation and long-term economic diversification agenda under Vision 2030, with a strong focus on responsible resource development and global market integration.
“Developing globally competitive mineral hubs and sustainable value chains is a central pillar of Saudi Vision 2030 and the Kingdom’s industrial transformation. Our engagement with the European Union through this dialogue to strengthen upstream and downstream integration, attract high-quality investment, and advance responsible mining and processing. Enhanced cooperation with the EU, capitalizing on the demand dynamics of the EU Critical Raw Materials Act, will be key to delivering long-term value for both sides,” said Al-Babtain.
Valere Moutarlier, deputy director-general for European industry decarbonization, and directorate-general for the internal market, industry, entrepreneurship and SMEs at European Commission, said the EU Critical Raw Materials Act and ResourceEU provided a clear framework to strengthen Europe’s resilience while deepening its cooperation with international partners.
“Cooperation with Saudi Arabia is essential to advancing secure, sustainable, and diversified critical raw materials value chains. Dialogues such as this play a key role in translating policy ambitions into concrete industrial and investment cooperation,” she added.
