The nationalisation of South Africa’s mines had strong support within the ruling African National Congress (ANC) and from its alliance partners, the Congress of South Africa Trade Unions (Cosatu) said on Thursday.

Cosatu economist Professor Christopher Malikane said at a South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry discussion in Johannesburg that the nationalisation debate was long past feasibility discussions, and already at a stage of finding appropriate models to implement such a policy.

Malikane said that all Cosatu’s affiliates were in favour of a nationalisation, including the National Union of Mineworkers, who had previously stated that it did not support the policy.

Further, he said that the majority of leagues within the ANC were in favour of nationalisation at the ruling party’s national general council meeting last year.

“One should not be surprised when ‘radical’ policy from the ANC Youth League gains traction and goes through to become ANC policy.

“Investors are looking for certainty around the issue of nationalisation, well this is the certainty they need,” he commented.

On the question of compensation should nationalisation be passed at the ANC’s policy conference next year, Malikane told Mining Weekly Online that mining companies would be paid, but not in such a way that would cripple the State.

But, the Chamber of Mines chief economist Roger Baxter cautioned against “killing the goose that lays the platinum eggs”.

He said that South Africans benefited from 92% of the mining sector's R441-billion capital spend last year, while the Free Market Foundation’s (FMS's) Leon Louw pointed out that the State directly and indirectly received 50% of the country’s mining profits.

Baxter noted that nationalisation could put South Africa back by as much as 30 to 40 years.

The FMF’s Viviene Atud said that nationalisation would hamper the self-earned progress made by black and other coloured South Africans, since the dawn of democracy in 1994.

She said that 36% of assets owned on the JSE were currently owned by black, Indian and coloured people, and that nationalisation would result in a decrease of that ownership.

Atud noted that while South Africa was still one of the most unequal societies in the world, such inequalities could only be reduced by empowering people through education, economic freedom, entrepreneurship and decreasing the dependence of people that were reliant on the State.

The Federation of Unions of South Africa’s Krister van Rensburg said that it was important that the country moved away from the implementation of race-based and ideological policy decisions and opted to find real solutions for the challenges that it faced.

Three South African Cabinet Ministers debunked the mine nationalisation debate this week, including Mineral Resources Minister Susan Shabangu.