Modern Mining July 2025

MINING NEWS

Paul Dunne appointed President of Minerals Council South Africa The Members of the Minerals Council South Africa recently appointed Paul Dunne as the organisation’s President and reappointed its three Vice-Presidents for their second year in office. The Members thanked Dunne for acting as Caretaker President during 2024 and voted for him to continue as President for 2025. The council also announced that Themba Mkhwanazi, Richard Stewart and Mpumi Zikalala will continue as Vice Presidents, ensuring leadership continuity during a time of regulatory flux for the mining industry and efforts to stabilise the operating environment in South Africa.

Paul Dunne is appointed President of Minerals Council South Africa.

Aurum secures strategic JV to expand Boundiali Gold Project

Harmony acquires Mac Copper Gold miner, Harmony, has entered into a binding agreement to acquire, through its wholly owned Australian subsidiary Harmony Gold (Australia), 100% of the securities in MAC Copper (MAC), a Jersey-registered company, at a price of US$12.25 per MAC share in cash. The transaction implies a total equity value for MAC of US$1.03 billion1 (approximately R18.4 billion). MAC is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the symbol MTAL and the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). MAC has a 100% interest in the CSA Copper Mine (CSA), its sole asset, which is located ~700km west-northwest of Sydney in the Cobar Region of New South Wales, Australia. “The acquisition of the CSA Copper Mine in Australia is significant as it introduces a high-quality, established underground producing copper asset to the Harmony portfolio. CSA is one of the highest-grade copper mines in Australia, producing ~41kt of copper in calendar year 2024. The operation is a logical fit with the portfolio given it meets Harmony’s core investment criteria, including increasing free cash flow generation while improving margins at long-term expected commodity prices. We believe that Harmony is well positioned to leverage its expertise in underground mining to further enhance operations. Furthermore, the transaction represents a significant step forward in transforming Harmony into an increasingly de-risked, higher-quality, global gold and copper producer through disciplined and effective capital allocation,” said Beyers Nel, Chief Executive Officer. n

Aurum inks JV to expand Boundiali Gold Project.

ASX-listed Aurum Resources has announced, through its wholly owned subsidiary Plusor Global, signing of an agreement to earn up to an 80% interest in each of two contiguous permit applications (Encore JV permits) and grow the landholding at its 1.6 moz Boundiali Gold Project in Côte d'Ivoire. Aurum Managing Director Dr Caigen Wang commented: "This Encore JV is a highly strategic acquisition, significantly enhancing our position in the Boundiali gold belt with an additional 316km² of ground that is adjacent to existing tenements where we have already defined Mineral Resources. Therefore, these two permit applications are ideally located to complement and potentially expand our existing 1.6 moz Boundiali Gold Project. The terms, applied per permit, allow for a focused and staged investment, aligning our expenditure with exploration success. The equity incentives ensure strong alignment with Encore Resources. We are excited by the potential to unlock substantial value across these new licence areas for our shareholders." n

4  MODERN MINING  www.modernminingmagazine.co.za | JULY 2025