South African mines that are on care and maintenance are bad for the economy and the issue is being raised with the Minerals Council, Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe said.
The Department of Minerals and Energy has been to 11 mining areas to obtain feedback on the mining charter, Mantashe said at the opening of Sasol Ltd.'s Shondoni Colliery in Secunda in Mpumalanga province.
The government published the latest draft of the Mining Charter on June 15 after months of negotiations with companies, labor unions and communities. The set of rules is aimed at redistributing the country's mineral wealth more equally among South Africans to make up for racial discrimination during apartheid.
Sasol officially inaugurated its new Shondoni Colliery on Thursday as part of its 14 billion rand ($1 billion) mine replacement program, as the Middelbult Colliery reached the end of its lifespan.