New mine triggers ‘white gold’ prospecting stampede on the KZN South Coast

Investigations by Daily Maverick show that mineral prospectors are planning dozens of exploratory digs and surveys over extensive areas of commercial and traditional farming land in this region as part of a determined search for a lucrative mineral that is critical to the global renewable energy and communication industries.  

One group alone (SA Lithium/Afli Exploration) has targeted more than 40,000ha of farmland for further exploration, including a large block of land stretching from Hibberdene to Port Shepstone, with some smaller parcels near the town of Umzinto.

Other groups have lodged further prospecting bids for lithium (and other minerals) over a similarly large area of land elsewhere on the South Coast.

What could this mean for communities?

While lithium mining is currently confined to one relatively small (1,200ha) area of land next to the Umzumbe River, the scale and speed of the South Coast prospecting spree has raised fears about the adequacy of the public consultation and approval processes – and the risk of significant social and environmental impacts if other commercially viable mineral resources are found in this region.

Several residents fear that a new mining scramble could divide communities in a region with high unemployment rates, disrupt agriculture and lead to the expulsion of people from their homes and farming land if more lithium, coal and other minerals are discovered.

Already, dozens of rural families in the immediate vicinity of the new Highbury lithium mine at Umzumbe have seen their lives disrupted due to their close proximity to this open-cast mine, regular blasting operations and the increased volume of heavy trucks rumbling past their homes and schools.

SA Lithium director Ian Harebottle denies that any residents will be compelled to leave, but acknowledges that several families closest to the mine are required to evacuate their homes at times during blasting operations.

The current South Coast scramble for this soft white rock and potentially rich pickings in the Umzumbe area can be traced back three decades to the publication of a 1994 journal report by geologist Bob Thomas. He reported the presence of “significant” quantities of lithium-bearing rock on several farms, including The Corner.

At the time, global demand for lithium was relatively low.

Since then, however, the demand for lithium has skyrocketed due to its use in the manufacture of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and is also widely used in notebook computers, mobile phones, digital cameras, military communications and other fields. 

In May this year, the Cabinet approved a new Critical Minerals Strategy for South Africa and a revised mining Bill, which aim to “maximise the country’s potential in the global market of critical minerals”, including lithium. Significantly, the Bill proposes to “streamline” environmental and water use approval procedures to “reduce bureaucratic inefficiencies and improve turnaround times for mining rights, permits, and regulatory approvals”. 

Who are the prospectors on the South Coast?

SA Lithium began blasting for lithium on the 1,200ha site near Umzumbe during 2023. Through its associated companies (Afli Exploration), it has signalled further ambitions to prospect for more lithium on a block of land covering almost 35,000ha, inland of the coastal towns of Hibberdene and Port Shepstone.   

During 2023, it also applied for prospecting rights on 5,600ha of land in the vicinity of Vernon Crookes Nature Reserve and Umzinto, though progress with these applications remains unclear.

The Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) lists Ian Timothy Harebottle (a former CEO of Gemfields and Kropz fertiliser feeds company) and Brian Colin Talbot as directors of SA Lithium.

Talbot, a South African-born lithium expert, began his mining career at Goldfields and Impala Platinum before moving to senior positions in Zimbabwe, Australia and Brazil’s “lithium triangle”. More recently, he established the lithium consultancy group R-Tek International, and last year, he was appointed COO of the Atlas Lithium Corporation, which is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida.

Afli Exploration Holdings’ two directors are listed as Harebottle and Gary Lew Locketz , a Cape Town accounting consultant. The CIPC lists Harebottle as the director of six associated companies (Afli Exploration 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6).

In addition to his role at SA Lithium and Afli Exploration, Harebottle is also chief development officer of the lithium exploration and development entity Aligro, of which Aligro Africa forms a part. 

CIPC records indicate that Aligro Africa’s directors include a former Department of Mineral Resources director-general.

Elsewhere on the South Coast, several other groups have applied for exploration or mining rights. However, it is important to note that none of these companies has started actual mining. And, despite the vast scale of these prospecting applications, any future mining operations would probably cover a much smaller geographic footprint if commercially viable deposits of lithium and other minerals are discovered.

The other exploration companies include Khonoba Resources and Kebe Resources, which have applied for prospecting rights covering more than 48,000ha on the South Coast. Background information documents compiled by their environmental consultants suggest that Khonoba is targeting graphite and “coal resources”, while Kebe is targeting lithium ore and 10 other minerals, including gold and bauxite.

Little is known about these two companies. Luyolo Somane is listed as the sole director of Khonoba and Kebe, which were both registered early last year under a Johannesburg business address.

Sastrogen (Pty) Ltd has applied to prospect in a 2,300ha block of land west of Mtwalume for lithium and at least 20 other mineral resources. CIPC data suggests that the Bethal (Mpumalanga) company was registered in mid-2023 with two directors, Ntokozo Joy Nkabinde and Joy Muziwandla Conco.      

A further lithium prospecting application comes from Black Rock Africa, whose sole director is listed as Zenande Njongo (aged 30). His directorship was registered only in March 2025, with a business address in Ballyclare Drive in Sandton. A Department of Mineral Resources document lists his prospecting ambitions for lithium (along with feldspar, tantalum/niobium and tin) covering several farms west of Mtwalume.

Finally, there is a further 6,000ha application near Umzumbe from the Middleburg-based Nyatsi Mining Resources, which overlaps with other prospecting applications by Afli Exploration. Though lithium is not listed officially on Nyatsi’s extensive prospecting wish list of more than 50 minerals, a report by the company’s environmental consultants nevertheless makes numerous references to the potential occurrence of lithium in the targeted exploration zone. CIPC records indicate that this company is in the process of deregistration.

While new discoveries in South Africa are expected to boost economic opportunities in mining and allied industries, the climate justice and human rights group Global Witness has raised several concerns about the recent surge in lithium exploration in southern and Central Africa and other parts of the world. DM

See parts Two and Three

Part Two: ‘Progress’ lands on the doorstep of rural communities as lithium mine is blasted open

Part Three: Lithium mine objectors run into R345,000 appeal fee ‘roadblock’