Sep. 17, 2025 -  South Africa’s Chrome SA has sounded a warning over unsustainable industrial policies that prioritize one sector at the expense of another, urging the government to build a policy framework that allows both mining and manufacturing to flourish. In a comprehensive media release, the industry body emphasized its readiness to collaborate with authorities but stressed that progress must be anchored in three non-negotiable pillars: competitive electricity pricing, reliable power supply, and globally attractive investment conditions.

Proposed Chrome Export Restrictions Labeled “Unsustainable”

At the heart of Chrome SA’s concerns are the government’s proposed chrome ore export taxes and quotas. Designed to push more local chrome ore sales and revive South Africa’s struggling ferrochrome smelting industry— a sector that processes chrome ore into ferrochrome, a critical input for stainless steel manufacturing—these measures have been dismissed by Chrome SA as a short-sighted fix.

“The idea that we can prop up ferrochrome by limiting chrome ore exports is unsustainable,” the organization stated. “South Africa needs both a competitive mining sector and a strong manufacturing base, but supporting one by undermining the other will only harm the country’s long-term economic health.”

Chrome SA’s Membership: Key Players in the Sector

Chrome SA’s members represent major players in South Africa’s chrome and platinum-group metals (PGMs) space, including Assore, Sibanye-Stillwater, Tharisa, Valterra Platinum, Northam Platinum, Siyanda Resources, ChromTech, Pelagic Resources, Impala Platinum, and Jubilee Metals. Collectively, these firms drive a significant portion of the country’s chrome ore production and exports.

Mining Industry Offers Collaboration—With Conditions

While Chrome SA reaffirmed its willingness to be part of solutions to revitalize South Africa’s industrial landscape, it laid out four critical prerequisites for meaningful progress:

Competitive power tariffs: To enable energy-intensive industries (including chrome mining and smelting) to compete on the global stage.

Reliable electricity supply: Backed by targeted investment in the recovery of Eskom (South Africa’s state-owned power utility) and the development of diversified new energy generation.

Regulatory certainty for self-generation: Clear rules for mines and smelters looking to invest in on-site power or renewable energy projects, giving them control over their energy security.

A coherent industrial strategy: One that supports both upstream mining (chrome ore extraction) and downstream beneficiation (ferrochrome production) without sacrificing either sector.

High Electricity Costs Blamed for Ferrochrome Decline

Addressing the root cause of South Africa’s ferrochrome sector struggles, Chrome SA rejected claims that high chrome ore prices are to blame. Instead, it pointed to a far more pressing issue: electricity costs.

“South Africa’s ferrochrome producers pay up to three times more for electricity than their global competitors,” the release noted. “No amount of tweaking ore prices or imposing export restrictions will change the fact that uncompetitive power costs have crippled this sector. Unless electricity pricing is fixed, local smelters will remain unviable—no matter what we do with ore exports.”

Export Restrictions Risk Jobs, Foreign Exchange

Chrome SA also highlighted the severe economic risks of curbing chrome ore exports. The sector directly employs over 25,000 people, with thousands more jobs supported in surrounding communities through procurement, services, and household spending from mining workers.

In 2024 alone, chrome ore exports generated more than R84 billion (South African rand) in foreign exchange for South Africa—a critical inflow at a time when the country’s fiscus is already under strain. “Curtailing exports would slash foreign currency earnings and reduce tax revenues, exactly when we can least afford it,” the organization warned.

Call for Collaborative, Long-Term Policy-Making

Concluding its release, Chrome SA repeated its commitment to working with the government to build a thriving industrial ecosystem. However, it stressed that this collaboration must be rooted in the three core pillars: competitive electricity pricing, reliable power, and globally competitive investment conditions.

“South Africa’s mining and manufacturing sectors don’t have to be rivals—they can be partners,” Chrome SA said. “But that partnership will only work if we build a policy environment that supports both, rather than pitting one against the other.”