South African mines boost tax revenue by 17%
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Daily Maverick
Provisional corporate income tax revenue in South Africa rose by more than 17% in the first half, driven by high gold and platinum-group metals prices. Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana says poor mining policies have nevertheless deprived the state of additional revenue, according to the medium-term budget report.
Provisional corporate income tax revenue in South Africa rose by more than 17% during the first six months of the 2026-2027 financial year compared with the same period of the previous financial year. The mining sector was the main contributor, paying an additional 10.9 billion rand in June thanks to higher prices for platinum-group metals and gold, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said in the medium-term budget document presented on 21 October.
The increase in mining revenue is helping to fund a 10 billion-rand contingency reserve for responses to drought and the El Niño phenomenon. Revenue from dividend taxes is also expected to reach 51.1 billion rand in 2026-2027, compared with just under 46 billion rand the previous year, according to the budget document.
Tax revenue could be higher if South Africa’s mining industry attracted more investment. Mining production fell by 12.7% year on year in August and remains below its 2005 level. Exploration spending has declined by 80% in 20 years, while South Africa receives less than 1% of global exploration spending, Daily Maverick reports.
Paul Dunne, president of the Minerals Council South Africa and chief executive of Northam Platinum, said that this situation was resulting in deferred investment, unrealised production and lost jobs. He was speaking at the Joburg Indaba on 7 October, according to Daily Maverick.
