South African Billionaire Patrice Motsepe's 160 Million Phosphate Mine Faces Legal Battle

African Rainbow Minerals' 160 million Elandsfontein phosphate mine faces a lawsuit from WWF over environmental concerns near South Africas Langebaan Lagoon.

ARMs headline earnings plunged 49 in H1 2025, hit by falling iron ore and PGM prices, while Harmony Gold posted strong profit growth.

Patrice Motsepe may sell ARMs 933 million stake in Harmony Gold, signaling a potential portfolio shift amid financial pressures and legal challenges.

South African billionaire Patrice Motsepes African Rainbow Minerals ARM is facing another legal battle, adding to the growing challenges confronting his mining empire. The companys 160 million phosphate mine, Elandsfontein, is at the center of a lawsuit filed by the World Wildlife Fund WWF against South Africas Environment Minister, Dion George.

The lawsuit challenges the ministers September decision to dismiss appeals against an offset exemption granted to Elandsfontein, which is 90 percent owned by ARM through Kropz Plc. WWF, a global conservation organization, argues that the exemption was granted despite concerns that the mine threatens the nearby Langebaan Lagoon, a crucial ecological site located 61 miles north of Cape Town. Kropz Plc has been named as a respondent in the case.

The dispute stems from an offset proposal that would have required Kropz to buy and donate more than 20,000 acres of land to the West Coast National Park. While the provincial office of the environment ministry invalidated the offset requirement in 2021, Minister George upheld the exemption last year, triggering the latest legal challenge. The environment, and therefore the public at large, has suffered prejudice from the unconscionable delays in the implementation of the offset requirements, WWF said in court documents filed on Mar. 13.

This is not the first time environmental groups have opposed the Elandsfontein mine. Since ARM acquired the project in 2010, the mine has faced repeated delays due to environmental concerns and technical issues, slowing its development on South Africas second-largest phosphate deposit. In response to the lawsuit, Kropz Plc stated that it is noting these developments and will consider its next steps.

While ARM continues to expand its mining operations across iron ore, manganese, PGMs, coal, and base metals, recent financial challenges have forced the company to reassess its strategy. Motsepe, Africas first Black billionaire and the wealthiest Black person in Southern Africa, owns 45.9 percent of ARM and has been diversifying his investments beyond mining to navigate industry headwinds.