Energy planning under a minister whose portfolio later split
Samson Gwede Mantashe is a South African politician whose influence on energy and mining policy has changed as his ministerial remit changed. The Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources' official biography (opens in a new tab) records his earlier service as mineral resources minister, his tenure as minister of mineral resources and energy from 2019 and his appointment to a narrower mineral-and-petroleum portfolio in July 2024. Under the earlier arrangement he was politically responsible for a department central to national decisions about generation capacity and mineral extraction. In October 2019 he publicly presented the government's Integrated Resource Plan, setting out an energy mix involving coal, wind, solar, gas, hydroelectricity and storage. His government-published statement (opens in a new tab) described the plan as a route to security of supply while acknowledging pressure to reduce carbon emissions.
This record is more specific than describing Mantashe simply as pro-coal or pro-renewables. The plan itself contained multiple technologies and long-range capacity assumptions, and ministers faced choices about affordability, ageing power stations, grid access, emissions and public procurement. The South African Parliament's committee report (opens in a new tab) documents his briefing on IRP decisions, including preparation for a nuclear programme. Briefing a committee and publishing a plan are attributable actions, but they do not establish that all proposed generators were subsequently constructed or that every change in electricity supply can be credited to his office. A proper evaluation has to follow procurement, commissioning, actual output and environmental compliance separately.
Mining and petroleum administration after the 2024 reorganisation
After the 2024 election, the South African government separated electricity and energy from mineral and petroleum resources. A 27 August 2024 government notice (opens in a new tab) explains the transfer of statutory functions between the new ministerial portfolios. This was not merely a change of title. It alters which later decisions should be attributed to Mantashe and which fall under the minister responsible for electricity and energy. The department's institutional overview (opens in a new tab) describes the new structure and its goal of focusing mining and petroleum regulation. A historical account should retain Mantashe's contribution to the 2019 energy plan without automatically assigning him responsibility for every electricity-policy action after that division.
His work in the reorganised role includes a proposed legal and industrial strategy for minerals. In May 2025 (opens in a new tab) he announced Cabinet approval of a Critical Minerals and Metals Strategy and approval to publish a draft Mineral Resources Development Bill for public comment. These measures were aimed at regulatory clarity, investment and licensing arrangements, including provisions concerning smaller-scale miners. Cabinet approval for publication is not passage of an enacted law, and policy intentions do not ensure stronger mine safety or broad economic participation. Mantashe's accountability in this period can be assessed through the content of the draft, public consultation, the legislature's subsequent decisions and the practical administration of rights and permits. The South African Parliament's ministerial register (opens in a new tab) still identifies his mineral and petroleum portfolio, supplying an institutional check against outdated accounts of his title.
