Court Stops Shanta gold from mining on private land without owners’ consent in Siaya

Court Stops Shanta gold from mining on private land without owners’ consent in Siaya

The court further directed the relevant mining authorities not to issue a mining licence for application number 0200, which relates to the Ramula Mboma project.

The High Court has barred Shanta Gold from carrying out prospecting, drilling, excavation and other mining-related activities on private land in Siaya County without the express consent of registered landowners, dealing a blow to the proposed Ramula Mboma mining project.

The court ruled that a prospecting licence issued to the company does not give it automatic permission to access or interfere with privately owned land where the owners have not consented to the activities.

It prohibited the mining firm from "entering, clearing, excavating or undertaking any works on private property in Ramula, Monungo and Uranga sublocations without obtaining the required consent under the Mining Act."

The orders were issued following consolidated petitions challenging the proposed mining project and the process through which prospecting and mining approvals were being pursued.

In its judgment, the court declared that the "express consent of registered landowners is a condition precedent to the granting or exercise of prospecting and mining rights over private land."

The court further directed the relevant mining authorities not to issue a mining licence for application number 0200, which relates to the Ramula Mboma project, until they establish through documentary evidence that every registered owner of affected private land has given express consent.

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The authorities were also ordered to ensure that other approvals required under Section 36(2) of the Mining Act are obtained, depending on the nature of the land and the people affected by the project.

The judge further directed that objections filed against the mining application be reconsidered afresh, warning that any recommendations or approvals made before those objections were addressed should not be acted upon.

The ruling also places restrictions on any plans to relocate or displace residents to pave the way for the mining project.

Shanta Gold and the relevant authorities were restrained from taking steps towards the resettlement, relocation or displacement of residents in the three sublocations except in strict compliance with the Mining Act.

In another key finding, the court ordered that no mining licence should be issued until a framework agreement on the beneficiaries of the mining venture is put in place in accordance with the Constitution and the Mining Act.

The requirement places the interests of those expected to benefit from the mining project among the conditions that must be addressed before the company can secure the final approval to proceed.

The respondents have been directed to report back to court within six months on the steps taken to comply with the judgment.

The court, however, declined to award costs to any party, directing that each party bear its own expenses because of the public-interest nature of the dispute.

The decision places landowners’ consent, the proper consideration of objections and compliance with statutory approval requirements at the centre of the proposed Ramula Mboma mining project, restricting the company’s ability to proceed on private land before the legal requirements are met.