This briefing has shown that deep-pocketed Chinese companies, hungry for resources, may be willing to strike bargains with politically connected local opportunists
such as Aurora or SOEs such as the IDC, whose mandate is stretched at best. If the IDC/PMC deal is an indicator of future modes of engagement, Chinese firms will be
partnering with local state-owned entities to escape policy uncertainty and extract the resources required for completing the industrialisation phase of the Chinese
Communist Party’s current economic plan. While the South African government may present the deals as an opportunity to realise the state’s beneficiation strategy, the above analysis suggests it should tread carefully. The longterm
competitiveness of the industry is at stake.
