S Africa Mine Department, ICT Appeal To Go Before Court Friday

South Africa's Department of Mineral Resources and Imperial Crown Trading Ltd. are due Friday to go before a judge to appeal a court ruling made last year over a disputed iron ore mining right.

Kumba Iron Ore Ltd. (KIO.JO), South Africa's largest iron-ore producer and a subsidiary of Anglo American PLC (AAL.LN), began legal action in August 2011 accusing the government of wrongly awarding a lucrative stake in the Sishen mine to politically-connected Imperial Crown Trading, or ICT.

The 21.4% stake was previously owned by ArcelorMittal South Africa (ACL.JO), which had lost the right after it failed to convert it under new mineral laws. Kumba already owned the remaining stake.

In December 2011, a Pretoria high court ruled that Kumba was the owner of 100% of Sishen and therefore the Department of Mineral Resources, or DMR, was wrong in awarding the stake to ICT and that the deal was void.

"ICT and DMR have now applied for leave to appeal this judgment, and this application will be heard on May 11," ArcelorMittal South Africa said Thursday.

Arbitration between ArcelorMittal South Africa and Kumba over a pricing agreement dispute that arose over the mine right issue is delayed until the court process is over, the steelmaker reiterated.

-By Devon Maylie, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]