South African miners are poised for a reinvigorated industry with the election of new President, Cyril Ramaphosa. Upon entering office, Ramaphosa began talks to resolve the Mining Charter impasse and it seems that progress is already being made. E­­­­­­­­­xperts are optimistic about Ramaphosa's potential to turnaround the country, and here we assess the prospects for South Africa’s mining industry under new leadership.

On the opposite end of the scale, more than 10,000 workers in Ukraine are again on strike due to missing wages. Secretive operations and millions in arrears are fuelling fears for the sustainability of the country’s 150 mines. We investigate if the troubles could permanently affect coal mining in Ukraine.

Meanwhile, global commodity prices are booming but can this situation last? We explore what firms are doing differently to avoid past mistakes and also build a sustainable financial future. Plus, we speak to consultancy firm Brand Finance about the growing importance of brand identity in the mining industry, in technology we get to grips with blockchain to find out what the digital ledger system can offer mining supply chains, and find out why BHP is using military-grade drones to survey its sites in Queensland, Australia. 

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Ceri Jones, editor