NATIONAL WATER ACT 36 OF 1998: REGULATIONS FOR THE USE OF WATER FOR EXPLORATION AND PRODUCTION OF ONSHORE NATURALLY OCCURRING HYDROCARBONS
Notice Title: National Water Act 36 of 1998 (“NWA”): Regulations for the Use of Water for Exploration and Production of Onshore Naturally Occurring Hydrocarbons
Government Notice: GN 7183 in GG 54231 on 27 February 2026
Commencing date: Comments to be submitted on or before 28 April 2026
The Minister of Water and Sanitation, in terms of section 26(1)(g) of the NWA, read together with GNR 999 of 16 October 2015, published the Regulations for the use of water for exploration and production of onshore naturally occurring hydrocarbons that require stimulation, including hydraulic fracturing and underground coal gasification, to extract, and any incidental thereto that may impact detrimentally on the water resource for public comments.
The purpose of these Regulations is to protect a water resource so as to avoid and minimise detrimental and cumulative impacts on the water resource by the controlled activity.
In these Regulations, “Controlled activity” means the controlled activity declared by the Minister by notice in the Government Gazette No. 39299, Notice 999 of 2015 in terms of section 38 of the Act in respect of the exploration and production of onshore naturally occurring hydrocarbons that requires stimulation, including hydraulic fracturing and underground gasification, to extract, and any activity incidental thereto that may impact detrimentally on the water resource.
Once it commences, these Regulations will apply throughout the Republic of South Africa to all onshore exploration, mining, and production operations for controlled activities (as per these regulations) that may impact detrimentally on a water resource.
It should be noted that this is a republication of the draft regulations that were gazetted in GNR 5582 for public comments on 22 November 2024. If comments were already submitted at that time, those comments will be considered as part of this process, so there is no need to resubmit unless there are additional comments.
Members of the public are invited to submit comments on or before 28 April 2026. For a copy of the Government Gazette Notice click here: National Water Act: Regulations: Use of water for exploration and production of onshore naturally occurring hydrocarbons that require stimulation and any activity incidental thereto that may impact detrimentally on water resource
For more information or assistance please contact Jan Nel at jan@shangoni.co.za.
