Mpumalanga, a province in South Africa, is facing a significant bottleneck in mining permit applications, particularly for open-pit operations of up to five hectares that require minimal environmental and social compliance. This situation has raised concerns about the shady pursuit of coal in the region. The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) has reported a backlog of over 5,000 applications for various mining and prospecting rights and permits. The scale of this backlog impedes exploration and mining investments, contributing to South Africa's declining share of global exploration expenditure. The DMRE's outdated Samrad system for processing mining rights has been widely criticized as ineffective. Despite delays in implementing a functional mining cadastre, which would provide transparency and efficiency in mining rights applications, the DMRE is expected to announce the winning bid for the cadastre in July. Suspicion of corruption surrounds the high number of mining permit applications, particularly in Mpumalanga, where the backlog stands at 1,584. Mining permits are easier to obtain and do not require extensive environmental impact assessments, raising concerns about coal land-grabbing. The lack of an effective cadastre exacerbates opacity and incompetence, providing a conducive environment for corruption. Coal expansion in Mpumalanga poses a threat to food security, as it encroaches upon valuable maize fields and limits land availability for renewable energy projects. The implementation of a functional mining cadastre is hoped to shed light on these issues and promote transparency.