This is a video clip of one of the gold refineries in South Africa.

Refiners process raw material, primarily from mining, to separate the impurities and create fine gold in the form of gold bars or semi-fabricated products (like grain, sheet and wire) which is used in jewellery and coin manufacture or dental and industrial use. Grain is widely used by jewellery manufacturers since it can be bought in small quantities and is applied to casting techniques, while sheet is applied to stamping, and wire to chain-making.

South Africa is one of the world's and Africa's most important mining countries in terms of the variety and quantity of minerals produced. It has the world's largest reserves of chrome, gold, vanadium, manganese and PGM's. South Africa is the leading producer for nearly all of Africa's metals and minerals production apart from diamonds (Botswana and the DRC), uranium (Niger), copper and cobalt (Zambia and the DRC) and phosphates (Morocco).

As one of the world's largest producers of gold, gold is the largest mineral foreign income earner in South Africa, contributing 27.4% in mineral revenues. The gold industry is also responsible for 56% of South Africa's mine labour force.

South Africa's has enormous gold ore reserves, estimated at 40 000t, representing 40% of global reserves. South Africa's main gold producing area is concentrated on the Archaean Witwatersrand Basin. The Witwatersrand basin, which has been mined for more than 100 years and has produced more than 41 000 t of gold, remains the greatest unmined source of gold in the world. Major new projects, new technology, new approaches to the organisation of work, better labour relations and some commercial innovations are starting to reshape this industry.

95% of South Africa's gold mines are underground operations, reaching depths of over 3.8 km.