South African Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane said that the firms have warned the mines ministry of the potential job cuts plan and closure of loss making mines amidst plunging commodity prices and rising costs.

Bloomberg cited Zwane as saying to reporters: "Commodity prices have fallen for quite some time and that is causing problems in term of jobs and restructuring.

"We are engaging with companies to try and see how best we can deal with that situation in a responsible way."

The country is estimated to have $2.5 trillion worth of mineral reserves.

Currently, the mining sector employees nearly 440,000 people and accounts for more than half of the exports in the country.

Zwane added: "We’re going to do everything possible in our power to try and control the situation until the price of commodities improves."

Meanwhile, mining giant Anglo American’s South Africa-based subsidiary Kumba Iron Ore announced its plan recently to cut as up to 3,900 jobs at its Sishen mine in the Northern Cape province.

The mine is considered as the largest iron ore operation in Africa.

Kumba CEO Norman Mbazima said: "This has been an extremely difficult decision but, after exhausting all other avenues and doing all we could have done to reduce costs, we have no choice but to take more significant steps to preserve the viability of the mine.

"We are mindful of the sensitivity that this situation demands, and are committed to supporting all our employees at Sishen, as we have done throughout the other restructuring processes at Kumba."