They were deposited from 260 to 190 million years ago, and are bounded by the Limpopo Mobile Belt to the north and the Eenzaamheid and Ellisras Faults to the south.

[6] Although some of the resources are near the surface and readily accessible, it may not be economically viable to extract coals from the seams that lie at depths of up to 400 metres (1,300 ft).

[5] During and after World War II, 143 diamond-drill holes and two prospecting shafts were sunk between 1941 and 1952 to obtain a geological map of the Waterberg coalfield.

Iscor bought the surface rights on six farms in 1957, and in 1973 began intensive exploration to assess the quantity and quality of coal on this property.

[7] As of 2008, Exxaro Resources was operating the Grootegeluk coal mine, supplying Eskom's coal-fired Matimba Power Station.

[10] Sasol is also interested in exploiting the field with a planned new power station called Project Mafutha, which may be located in the Waterberg.

[4] In February 2012, the state-owned rail company Transnet stated that they were adding enough capacity to be able to ship an additional 23 million tons of coal a year from the Waterberg Coalfield to Richards Bay.

[13] Deposition of waste products released into the atmosphere will affect the Limpopo basin ecosystem, which contains some unique species which existence is already endangered.

Development of the coalfields and related chemical industries, with improvements to infrastructure, education and health services could provide large benefits if managed correctly.