The Anglo American exhibition stand at 2016 Mining Indaba
Sustainability and acting responsibly is critical to attracting investment in mining
A scorching 34 degrees in Cape Town did not deter delegates from attending the second day of the Mining Indaba where speakers discussed the sustainability of mining and other issues critical to attracting investment in the industry.
Themba Mkhwanazi, CEO of our SA coal business, took part in a panel on the future of Africa’s coal industry and its response to changing global demand.
He assured delegates that coal is a positive story and will continue to be one of the key driver’s in economic development. “Only 50% of the current global population has access to electricity. Countries in emerging markets are driving hard to change this and coal will play a role, especially given its cost, reliability and abundance.”
Themba said the coal price will always depend on a matter of supply and demand. “Africa is quite unique in that it is very much a demand rather than a supply story. And when you look at coal production, you effectively look at South Africa although there is some activity in Mozambique and Botswana and emerging potential activity in East Africa though Tanzania.
“My view would be that the demand for local power generation will probably drive the demand for coal, not just from a South African perspective, but from a regional African perspective. This is positive for production in South Africa in the sense that, while we participate in the global seaborne market, we are actually fairly shielded in these extremely difficult times.”
Themba concluded by saying that coal will continue to be an essential part of the energy mix aimed at meeting the world’s growing energy demands.
Later in the day, our CEO, Mark Cutifani joined the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) panel discussion on the Mining Indaba’s main stage to talk frankly about acting responsibly and investing in positive relationships.
Mark said social performance and community relationships can have a significant impact on investments. “Our industry – and I’m talking broadly about the extractive industry, including oil and gas – has seen about $90 million worth of projects expropriated from companies, predominantly in South America, but in other countries too, and about $25 billion worth of projects being put on hold because of disputes with local or regional governments.
“So, for us, having the right relationships with local communities, regional groups and communities and governments is good business. Making sure we get relationships right is key to being successful and part and parcel of acting responsibly.”
Mark said quite often mining companies assume that what they see as meaningful existence is the same for everybody in the community whereas they actually want something entirely different. “A point was made earlier about the importance of understanding where people are coming from, understanding what the issues are and then working with the community in resolving those issues.”
Between talks, delegates visited the Mining Indaba’s Exhibition Hall where Anglo American’s fuel-cell powered exhibition stand prompted interest in rural electrification and the business. Marketing communication manager, Mooketsi Mocumi, walked us through the stand. Watch the video above.