Vast reserves of sun and wind provide a chance to decarbonise and create big sectors
The history of human development is fundamentally a history of energy and economic transitions in tandem. With each stage of economic development countries experience a transition that is characterised by a shift from one primary energy source to another. As a result, when economies develop and become more complex energy needs increase significantly — and so do society’s expectations.
I grew up during a time of significant industrialisation in SA. The development of the country’s telecommunications, rail, ports and other forms of infrastructure all relied on affordable and abundant carbon-based energy supply. Off the back of this, new industries sprang up, providing economic opportunity and growth that formed the backbone of SA’s economy, which remains the most advanced economy on this continent.
In March we announced a groundbreaking partnership with EDF Renewables — a global leader in renewable energy — to work together towards developing a regional renewable energy ecosystem in SA to provide 100% of our energy requirements through renewables: between three and five gigawatts of new capacity.
To that end SA and many other mining jurisdictions on the African continent have an opportunity to position themselves for this coming era and then harness the considerable benefits that it will bring. That time is now, and it requires forward-thinking regulatory frameworks that support innovation, allow the rapid development and adoption of new technology, and incentivise exploration for the minerals that will build the economy of the future.
Simply put: mining is everyone’s industry. This is an industry at the very heart of modern life, an industry that is helping build a new economy to save our planet for 8-billion people who depend on our metals and minerals every day — without realising it.
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