Anglo American has published a climate change report, addressing ways for the company to reduce diesel and energy consumption while increasing the renewable energy mix.

Carbon emission targets are on the rise to meet climate change agendas. While the landscape of benchmarking is still evolving, many drives to reduce carbon emissions have been led by government policies and subsidies, especially in the automotive sector with the uptake of electric vehicles (EVs).

According to a 2020 study (based on 2016 data) published on Our World in Data, the mining and metals industry contributes over 10% of global carbon emissions, split between 7.2% held in iron and steel, 0.7% in non-ferrous metals and a portion of a further 10.6% in “other industry” consisting of mining and quarrying, construction, textiles, wood products, and transport equipment. According to McKinsey, mining is responsible for 4-7% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions globally. As a result, the mining and processing sector has a significant role in helping meet climate change targets for an estimated 36.3Bnt of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2 eq) emissions.

For Anglo, the carbon-emission reduction targets address the company’s platinum group metal operations in Southern Africa. The company mapped out their scope 1 and scope 2 emissions by asset in its report, which shows an emission split of 86.9% electricity use, 7.2% coal, 5.3% diesel and 0.6% LPG for its total 4.52Mt CO2 eq emissions. The company’s climate change goals are for carbon neutrality in scopes 1 and 2 by 2040, with a 50% reduction of scope 3 emissions.

South Africa is well placed to lead the way in renewable energy for the mining sector, but perhaps more so as a necessity. Electricity accounts for the lion’s share of emissions in energy-intensive mining and processing, but South Africa has been plagued with rolling blackouts (load shedding) since 2007 as the country’s energy utility, Eskom, has struggled to keep the lights on. As a result, energy-intensive industries have led in energy reduction technologies and backup systems. With Eskom failing to support heavy industry and load shedding worsening, the country has finally started to open opportunities for private energy infrastructure to add to the grid and several diversified miners, including Anglo, are moving ahead with 100MW solar plants at existing properties in the first wave of new expected capacities.

Anglo’s carbon emission outlook shows a full reduction in all electricity emissions by 2040, suggesting becoming wholly independent of the national grid, which is still dominated by coal.