The UK government has announced R20 million in funding to help identify the most promising opportunities for African countries to attract investment into processing critical minerals. Critical minerals are essential for producing clean energy technologies like batteries, wind turbines, and electric vehicles.
The funding will support a study by Boston Consulting Group, which will assess specific opportunities for in-country processing and mid-stream value addition of critical minerals in Africa. The study will focus on 14 African countries, including South Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Madagascar, Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, Morocco, Guinea, Ghana, Angola, and Equatorial Guinea.
The study will also identify the key challenges and barriers to developing critical African minerals projects and provide recommendations on addressing them. The study is expected to be completed by the end of 2023.
The announcement was made by British High Commissioner to South Africa Antony Phillipson at the Critical Minerals Africa conference in Cape Town. He said that the UK was committed to increasing its investment in the continent and strengthening the transparency and resilience of the supply chain for critical minerals.
He added that the demand for critical minerals was expected to triple by 2030, reaching over 30 million tonnes, as countries sought to meet their net-zero commitments. He said that Africa had a huge potential to play a pivotal role in meeting this demand and creating green jobs.
The announcement came ahead of the second UK-hosted African Investment Summit, which will take place in April 2024. The summit will unite heads of state and government from 25 African countries with British and African business leaders. It aims to deepen the partnership between the UK and Africa on critical minerals and other sectors.
The UK-African Investment Summit 2020 marked an important milestone in the partnership, announcing over R150 billion worth of new investments and investment commitments in Africa. The summit also launched the UK-Africa Mining Partnership, which supports responsible and sustainable mining practices in Africa.
The UK government said it was working with African countries to support them in mitigating and adapting to the effects of climate change, recognizing Africa’s abundant potential for renewable energies. It also supported policies and regulations promoting sustainable development, environmental conservation, and social well-being.
The UK government hoped the study would unlock the potential of Africa’s critical minerals sector and drive economic growth, create job opportunities, and improve livelihoods across the continent.
Source: Mining Weekly
