Aiteo, Africa’s largest integrated energy company, has joined forces with The Atlantic Council’s Africa Center, a prominent think tank on African affairs, to launch a groundbreaking three-year program on the continent’s critical minerals.
The program, announced at the Mining Indaba, the leading mining event in Africa, will focus on enhancing the role of African minerals in the global supply chains of the 21st century, especially in sectors like electric vehicles, lithium batteries, cellphones, medical scanners, and military equipment.
Critical minerals are minerals that are vital for the development of clean energy, digital technologies, and advanced manufacturing, but have high supply risks due to their concentration in a few countries or regions. Some examples of critical minerals are cobalt, lithium, rare earths, and uranium.
Africa is rich in critical minerals, holding 30 percent of the global reserves, according to the World Bank2. However, the continent faces many challenges in exploiting its mineral wealth, such as inadequate infrastructure, lack of investment, environmental and social risks, and geopolitical competition.
The program aims to address these challenges by establishing a task force dedicated to critical minerals, composed of 12 members from the United States, Europe, and Africa, including representatives from the financial sector, development agencies, and governments. The task force will meet regularly in Washington, D.C., to discuss how African minerals can contribute to critical supply chains, how to increase the participation of African nations and businesses, and how to engage the private sector.
The task force will also produce policy recommendations and investment strategies to bridge supply chain gaps and promote solutions based on proven policy and investment approaches. In addition, it will offer policy guidance to foreign investors on Africa’s business landscape and foster advocacy through thought leadership on policies, regulations, incentives, property rights, local processing and value chains, regional collaboration, innovation, and technology frameworks. The program will also include policy research and strategic analysis.
Rama Yade, the senior director of the Atlantic Council’s Africa Center, stated, “Africa plays a pivotal role in the global economy’s supply of critical minerals. We are eager to bring together policymakers and key stakeholders at the highest level to develop a strategy for this essential industry in Africa.”
Aiteo, founded by African billionaire Benedict Peters, is Africa’s largest privately-owned integrated energy company, operating in West and Southern Africa. Aiteo’s sister company, Bravura Holdings, is Africa’s largest privately owned vertically integrated mining company and is developing lithium, uranium, and other critical minerals in countries across the continent, including Ghana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Mozambique, Cote d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, Guinea Bissau, Libya, Tanzania, and South Africa.
Benedict Peters, the founder and executive vice chairman of Aiteo, said, “We are proud to support this initiative, which aligns with our vision of creating value and prosperity for Africa through our investments in energy and mining. We believe that Africa’s critical minerals have the potential to transform the continent’s economic and social development, as well as contribute to the global transition to a low-carbon and digital future.”
The program is expected to generate significant interest and impact among the stakeholders and decision-makers involved in the critical minerals sector, both within and outside Africa. It will also raise awareness and understanding of the opportunities and challenges facing Africa’s critical minerals industry, and highlight the importance of fostering sustainable and inclusive development in the continent.
