Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe used his keynote address at the twenty-first annual Southern African Coal Conference (being held in Cape Town) on Thursday to highlight South Africa’s Coal Reimagined Programme. This is being developed by the country’s minerals beneficiation and technology research agency, Mintek.

“Coal contains a number of by-products that can be used in the economy,” he pointed out. “We’re reimagining coal, so that it can be used for other uses than electricity generation.”

Scientific research has established that coal discards and coal fly ash contain key minerals, such as rare earth minerals, alumina, gallium, silica and vanadium. These are crucial for modern applications such as advanced manufacturing, batteries and electronics, as well as construction materials. And demand for these is rapidly accelerating, worldwide.

South Africa’s coal sector produces more than 25-million tons of fly ash each year. But of this total, less than 10% is currently beneficiated.

“Our coal endowment, therefore, presents South Africa with a unique opportunity to meet this demand using secondary resources that are already mined, processed, and stockpiled within our borders,” he highlighted. “Our response is clear: we must reposition coal as a critical mineral and a source of advanced materials, capable of supporting new industrial value chains.”

Mintek has a long record of characterising the country’s coal, discards and fly ash. This characterisation includes their chemistry, mineralogy, environmental risk profiles and behaviour when undergoing processing. The Coal Reimagined Programme builds upon this expertise, as the critical minerals contained within these coal byproducts are usually found embedded in complex alumina-, iron- and silica-rich matrices. Treating these matrices requires advanced characterisation and processing, as well as integrated extraction. 

“Through this programme, we intend to transform a historical liability into an engine of economic opportunity, provided that appropriate investment is mobilised to enable progression from research and piloting to industrial deployment,” he affirmed. “The programme is designed to position South Africa as a global leader in coal beneficiation, waste valorisation, and circular-economy innovation – converting legacy coal waste streams into drivers of economic growth, job creation, and environmental rehabilitation.”

Mantashe also highlighted the potential of carbon capture, utilisation, storage and use (CCUS), stating that South Africa was continuing to invest in this technology. This was one of the technologies of the future. He cited the CCUS project at Leandra in Mpumalanga province. CCUS was one of the technologies that would make Clean Coal possible, and Clean Coal would extend the life of the coal industry. “Coal mining companies have a vested interest in CCUS,” he observed, adding that they should invest in it.

The coal sector employs 90 000 people and is a major source of export earnings for the country. For South Africa, coal is a critical mineral. 

“Coal is dynamic, coal is not static,” he asserted. “We never talk about moving from coal to renewables, but from high-carbon power to low-carbon power, which requires a variety of interventions.”