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Bold opportunity for Africa

frica and its materials stand at the the solution towards a low carbon econo- having a sustainable and renewable
Aforefront of the world’s transition to my, it needed to consider a more “active power sector,” he said.
a low carbon economy, according to Rio and deliberate” role in reducing emis- “Across our [global] operations, 71%
Tinto Ltd’s Bold Baatar. sions for future generations. of our electricity now comes from renew-
However, the chief executive of the “Meeting this challenge will drive struc- able sources, including hydro. This rep-
major’s energy and minerals division tural changes across the industry,” he resents significant investment and fore-
warned that opportunity could be quickly said. sight, but there is much more to do.
lost if the resources industry did not fully “Host governments and communities “As an industry, to really make a step
embrace sustainable practices, including want to build downstream industries that change in reducing our carbon footprint,
improved engagements with local com- process raw materials in their country, we have to rely on government collabo-
munities and host governments across as these beneficiation processes create ration and support not just in a financial
the continent. far more jobs than the mining industry sense, but also as the author of forward-
“We believe this is a ‘make or break’ can alone. However, an essential build- looking policies, fair and equitable rules
moment facing our industry and our busi- ing block of the processing industry is of the game and effective licensing au-
ness,” he said. reliable, efficient and affordable power thorities.”
“How we adapt, operationalise and generation and that, inevitably, is capital Baatar also highlighted that business-
integrate sustainability will define suc- intensive. es only survive by finding ways to provide
cessful mining companies in the years “Ever more, power solutions that are sustainable benefits for shareholders,
ahead.” fossil fuel-based will become increas- host communities and governments.
Baatar singled out sustainability as ingly difficult to finance and fund. The “We still need to do more in our en-
one of three “global forces” reshaping the energy and mining sectors are largely gagement with people, politicians and
resources industry, alongside geopolitics intertwined but the collaboration, co- civil society as part of communicating
(in particular, its impact on free trade) ordination and integration are too often and delivering the positive economic im-
and disruptive technologies. not aligned.” pact we have,” he said.
The Mongolian-born executive split Baatar said Africa’s abundance of hy- “This includes job creation and em-
sustainability into two categories – the dro resources were also part of the solu- ployment, royalties, shared benefits, to
environment and the social compact with tion for a low carbon economy. name but a few. But, we will also need to
host communities and beyond. “If those resources are harnessed, ensure we collaborate and engage more
On the environment, Baatar said while developed and utilised on an industrial effectively with those that host our pres-
the industry was unquestionably part of scale, Africa will be at the forefront of ence.
“Rio Tinto has been working and in-
vesting in Africa, in some shape or form,
for more than half a century. Over these
many years, the model that we sought to
develop was one of shared value. The
expectation was that companies like
ours create profit, and then invest some
of that profit into the communities and
countries where we operate.
“Collectively, we poured hundreds of
millions of dollars into programmes that
aimed to spur economic development.
Not all have been successful, but some
of these programmes had a significant
and enduring impact. However, we are in
the business of continuous improvement
and this model can be improved and
must be improved.”
Baatar did not provide an update on
the operating performance of Rio Tinto’s
African-based assets, including Rich-
ards Bay (South Africa) and QIT Minerals
(Madagascar).
– Michael Washbourne

Bold Baatar

aUSTRaLIa’S PaYDIRT MaRCH 2020 Page 55