Mining Weekly reports that Mineral Resources and Petroleum Minister Gwede Mantashe exclaimed at the ribbon cutting of coal producer Seriti’s new Naudesbank Colliery, near Carolina, in Mpumalanga, on 14 March that “King coal is back!”
Enthused by the opening of a new colliery at a time when global politics and markets were increasingly anti-fossil fuels, Mantashe expressed his support for a more balanced approach to energy security – one which still relied on coal-based power for baseload. He also expressed his support of the coal mining industry being a source of continued direct and indirect employment, as well as investments by mining companies into surrounding communities by building roads, clinics, schools and other critical infrastructure. Mantashe noted that although miners like Anglo American and BHP were moving away from coal mining, SA miners, such as Seriti, Exxaro Resources and Thungela, continued to invest in coal mining. Seriti broke ground on the new Naudesbank Colliery in November 2024, with the first coal produced in late February. The colliery has a mine life of about 12 years and is set to maintain about 300 direct jobs, along with additional indirect and downstream employment opportunities in the surrounding communities.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard at Mining Weekly
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