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Anglo American PLC on Tuesday said it has partnered with EDF Renewables to form a new jointly owned company, Envusa Energy, in its strive towards renewable energy.
EDF Renewables is the SA subsidiary of French utility EDF Group.
London-based mining company Anglo said newly formed Envusa plans to develop ‘a regional renewable energy ecosystem’ in South Africa.
In March this year, the two companies signed a memorandum of understanding to explore the ecosystem's development, which is expected to generate between 3 gigawatts and 5 GW of renewable electricity by 2030. This renewable energy will support Anglo's operational power requirements, as well as local electricity supply systems.
As part of the agreement, Envusa will launch a pipeline of more than 600 mega watts of wind and solar projects in SA. Anglo American said this will be the first ‘major step’ towards the development of an ecosystem.
The company explained that this first phase is expected to be fully funded and ready for construction in 2023.
Envusa is expected to supply Anglo American with a blend of renewable energy generated on Anglo's sites and renewable energy transmitted through the national grid.
Nolitha Fakude, chair of Anglo American's board in South Africa, said: ‘This is a significant milestone in Anglo American's global decarbonisation journey and another step forwards for South Africa's clean energy future. We are making great strides towards our 2040 target of carbon neutral operations, while contributing to South Africa's just energy transition through our responsible approach.
‘We believe that the energy transition presents a fresh opportunity for South Africa and the rest of the region to build a clean and inclusive energy ecosystem that can create significant new economic opportunities,’ Fakude added.
Shares in Anglo American were up 2.9% to 2,877.00 pence each in London on Tuesday morning. The shares were 3.0% higher in Johannesburg at R 581.92.
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