Mining
Background
The mining sector has helped shape South Africa’s economy to a greater extent than any other industry. In 2020, the mining sector contributed R400 billion to the South African gross domestic product (GDP). The mining sector continues to attract significant foreign direct investment, making the sector an outstanding contributor to the South African economy.
Coal, gold, diamonds, platinum are the most well-known mined minerals and metals, but South Africa also hosts chrome, vanadium, titanium, and a number of other minerals.
Opportunities
In the bigger scheme of things, opportunities in mining are; ‘Green mining’ and ‘Smart mining’. The Paris climate agreement has created pressure on mining corporations to comply with global policy to reduce the environmental impacts associated with the extraction and processing of greenhouse gases. Furthermore, smart mining has allowed mining corporations to adapt due to supply chain interruptions, production slowdowns, operational shutdowns, and changing commodity prices and this has necessitated a whole new way of operations using intelligent and efficient technology.