Anglo American & Tata Steel join hands to reduce emissions

Mining giant Anglo American, iron ore miner Tata Steel and several others have joined hands to find ways to reduce carbon emissions in shipping iron ore.

BusinessTech Africa has discovered that Freeport Saldanha – which represents the Saldanha Bay Industrial Development Zone – is also part of the consortium, along with shipping firms CMB and VUKA Marine and energy supplier Engie.

The consortium is convened by the international non-profit Global Maritime Forum and it will, over the next 12 months, conduct a concept study into how to achieve zero emissions in the shipping of iron ore from South Africa to Europe – essentially developing a “green corridor”.

“The new initiative came about because of a shared ambition to decarbonise shipping and a common interest to assess a potential green corridor for shipping of iron ore from South Africa to Europe across the partners,” said Marieke Beckmann of the Global Maritime Forum per News24 Business.

Beckmann added that the work builds on a previous study by the Global Maritime Forum that identified opportunities for South Africa to establish itself as a “key player” in the transition to renewable energy and in zero-emission shipping.

Among other solutions being considered is the use of green fuel supplies to power the ships.

“The new initiative will build on this to develop an initial concept of how the corridor could be set up,” Beckmann reiterated.

“The fuels we will be looking at will be hydrogen-based fuels, for example, ammonia; however, this is yet to be concluded as part of the study.”

It is noted by the Global Maritime Forum that South Africa is located along a busy shipping route and boasts the highest volumes of maritime traffic in Africa outside the Mediterranean region.

Both Anglo American and Tata Steel – which produce iron ore for clients in the European market – have agreed that the corridor would help the industry decarbonise.

“An important step toward wider industry decarbonisation, this initiative also aligns with Anglo American’s ambition to reach carbon neutrality for our controlled ocean freight by 2040,” said Peter Whitcutt, CEO of Anglo American’s Marketing business.