World Bank initiative aims for climate-smart mining

The facility is intended to support the sustainable extraction and processing of minerals and metals used in clean energy technologies, such as wind, solar power, and batteries for energy storage and electric vehicles.
 
Its focus will be on helping resource-rich developing countries benefit from the increasing demand for minerals and metals, while ensuring the mining sector is managed in a way that minimises the environmental and climate footprint.
 
The facility evolved from a World Bank report The Growing Role of Minerals and Metals for a Low-Carbon Future, which found that a low-carbon future will be significantly more mineral-intensive than a business-as-usual scenario.
 
World Bank projections suggest that global demand for ‘strategic minerals’ such as lithium, graphite and nickel will skyrocket by 965%, 383% and 108% respectively by 2050 (based on the assumption that countries will implement the Paris Agreement and reduce emissions to keep global warming below 2 deg).
 
“While the growing demand for minerals and metals offers an opportunity for mineral-rich developing countries, it also represents a challenge: without climate-smart mining practices, the negative impacts from mining activities will increase, affecting vulnerable communities and environment,” the bank stated.
 
The multi-donor trust fund will work with developing countries and emerging economies to implement sustainable and responsible strategies and practices across the mineral value chain.
 
Partners include the German government and private-sector mining companies, Rio Tinto and Anglo American. The facility will also assist governments to build a robust policy, regulatory and legal framework that promotes climate-smart mining and creates an enabling environment for private capital. 
 
Projects may include: