JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Look out for PyroFuZA. These eight letters have the potential to make greatest use of South Africa’s pure assets and restore South Africa’s value-adding energy, which, in flip, might help to foot the invoice for the progressive rebuilding of this nation’s economic system.
PyroFuZA spells out that it is doable for South Africa to place its personal distinctive appropriate measures in place that may allow this nation to, as soon as once more, change into a powerful participant throughout the value-add ecosystem, amid completely different measures being utilized at completely different levels of development in order that long-term momentum is assured. (Additionally watch hooked up Creamer Media video.)
Identified is that, even now, South Africa isn’t completely bereft of momentum, and won’t need to restart from scratch, however wants a stand-together strategy, a same-direction intention, and a new-foundation-laying agenda.
Whereas PyroFuZA acknowledges that “the needle must be threaded very rigorously”, the eight letters additionally include the conviction that each inside and exterior win-win synergies could be turned to constructive account if carefully sought.
Creamer Media’s Engineering Information & Mining Weekly spoke to Dr Johan Zietsman and mining luminary Bernard Swanepoel following the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy’s Pyrometallurgy Worldwide Convention 2026, which shone a vibrant highlight on the way forward for the South Africa’s pyrometallurgical business, which spans the worlds of iron and metal, ferroalloys, platinum group metals and base metals.
Mining Weekly: The convention opened with one thing fairly uncommon — a full-day workshop known as PyroFuZA, bringing collectively CEOs, authorities officers, and senior business figures behind closed doorways. What was the aim of that day, and why was it obligatory?
Zietsman: Thanks for the chance to talk about this, which I believe is crucial to our nation and our economic system, we’re blessed with minerals of nice worth within the floor, and it has been the platform for constructing our economic system for the earlier 100 years. However within the final 30 or so years, that has all been in decline, and there are geopolitical points at play. There are native points at play. It is not at all a easy matter, however it’s a undeniable fact that this business and the worth addition of those minerals that we have now pays the payments for rebuilding our economic system once more to be main in Africa and in some respects main on the earth. I believe we owe it to the longer term generations to do that and never simply settle for the course wherein our business goes, and that is why we invited business leaders, authorities participation. For my part, one firm can’t remedy this on their very own. As different international locations function in nationwide unity in some respects, we have to do one thing comparable in South Africa. This business particularly is fragmented. There is no such thing as a unified effort to construct the frequent infrastructure that we’d like, and that is a fantastic alternative. The decline that we’re seeing doesn’t must proceed. It is a selection, and rebuilding the business can be a selection, however it’s a selection that we have now to make collectively.
South Africa has misplaced greater than two-million tonnes of smelting capability since 2014. At the least 30 of 59 chrome furnaces are on care and upkeep or closed. Final 12 months South Africa exported 24-million tonnes of chrome ore whereas producing lower than one-million tonnes of ferrochrome, in opposition to practically five-million tonnes of put in capability. How did this occur?
It is a structural decline. If we contemplate the most important ferrochrome producers on the earth, it is South Africa, Kazakhstan, and China. Our vitality value is principally double that of our opponents, and we have now not sustainably renewed our vitality technology capability, which signifies that we have now come to some extent the place it is principally unimaginable for us to compete, as a result of vitality is such an necessary enter, the principle working value enter into producing ferrochrome. In the event you can’t compete on vitality, you can not compete on ferrochrome, and that’s one thing that we have to repair. A part of the argument is that our smelters are outdated and inefficient, and that is maybe a part of the argument that we are able to make. However we can’t purchase effectivity enhancements, shut the hole of 100% vitality worth share, so there are structural issues in our economic system, logistics and rail capacities are actually in decline, whereas one of many key funding factors of a rustic like Kazakhstan was to extend logistics. Then, the third level I believe is fragmentation. We don’t collectively enhance structural issues as an business, so every firm principally bargains by itself or tries to enhance its personal vitality state of affairs, logistics state of affairs, et cetera, and we’re shedding many alternatives on this method by being fragmented.
A hanging level was made on the workshop concerning the thermodynamic ground — the argument that there’s a minimal vitality required to smelt an ore, a minimal set by physics, that no quantity of expertise can cut back. What does that imply for the talk about modernising the business?
I believe the analogy that certainly one of our colleagues in business made is if you wish to boil water for a cup of espresso, it’s going to value you a specific amount of vitality and if you happen to purchase a greater kettle, that quantity of vitality isn’t essentially going to alter a lot. Relating to furnaces, it is comparable. There is a base minimal a part of the vitality requirement that’s decided by nature, the legal guidelines of physics and chemistry. We can’t change that, it does not matter how what sort of expertise we use. We will shift issues round through the use of extra coal, et cetera, however we principally want to alter the elemental enter prices to the smelters to make this a viable enterprise once more, and a very powerful facet of that’s vitality. The opposite level is admittedly that we are able to construct higher kettles. We’re busy creating new applied sciences. African Rainbow Minerals has been very profitable in pioneering a brand new expertise, so we are able to try this as effectively, however we can’t run the 100 m race in opposition to Usain Bolt with one leg amputated.
Earlier than the workshop, contributors had been polled on the state of the business. The phrases they used to explain the business right now included “dying”, “ICU”, “trapped in a dying spiral,” “on its knees”. However when requested what the business may change into, the identical individuals stated “thriving”, “world leaders”, “international benchmark”, and “innovation led”. What do you make of that distinction?
I believe this was for me the elemental query on the day. I answered “not sure” to the query “can this business be saved”, as a result of I did not know what the response from all of the contributors could be. I do know essentially there’s nothing holding us again. It is principally selection, however it’s a selection that we have now to make collectively, and it was overwhelming for me to listen to the response once we requested the questions. No person is denying the present actuality, but additionally no one is denying that we are able to make this work. It’s worthwhile to make this business work, and this locations us ready the place PyroFuZA doesn’t want to finish with solely a single workshop, however it could certainly be the beginning of a course of.
China now provides roughly 60% of the world’s ferrochrome and dominates refined manufacturing throughout most metals. The workshop examined 4 international locations that responded to Chinese language stress in very other ways — Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, and the USA. What did South Africa study from these instances?
I believe the core message to us is we must always not attempt to replicate what one other nation is doing. There are a large number of choices to guage when making an attempt to have a thriving business in our nation. China, and its competitiveness, is usually on the centre of those discussions. I believe it is harmful if we solely change into China-focused. What we have now to do is study from Kazakhstan, which invested, for instance, in rail and decreasing the price of manufacturing, or Saudi Arabia, that has a really aggressive progress technique for a metals business, and the USA, which has sturdy authorities assist for funding analysis and industrial renewal in that nation. In South Africa’s case, we must choose the suitable measures to place in place to change into a powerful participant on this ecosystem once more. Is it doable? Sure, certainly it’s doable. Indonesia, for instance, put export restrictions in place on their ores. Now, that is one thing that’s scoffed at in lots of public boards. I believe, as people, we are inclined to not all the time assume in a time-wise trend over 50 years, however we moderately take into consideration what’s going to occur within the quick time period, and I imagine completely different measures could be relevant at completely different levels as we stroll into the longer term. However the bottom-line message for me is, sure, it’s doable. Totally different international locations place completely different measures in place to be sure that they will make the most effective use of their pure assets.
For ferroalloy commodities, solely about 20% of the worth is captured on the ore stage. Strolling away from smelting means strolling away from 80% of the worth. But authorities coverage nominally helps beneficiation. How do you clarify that disconnect?
I believe the phrase beneficiation is an summary time period, and that is really one of many observations that I made in the course of the workshop. In some instances, there’s actually not a connection that individuals have of their minds between beneficiation and the position that one thing like pyrometallurgy performs, and as an business, it’s our duty to speak the worth that we add and the position that we play within the worth chain, extra clearly. Simply the phrase pyrometallurgy, I believe is already an intimidating entry right into a dialog. I can use all types of huge phrases, and then you definately lose individuals, and also you lose the simplicity of the dialog. In ferrochrome, it is really fairly easy. There’s a 5 occasions multiplier when evaluating ore exports with ferrochrome exports. Which means 5 occasions extra money is distributed within the ecosystem in South Africa if you produce ferrochrome. I believe it was final 12 months that we exported R5-billion value of chromite ore, so the what we have misplaced by not smelting is R20-billion. Now, that R20-billion pays a couple of payments of recreating vitality infrastructure, and we are able to return to change into one of many lowest value vitality producers on the earth once more. If we design the ecosystem appropriately in an built-in method, and if we do issues for the suitable causes, we are able to undoubtedly change into one of the cost-competitive ecosystems on the earth once more.
The workshop introduced collectively people who find themselves usually opponents — ferrochrome producers, platinum group metallic smelters, metal firms, the State-owned Industrial Growth Company, Minerals Council South Africa. That type of cross-sector gathering appears uncommon. Was it vital?
I completely imagine it was vital. Somebody stated it might need been the primary time. I discover that tough to imagine, however I believe it is a minimum of uncommon, and never typically sufficient that we have now these conversations as a result of there are extra issues that we ought to be speaking about collectively. Power is certainly one of them. I believe there is a huge alternative for economic system of scale, new vitality technology in South Africa. The competitors laws preclude firms from talking about sure issues, and I believe we have now to be life like about what are the issues that we must always be capable to speak about as an business that may permit South Africa to change into extra aggressive with out being anti-competitive available in the market. That overlap isn’t clear, and it is precluding a few of these conversations from taking place. So, if we take away among the friction from the conversations, and we give individuals a adequate motive to sit down in a room once more and have these conversations, and have a sensible expectation that some motion will come out of it, I believe, it may be very fruitful.
One theme operating by way of the day was the concept South Africa mustn’t simply attempt to protect its smelting base however ought to intention a lot larger — in the direction of turning into a world chief in high-temperature science and expertise. You might have described this as a draft idea that’s being developed. What does that course imply in sensible phrases?
The present draft imaginative and prescient that Bernard and I labored on was very intentionally chosen to not have the phrase pyrometallurgy in it, as a result of we wish to transfer past this present manufacturing ecosystem in 50 years’ time, so we wish to assume past who we’re in the mean time, and we wish to intentionally assume past our personal lifetimes, as a result of that holds a chance for us to unravel the present issues in a long-term, extra sustainable method, the place a few of these conversations would make extra sense than pondering in a five-year horizon. One CEO would suggest a change, after which three different individuals would inform you why it will not work. I believe the issue is we do not have a goal. We’ve nothing that we’re aiming in the direction of. As soon as we have now a transparent, significant, life like goal that we’re aiming for, we are going to discover a path to get there, and this isn’t a pipe dream. Different international locations have proven this. Swiss watchmaking is an instance the place watchmaking was in decline, they usually used that ecosystem to change into international leaders within the manufacture of specialist medical tools. Posco, the South Korean metal firm, began Postech, the college, which then produced folks that went into Samsung and Hyundai, and they’re now among the world’s leaders in EV batteries. I believe Norway is one other instance of a pure endowment of oil that they’re utilizing to fund completely different ecosystems that may outlast their oil reserves. So, what we’re making an attempt to do is initially making an attempt to get individuals to face collectively to intention in the identical course, but additionally to catalyse one thing that may outlast the rapid belongings that we have now within the floor.
A century in the past Hendrik van der Bijl laid three foundations for South Africa’s industrial economic system — inexpensive electrical energy by way of Eskom, home metal by way of Iscor, and improvement capital by way of the IDC. These foundations carried the nation for 100 years. What are the brand new foundations that must be laid?
The primary basis is, in reality, the identical as Hendrik van der Bijl laid, and that’s low-cost vitality, and we nonetheless have room to manoeuvre in South Africa with our pure assets, to re-establish ourselves as one of many lowest value vitality producers. Once you wish to extract metals at excessive temperatures, this can be a non-negotiable. The second is to smelt effectively at scale. That is partly the higher kettle, but additionally an even bigger kettle. A few of our furnaces are smaller scale, and once we reinvigorate the business, we could have among the largest furnaces on the earth with the bottom warmth losses and the most effective vitality efficiencies, which will certainly make us globally aggressive. The third merchandise is to construct a technical class once more, and we have misplaced many individuals from South Africa, however we can’t transfer previous this. That was not certainly one of Henrick van der Bijl’s headline gadgets, however it’s one thing that he very intentionally did to ascertain South Africa as a pacesetter globally. We have already got some momentum, so we’re not ranging from zero, however we have now to do a lot better in constructing our technical class. The fourth basis is that, in a way more globally built-in world than what Van der Bijl needed to work with, we have now to begin to commerce pragmatically. That is one of many trickiest issues to unravel, however there are answers for that as effectively. In all of what we are attempting to construct and to resume, I believe we have now to string the needle very rigorously and search for win-win conditions, which can initially seem like aggressive and maybe a zero sum recreation, but when we contemplate this rigorously sufficient, we are going to discover synergies between ourselves internally and likewise externally with international locations like China.
The workshop closed with a strong picture — a 12-year-old in Rustenburg or Kuruman who doesn’t but know that pyrometallurgy is the longer term, and the query of whether or not this business can create an area the place that baby falls in love with the sector. Is that this business eager about the following technology?
Swanepoel: Clearly, as one journeys and will get older, you both change into completely egocentric, only a few individuals do, otherwise you begin to care concerning the subsequent technology and generations past. All of us can inform a narrative of how we had been beneficiaries of a set of circumstances, an business that we did not know existed. I grew up in a mining city, fairly unaware of mining till it got here to a bursary, so lots of us, I believe, are very deeply caring about these foundational industries of which mining and value-adding to our assets and pyrometallurgy are subsets. We do must care deeply concerning the technical high quality of our schooling. Sure, in school stage, however the centres of excellence that we nonetheless have, we have to put money into these, our time, our cash, we have to create bursaries, we must be an exporter of abilities. It’s one other commodity, a price add that we are able to convey to the world. I’ve discovered big consensus evolving that while we’re in a disaster, which we’re so good at, declare a state of emergency, struggle the disaster, get negotiated worth agreements, save the business, all related conversations. This counter place of fifty years into the longer term, if you have not planted a tree 50 years in the past, right now is the most effective time. If you have not created a technical atmosphere for future pyrometallurgists and different technical specialists, if you have not executed that fifty years in the past, 20 years in the past, final 12 months, then right now is the most effective time. So, for me, that was like such a straightforward abstract of why we have to do all of the issues Johan so eloquently spelled out. We have to lay foundations, we have to collaborate, we have to operate in a posh world, completely different to Van der Bijl, however let’s not be ignorant to the teachings of giants of the previous both, and by doing that, we are going to go away behind a world stuffed with South Africans which might be technically certified to do the issues we will not even ponder, maybe. That’s the final duty on our shoulders, to go away behind an atmosphere and younger individuals adequately certified for this unsure future, however it may be an thrilling one, I’d all the time conclude, as an optimist.
What concrete subsequent steps got here out of the workshop — and what is the PyroFuZA Initiative going to do within the coming months?
I believe the very first thing that I am grateful for is that we have now this unity and buy-in and dedication, and primarily based on that, the primary following step is to have one other dialogue throughout the subsequent three months, at most, to formalise the draft imaginative and prescient, the five-year purpose, and the street map, as a result of with what we’ve walked out of the room with in the mean time, CEOs won’t have one thing tangible sufficient to behave on, however we have now the buy-in to get that. A few of them on the finish of the workshop stated that they’d commit assets to take this additional, so to formalise the idea that we have been speaking about, that is crucial. I believe the opposite deliverables are to unfold the phrase. We are going to write a paper that will probably be revealed within the Journal of the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, that captures what has occurred thus far, and the plans forward. Then, one of many ideas that we have now is to make an animation movie to speak the message to a broader viewers, to maybe discover the ear of that 12-year-old or the college pupil that does not know but what to commit his profession to, after which conversations just like the one we’re having in the mean time with you. That is a part of the post-workshop exercise to show this from an occasion right into a course of.
