‘King coal’ is critical mineral for South Africa, minister says – MINING.com

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South Africa’s Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe said coal is making a comeback and should be considered a critical mineral for the nation because of its contribution to employment and the economy.
“King coal is back,” Mantashe told the audience at a mining conference in Cape Town on Monday, adding that the death of the dirtiest fossil fuel was declared prematurely. He also criticized the parameters by which critical minerals, essential to the transition away from coal, have been set. “In our assessment, coal is one of the critical minerals.”
Mantashe also weighed in on US President Donald Trump’s pledge to stop all future funding to South Africa because of its new land-expropriation law. The law allows the state to seize private land in the public interest, in some cases without compensation. While the law isn’t aimed at seizing land from White people, Trump has criticized South Africa’s land policy before.
“If they don’t give us money let’s not give them minerals,” Mantashe said, without being more specific or explaining how South Africa can stop shipping minerals. “We’re not just beggars.”
(By Paul Burkhardt)
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