COAL
Innovation pathways These RD & I-driven pathways could redefine coal’ s role in the South African and broader SADC economies:
1 Advanced carbon materials
“ South African coal’ s structure makes it an excellent feedstock for high-value carbon products,” says Nengovhela.
South African coal possesses characteristics that make it suitable for conversion into high-value carbon products. Residual materials from coal beneficiation processes can be repurposed into activated carbon, engineered carbon pellets, and carbon nanofibers, which have applications across industrial and high-technology sectors.
2 Recovery of strategic minerals
3 Water innovation and resource recovery
4 Clean molecules through gasification
5 Repurposing post-mining land
6 Supporting the AI and digital economy
Coal ash, discard dumps and associated shale deposits contain rare earth elements( REEs) and other critical minerals essential to renewable energy systems, electronics and defence industries. Extraction techniques such as magnetic separation, acid leaching and zeolitisation make recovery of these materials both feasible and economically viable.
Mine-impacted water, including acid mine drainage( AMD) and saline brines, can be converted into usable resources. Advanced water treatment technologies can produce potable or industrial-grade water, recover gypsum and magnesium compounds and extract trace REEs. Additionally, zero-liquid-discharge systems can eliminate the release of harmful effluents, while the recovered water can support agriculture, industry and local communities.
“ Gasification with carbon capture and storage( CCS) can make coal a source of low-carbon hydrogen and syngas for industrial applications,” explains Nengovhela. South Africa’ s high-ash coal, often considered unsuitable for such processes, can be efficiently gasified with proper design optimisation.
Former mining areas offer opportunities for conversion into renewable energy hubs, leveraging existing grid infrastructure and servitudes. International examples, including those from China, have demonstrated how post-coal landscapes can be redeveloped into solar and wind energy facilities.
“ Coal can provide the stable baseload power needed for AI and high-performance computing,” says Nengovhela. Data centres currently consume approximately 1.5 % of global electricity( around 415 TWh), with demand projected to nearly double by 2030. Coal, when paired with high-efficiency, low-emission technologies and CCS, he says, can continue to provide stable baseload power. In addition, key materials required for AI hardware, such as REEs, niobium, and graphite, can be recovered from coal by-products. sabusinessintegrator. co. za 31