De Beers Highlights Climate Targets and Conservation Commitments at Mining Indaba

De Beers Highlights Climate Targets and Conservation Commitments at Mining Indaba. De Beers has reaffirmed its commitment to sustainability and carbon neutrality during the Climate Risk and Smarter Energy panel discussions at the Mining Indaba in Cape Town, South Africa. The company’s position was outlined by Tefo Molosiwa, Head of Policy and Planning for Safety, Sustainable Development, and Risk, who spoke about ongoing environmental and climate related initiatives.

Molosiwa said De Beers has a long history of supporting nature conservation, reflecting the environmental priorities of the countries where it operates. As part of its environmental commitments, the company has pledged to set aside land for conservation equivalent to three times the area it uses for its operations.

He also outlined the company’s emissions reduction targets, which follow the principles of the Science Based Targets initiative. These include reducing Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 42 percent by 2030, as well as lowering Scope 3 emissions by 25 percent over the same period.

According to Molosiwa, effective climate action depends on understanding an organisation’s carbon footprint and identifying practical pathways to reduce it. He noted that De Beers is among medium to large scale mining companies globally whose carbon footprint and decarbonisation pathway have been validated by the Science Based Targets initiative.

The company has identified several areas of focus to support its climate objectives. One of these is energy efficiency, including the introduction of renewable electricity to power operations. Another priority is reducing diesel consumption across mining activities.

Molosiwa said one initiative under consideration involves converting used mining tyres into liquid fuel through a pyrolysis process. The fuel could potentially be used to power the company’s truck fleet. The project is currently undergoing pre feasibility studies as part of De Beers’ broader efforts to explore alternative energy solutions.