Through a combination of renewable energy projects, fleet electrification, and lower-emission power sources, AngloGold Ashanti aims to achieve a 30 percent absolute reduction in its Scope 1 and 2 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions by 2030. Since 2007, the company has reduced its absolute GHG emissions by more than two-thirds. By 2050, the company aims to achieve net zero emissions.
By the end of the decade, emissions from the company’s activities are expected to decrease to approximately 1 million tonnes. AngloGold Ashanti is targeting a 46% reduction in emissions by the end of the decade when growth projects, including those in Nevada and Colombia, are considered. Scope 1 refers to emissions generated on-site, whereas Scope 2 refers to indirect emissions resulting from the purchase of electricity from third-party providers.
The estimated capital expenditures required to achieve these reductions over the next eight years are approximately $1.1 billion, of which AngloGold Ashanti will fund $350 million and renewable energy infrastructure providers will fund the remaining $750 million. In the coming weeks, the company plans to initiate a process to secure a green funding facility of $250 million to $300 million in order to finance its portion of these decarbonization initiatives across the enterprise.
Alberto Calderon, chief executive officer of AngloGold Ashanti, stated, “We have a clear path to achieving our goal by 2030, when we expect to have reduced our overall emissions by almost a third. This ensures that we continue to reduce our carbon footprint while also increasing the value of our company.
The targeted reductions include the introduction of renewable energy, cleaner grid power, and partial fleet electrification at each Business Unit. Large renewable energy projects, including wind and solar projects at the company’s Australian operations and solar-power plants at both Siguiri in Guinea and Iduapriem and Obuasi operations in Ghana, will contribute approximately 60% of the planned emissions reductions. In addition, a pre-feasibility study has begun at the Cuiaba mine in Brazil to determine the advantages of replacing a portion of the mobile fleet with Battery Electric Vehicles. AngloGold Ashanti will also collaborate with Sandvik to test the largest capacity BEV truck for underground mining at Sunrise Dam.
Also being investigated is the viability of a wind farm at Cerro Vanguardia in Argentina. The vast majority of these projects are anticipated to have a positive net present value, adding value to our company by reducing energy costs and enhancing energy security. Two “clean grid” initiatives are nearing completion: the transition from diesel generation at the Geita mine site in Tanzania to the country’s national power grid, which has a high proportion of power sourced from gas and renewables, and the transition to full hydro-grid power in Brazil.
AngloGold Ashanti’s journey towards decarbonisation began in 2008, when the company established a long-term goal to reduce emissions intensity by 30% from 2007 levels. By 2021, the company had reduced its emissions intensity by 47% thanks to fuel switching and efficiency improvements, as well as the closure and sale of assets.
AngloGold Ashanti’s Board approved a new Climate Change Strategy and published its first Climate Change Report in accordance with the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures’ guidelines and recommendations. The 2030 objectives of AngloGold Ashanti are embedded in a Roadmap to Net Zero that focuses on all sources of energy-related emissions, both at the company’s mine sites and from its electric power suppliers.
As an ICMM member, AngloGold agreed in 2021 to achieve net zero Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 2050 and to accelerate action on Scope 3 emissions, including setting credible targets in partnership with its suppliers.
