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1) Copper is the leading indicator for the world's economic health as it is used in a variety of ways including manufacturing, housing and tech. Now, Wood Mackenzie's Vice President of Metals and Mining, Robin Griffin, is saying that the copper deficit is set to inundate global markets throughout 2023 and could potentially extend throughout the rest of the decade. “We’re already forecasting major deficits in copper to 2030,” he said, adding, “anytime there’s political unrest it has a whole range of effects. And the obvious one … is the potential for mining sites to have to close." Recently there has been unrest in Peru since the former President Pedro Castillo was ousted in December, all while Peru accounts for 10% of the global copper supply. Chile has also made headlines with the rewriting of its constitution and targeting the extractive industry for higher royalties, as the country accounts for almost a third of the global copper supply. The reopening of China and the growth in demand to transition away from fossil fuels have put further strain on the supply of copper and as the copper production is under threat. “There’s a longer-term issue around the supply of copper in the energy transition [industry], because the growth in both the automotive and transmission is going to be huge,” said Wood Mackenzie’s Griffin. This isn't the first, or the last time we will see a warning of copper shortages in the next decade, as failure to fix it will surely cost the world.
Source: There isn’t enough copper in the world — and the shortage could last till 2030 - CNBC Africa
2) Tom Palmer, the CEO of Newmont Mining said that after 35 years in the industry, he has not seen much change in terms of diversity, equity, and inclusion. In a panel discussion at the Investing in African Mining Indaba he said that he “sat here frustrated in 2023 that we haven’t made the changes we should have made over that period of time.” He added, “when we think about this problem and we think about creating change, we need to have a very honest and robust understanding of the culture within our industry, within each of our organizations. It is very easy to gloss over the top and say we don’t have a problem here." With the industry struggling to attract and retain talent, the culture needs to change for a better future and innovation, not just with the people, but the industry as a whole. The industry has been trying to shed its negative view for a very long time, and trying to fix that is challenging work, however it is crucial. We need the mining industry to flourish with talent and innovation, as it is the beginning of the supply chain and sets the tone for the rest of the economy.