Decarbonisation and Compliance: Assessing the impact of the Climate Change Act on South Africa’s extractives industry

This report by Good Governance Africa evaluates the impact of the Climate Change Act on South Africa's extractives industry. It details the regulatory framework for decarbonisation, including carbon budgets and mandatory emissions reporting, while highlighting the challenges of implementation such as resource limitations and the specific complexities of the coal sector. The document also examines the alignment between national climate goals and the Green Transport Strategy 2017-2050, providing a case study of Anglo American's adaptation efforts.

• The Climate Change Act establishes a regulatory framework for decarbonisation in South Africa's extractives sector to align with Paris Agreement commitments. This framework includes mandatory sector-specific greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction targets, the implementation of carbon budgets with penalties for non-compliance, and required annual monitoring and reporting to the National GHG Inventory.
• South Africa's updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), approved in September 2021, set specific GHG emission limits: between 398 and 510 Mt CO2-eq by 2025, and between 398 and 440 Mt CO2-eq by 2030.
• The mining industry is a major economic driver for South Africa, contributing R440.8 billion (6.3%) to nominal GDP and employing approximately 479,111 people. However, it is a significant source of emissions, with the coal value chain accounting for nearly 85% of the country's GHG emissions.
• Implementation of the Climate Change Act faces several gaps and challenges, including inconsistent enforcement in regions lacking skilled regulators, a lack of capital investment for emissions monitoring infrastructure, and the risk of companies relocating high-emission processes to countries with less stringent laws.
• The Green Transport Strategy 2017-2050 aims to reduce GHG emissions from the transport sector—which represents about 10% of national emissions—by shifting from road to rail and public transport, upgrading to electrified rail systems, and promoting electric vehicles (EVs) and alternative fuels.
• Anglo American serves as a case study for adaptation, aiming for carbon neutrality by 2040. Its strategies include converting approximately 400 diesel trucks to green hydrogen by 2040 to reduce open pit mine diesel emissions by 80%, and utilizing internal carbon pricing for investment and R&D.
• The report identifies critical climate risks for the mining industry, including water scarcity affecting water-intensive mines, infrastructure damage from erratic weather, reduced worker health and safety due to extreme heat, and the risk of stranded assets in high-emission sectors.

APA

Obisie-Orlu, V. (n.d.). Decarbonisation and Compliance: Assessing the impact of the Climate Change Act on South Africa’s extractives industry. Good Governance Africa. https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2024/11/Decarbonisation-and-Compliance-IR.pdf

Chicago

Obisie-Orlu, Vincent. Decarbonisation and Compliance: Assessing the impact of the Climate Change Act on South Africa’s extractives industry. Good Governance Africa, n.d. https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2024/11/Decarbonisation-and-Compliance-IR.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Obisie-Orlu |first1=Vincent |title=Decarbonisation and Compliance: Assessing the impact of the Climate Change Act on South Africa’s extractives industry |publisher=Good Governance Africa |url=https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2024/11/Decarbonisation-and-Compliance-IR.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{obisieorlunddecarbonisation, author = {Obisie-Orlu, Vincent}, title = {{Decarbonisation and Compliance: Assessing the impact of the Climate Change Act on South Africa’s extractives industry}}, institution = {Good Governance Africa}, url = {https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2024/11/Decarbonisation-and-Compliance-IR.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }