Coal lobbying has long been an influential force in South Africa’s politics and economy. Thabo Molelekwa investigates its impacts on green energy investments Pascaline Mazibuko: ‘We have been lobbying, and will continue to lobby our people to say, reject this transition. It is not going to work for us.’ Photo: Ashraf Hendricks Pascaline Mazibuko is a former local politician who is lobbying against the phasing out of coal mining in Emalahleni – named the “place of coal” – in Mpumalanga province, South Africa’s energy heartland. Mazibuko (29) was a proportional councillor in the Emalahleni Local Municipality from 2015 to 2020, and now works for the South African National Civic Organisation as the provincial spokesperson. She set up the Bullet Mkabayi Foundation, which she says has an interest in the mining industry “to build the economy of Mpumalanga” but does not receive any funding. For her, it does not make economic sense to replace coal with renewable energy and there is no realistic plan of how businesses are going to be assisted so that employment in the energy heartland is secured. She is a vocal presence at local consultations about the Just Energy Transition and meetings with political leaders such as the Mpumalanga premier, the Department of Mineral Resources and the Presidential Climate Commission. “We have been lobbying, and will continue to lobby our people to say, reject this thing. It is not going to work for us,” Mazibuko told Oxpeckers. She said the government needs to take into consideration how many people are going to be affected by the move to green energy. In line with the country’s global commitments to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and moving to a lower-carbon economy, coal must be phased out and Eskom’s coal-fired power stations must be closed down, most of them by 2035. “In whose interest is this? Who is this government really serving? Are they serving our interests as people, or are they serving a certain category of capitalist?” Mazibuko asked. Lobbying for coal interests has a long history in South Africa, according to Wikus Kruger, research lead and lecturer on power-sector investment in sub-Saharan Africa at the Power Futures Lab, based at the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business. “There is something called the minerals-energy complex, a powerful grouping of decision-makers and business and political interests that have been around since the apartheid time.” He said although this grouping might have changed post-democracy, it’s still very much alive. Research over the years has fingered minerals industries, working in collaboration with electricity monopoly Eskom to develop policy and practice in the mining, energy and financial sectors of the South African economy. By 2018 Eskom had aligned itself with a new political elite, but “coal mining for electricity generation continue[d] to dominate with continuing effects on the local and global environment”, according to research published by Oxford University Press. Climate think tank InfluenceMap released an analysis in February this year showing how industry lobbying is putting South Africa’s climate goals at risk. It found oppositional voices are significantly more engaged than pro-climate corporations on key policies – the Climate Change Bill and the Carbon Tax Act – resulting in them being watered down or delayed. Based on analysis of the policy engagement of 16 major companies and 12 industry associations, the report showed how the mining sector is the most oppositional on climate change advocacy and continues to strongly support the role of coal in the future energy mix. It focused on corporate engagement with key climate policies designed to help deliver on South Africa’s net zero by 2050 commitment, and included Eskom, Sasol, the Minerals Council South Africa and Business Unity South Africa. “Despite nearly 75% of industry supporting renewable energy development in South Africa, certain sectors continue to strongly advocate for a continued role of coal and fossil gas in the energy mix,” it stated. “The mining industry was the strongest supporter for the continued use of coal as an energy source in South Africa, including Anglo American, South32, and Exxaro Resources.” InfluenceMap: ‘Despite nearly 75% of industry supporting renewable energy development in South Africa, certain sectors continue to strongly advocate for a continued role of coal and fossil gas in the energy mix.’ Photo courtesy Seriti Resources While coal lobbying can have a significant impact on policy and decision-making, it is often insidious and works behind the scenes, Mary Stewart, an international climate risk and energy transition expert, told Oxpeckers.