SOUTHERN AFRICA | COAL According to Eskom, the Witbank coalfields have suffi cent reserves to feed South Africa’s power stations for the next 40 years MINING WHAT’S LEFT OF THE WITBANK COALFIELDS The 2018 coal cliff is looming and the reality is undeniable – Eskom has not secured suffi cient coal supply to feed its existing power stations in less than three years’ time. A lack of new project development (and supply), resulting from weak coal prices, is not the only contributing factor to this crisis in South Africa says Philip Mostert, former Eskom employee and current principal coal consultant for The MSA Group. LAURA CORNISH writes. T he Witbank and Highveld coal fields are entering their twilight years, or are they? According to Mostert, Eskom has completed studies verifying that there are suffi cient coal reserves in these regions to meet its energy needs for the next 40 years (taking into account a growing electricity demand). “Eskom knows what coal reserves have yet to be mined and is confident there are suffi cient volumes to meet the needs it has outlined in its 40 year plan.” However, it has yet to sign contracts to secure this coal as new legislative requirements are turning the coal majors away and making it diffi cult for juniors to develop and mine smaller deposits. It has been well publicised that Eskom 30 MINING REVIEW AFRICA | MAY 2015 has a preference for all new coal supply contracts to be secured from companies which are at least 50% plus one share black-owned. This has resulted in a slow- down in new coal mining developments coming online as existing and potential suppliers re-evaluate their ownership options. SOUTH AFRICA’S COAL EXPORT OPPORTUNITIES Potential new players in the coal sector should not underestimate export opportunities. Mostert says India holds good export potential. “India will always have a coal shortfall and South Africa can help fill this. We are ideally placed from a logistics and a quality point of view and our relationship with the Indian government is strong. But, we need to position ourselves now to benefit from potential export opportunities in the next two or three years.”