Latest News

Coal mine in the UK. Credit: Droneski Imaging via Shutterstock

A project in the south of England will see disused coal mines become a source of heating for thousands of homes. 

The project forms part of a $73m (£60m) investment in green technology from the West of England Combined Authority, the region’s local council. The so-called green recovery fund was agreed by political leaders in the region in a meeting last Friday. 

Once coal mines are no longer used, they fill with water which is heated through naturally-occurring geothermal processes. The project seeks to devise a means to pipe the heated water into people’s homes as an alternative to fossil-fuel powered boilers, typically used for heating in the UK.

Swedish power company Vattenfall has previously established a project to provide low-carbon heating solutions for UK homes. The project includes the construction of a 20-kilometre pipe through the Bristol region.

Given recent developments, this ‘strategic heat main’ could be fed using heat from disused coal mines.

Mayor of the West of England, Dan Norris, said of the project: “I can’t think of anything that would be more fantastic than to think what had contributed to carbon dioxide emissions over hundreds of years was then able to turn around and reduce them. There’s a kind of irony but also an important purpose there”. 

A new report has predicted that 5G in the mining industry will grow exponentially over the next six years. 

The industry, which was valued at $2.15bn in 2023, is expected to reach a value of $12.75bn by 2029. Between 2023 and 2029, market size is forecasted to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 34.55%. 

With increased demand for battery metals such as lithium, many companies are looking to 5G to streamline their operations. 

Worldwide use of 5G in mining has been on the rise, with Cisco, Hitatchi Energy and Huawei being key players. Huawei recently announced a partnership with Debswana to launch the world’s first 5G-oriented smart diamond mine project in Botswana. 

The biggest demand for this technology comes from the surface mining sector with a market value of $1.5bn in 2023. 5G technology can be used in all aspects of the surface mining process and is increasingly used for unmanned operations. 

An attack by armed men at a mine in the Central African Republic (CAR) has killed nine Chinese nationals. 

Mayor of the nearby town of Bambari, Abel Matchipata, told Agence France-Presse “we have counted nine bodies and two wounded” following Sunday’s attack. The victim’s bodies were brought to the capital of Bangui later that day. 

The victims were Chinese workers at the nearby Chimbolo mine, run by the Gold Coast Group. The attack occurred around 5am local time after attackers overpowered the mine’s guards and opened fire. According to Matchipata, operations at the mine site had only taken place days earlier. 

The Chinese embassy has asked Chinese nationals to not travel outside the CAR capital of Bangui. 

No group has yet claimed responsibility for Sunday’s attack but “suspicion fell on” the Coalition of Patriots for Change, according to Deutsche Welle and the American Broadcasting Company. 

The European Commission (EC) has outlined plans for how the EU will compete in the development of new technologies necessary for the green transition against the US and China. 

The Critical Raw Minerals Act, proposed by the European Commission on Thursday, seeks to reduce the EU’s dependence on raw minerals imported from beyond the EU. Along with the Net Zero Industry Act, it forms a part of the EU’s Green Deal Industrial Plan. 

The region aims to not only lead the way in cutting emissions but also in producing the necessary technology to do so. The EU executive set new targets for the bloc, stating that 10% of the raw critical material consumed by EU members, such as lithium and cobalt, should be mined in the region.

The EC has announced plans for no more than 65% of any key raw material to come from any single country as it looks to diversify its supply of minerals. China currently processes 90% of rare earth metals and 60% of lithium. 

President Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement: “Raw materials are vital for manufacturing key technologies for our twin transition, like wind power generation, hydrogen storage or batteries."

Campaigners from the environmental group Coal Action Network have begun a legal challenge against plans to expand the Aberpergwn mine in Wales, after it was given the green light to mine a further 40 million tonnes of coal in January last year. 

Campaigners told the court at the Cardiff Justice Centre on Wednesday that the Welsh government had the authority to prevent the licence being issued under the Wales Act 2017, principally because such licenses have to satisfy planning permissions, over which the Welsh government has control. 

The group also argued that the government holds power over the conditions of the licence, and would be able to intervene should the mine’s operations change significantly, such as the start of an expansion project. The Welsh government maintains that the licence for the mine was issued before it had authority over it. 

Campaigners argued in court that the Coal Authority, the UK coal regulator, should have considered the Welsh government’s emissions reductions targets before granting the licence.

The Welsh government has admitted that the mine expansion is incompatible with its own net-zero targets and acknowledgement of the climate emergency.