JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Media company Hyve Group content head Tom Quinn on Tuesday told the media that the organising team of the 2020 iteration of the Investing in Africa Mining Indaba has seen an increased appetite for engagement within the African mining sector, particularly for discussions touching on sustainability.

This drive toward conversations on sustainability, he added, “shows that mining companies want to sustain communities and provide employment”.

It is for this reason that the twenty-sixth edition of the Indaba, which runs over four days in February next year, intends to continue offering high-quality and carefully researched content to “meet the sector’s needs, generate new ideas and address current challenges”.

Quinn explained that next year’s Indaba would build on the success of this year’s event in terms of high-level government participation, while also displaying a focus on investment in the digital economy of mining and offering numerous new additions to the programme.

In addition to the VIP Investor Lounge, the junior mining showcase, and the Investment Battlefield, Indaba attendees will have the added benefit of a general counsel forum, which will bring together legal minds from across Africa to debate and share knowledge on Africa’s resources sector.

The rationale behind establishing the forum, Quinn explained, was a scarcity of legal representation at the Indaba until now, despite legal professionals moderating panel sessions and having participated in previous Indabas.

Through the forum, delegates and attendees, made up of general councils of mining companies, will be able to navigate the opportunities and challenges in the sector by “discussing new jurisdictions, new content innovation and have a platform to create new content innovation, or create new and valuable connections”.

According to the Indaba’s website, strengthening portfolio management, examining falling productivity against increasing costs, and even discussing merger and acquisition updates in the market, will also take place during the forum.

The forum will be held on February 6, 2020, in partnership with Africa Legal.

Next year’s Indaba will also boast an extended Mining 2050 programme, which will be discussed over two days instead of one, Hyve portfolio director Simon Ford mentioned on Tuesday.

The programme will be discussed under the theme ‘Optimising growth in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR)’, with key topics including green and sustainable technology, waterless mines, artificial intelligence, robots and job creation, using blockchain technology for sustainability, and mitigating digital risk.

This, he explained, was as a result of the digitised economy “speaking to the core themes and values in sustainability and mining, [as well as] an increased need to use technology to increase safety”.

On safety in particular, Exxaro Resources CEO Mxolisi Mgojo will be part of 4IR-focused panel discussions and will likely speak about Exxaro’s ‘digital twin’ approach. Through the use of this technology, Exxaro is able to replicate, through a virtual copy, a mine’s physical assets, which can then be used to analyse data and monitor systems.

The 2020 Indaba will also see resource nationalism and investor risk as a main stage topic where sector leaders will be analysing and assessing exposure in current African markets and possible strategies to mitigate risk.

Additionally, climate change and the industry’s role in decarbonisation, considered a frontline issue for investors, will be discussed during main stage sessions and on the dedicated sustainable development day.

The February event will also boast a strong representation from the US, Quinn said, adding that it “ties into the Africa programme that the US administration is driving”.

Export-Import Bank of the United States (Exim) president and chairperson Kimberly Reed will be attending the Indaba and delivering a keynote address, he added.

Exim recently authorised a direct loan of up to $5-billion to support the export of US goods and services for the development and construction of an integrated liquefied natural gas project, in Mozambique.

On this basis, Quinn is hopeful that a delegation from the Africa Export-Import Bank will be attending, especially as the African Continental Free Trade Agreement is set to boost both the South African and the African economies.

Turning towards numbers, next year’s Indaba is expected to attract about 7 000 delegates, and an increased global ministry presentation, increasing from 37 this year, to 39 in 2020.

Owing to popular demand, the Battery Metals Investment Day will be returning in 2020 and will touch on subjects including the electrification of society, the energy transition and the lowering of the global economy’s carbon footprint.

Quinn and Ford also acknowledged South Africa’s growing concerns surrounding the stable supply of electricity, owing to embattled State-owned power utility Eskom’s own set of challenges.

Once the new Eskom CEO has been appointed, the individual will be invited to speak at the Indaba.

In September this year, Indaba organisers ITE Group rebranded to Hyve Group to reflect the evolution of the group's business resulting from its transformation and growth programme, which was announced in May 2017 and is now nearing completion.

Quinn and Ford both joined the Hyve team in July and said their focus for the Indaba was to “transition away from the trade show view” and take the Indaba “back to its investment roots” through creating a platform that brings value to small investments, and drives a return on larger investments.