Wind power project aims to secure ERG's carbon neutrality goals

Eurasian Resources Group, a leading diversified natural resources producer, announced it is investing approximately $230 million in building a major wind power plant in Kazakhstan, its home country.

"This is one of our strategic inputs in support of the country's ambitious goals of achieving carbon neutrality by 2060 and increasing the share of renewable energy," said Benedikt Sobotka, CEO of ERG.

The new wind power plant is planned to cover more than 150 hectares near the town of Khromtau in the Aktobe region and will be built using the latest engineering technology. Scheduled to be put into operation in 2024, it will have an installed capacity of 155 megawatts, making it the most powerful plant in the region, according to the company.

The move is expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by around 520,000 metric tons annually and "make a significant contribution to energy conservation", Sobotka said.

Power generated by the wind turbine park will be supplied to the group's Kazchrome Donskoy GOK plant, the largest industrial enterprise in Aktobe. It is to meet the plant's growing energy needs as it increases its production capacity in the coming years, a company statement said.

In addition, the wind farm will supply energy to neighboring industrial facilities and the Aktobe region, thus reducing Kazakhstan's use of coal, according to ERG.

"We hope that the construction of this wind farm serves as an example for other large enterprises in Kazakhstan, and takes the country closer to the ambitious goal of becoming a carbon-neutral state," said Alexander Machkevitch, chairman of the company's board of directors.

This will be ERG's first proprietary wind farm project and forms part of the group's ambitious ESG Strategy and decarbonization program, according to the company. ESG stands for "environmental, social and governance" criteria in judging a business operation's contribution to sustainable development.

ERG has long considered ESG a priority in the group's operations and rolled out such a strategy in 2021.

"We have continued to improve and expand our ESG disclosures, specifically with regard to our responsible sourcing practices and climate action," Sobotka said.

The company said it has made substantial progress in its sustainability initiative. Goals in its Environmental and Energy Strategy 2030 include reducing air emissions by 56 percent, to water emissions by 30 percent and water consumption by 33 percent.

Close ties with China

"The wind power plant will also be beneficial to China," Sobotka said.

As one of the world's largest international metals and mining companies, ERG is a major supplier of materials to China. Many of these materials are essential to the latter's transition into a more consumption-driven economy, he noted.

"For example, our Kazchrome operation in Kazakhstan is the world's largest high-carbon ferrochrome producer, and substantial amounts of our ferrochrome production are supplied to China.

"We are also one of the largest exporters of iron ore from Kazakhstan and we can further increase our shipments of iron ore products to China," he said. "We have held discussions with our Chinese partners on this."

ERG said it has strong ties with stakeholders in China and has been cooperating with the country for many years, including in relation to green energy transition.

Its key projects with Chinese partners include a Kazakhstan aluminum smelter in Pavlodar, the country's only producer of high-grade primary aluminum, and the Metalkol RTR recycling project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The latter facility reprocesses historical copper and cobalt tailings left by other mining companies in the area. Its carbon footprint is significantly lower than that of many of its peers.

"Metalkol RTR is now the world's second-largest stand-alone cobalt producer and one of the largest suppliers of cobalt to China," Sobotka said.

Shared green ambition

"Both China and Kazakhstan have set the ambitious goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2060, and ERG is in full support of these initiatives," he emphasized.

"We are continuing to put in place measures and initiatives to reduce the group's own environmental footprint," he added.

The company is investing $44 million in filter technology at its Pavlodar Aluminum Plant in Kazakhstan, as part of a major new environmental project with German company ThyssenKrupp.

Other environmental efforts include developing a portfolio of projects in wind, solar and hydro energy, and preparing specific targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

"We have continued to improve and expand our ESG disclosures, specifically with regard to our responsible sourcing practices and climate action," Sobotka said.

To encourage the responsible sourcing of battery materials, ERG has co-founded multistakeholder initiatives to help create a sustainable, inclusive, circular battery value chain, he noted.

One of them is the Global Battery Alliance. The alliance brings together more than 110 international organizations and businesses, including Chinese partners such as CATL, China EV100 and Xiamen University.

One of the key initiatives of the alliance is the Battery Passport－a type of quality seal on a global digital life cycle platform for sharing value chain data about batteries. It "will help ensure that batteries and their material components, such as cobalt and lithium, are produced in a sustainable and responsible manner", Sobotka said.

BRI engagement

Strategically placed in the heart of Eurasia, ERG "contributes much to economic development in Kazakhstan and international cooperation as part of the Belt and Road Initiative," Sobotka said.

The company integrates mining, processing, energy, logistics and marketing operations. The group, in which the Kazakh government has a 40 percent stake, is the world's largest high-carbon ferrochrome producer by chrome content and one of the largest producers of cobalt. It is also a large global supplier of copper and high-grade iron ore, one of the largest suppliers in Eurasia of the mineral alumina, and the only producer of high-grade aluminum in Kazakhstan.

"One of the key strengths of partnering with China, even beyond all the economic synergies, is the opportunity to continue to expand and support green value chains," he said.

"We must ensure that the production of renewable energy takes place sustainably and that any ethical issues that arise are managed swiftly and effectively.

"This cannot happen in isolation. On the contrary, it requires cooperation across the global value chain. This is why participation in the Belt and Road Initiative is so important.

"The interconnectivity it offers allows organizations and governments around the world to work in lockstep to ensure the viability of green value chains.

"ERG expects to continue strengthening cooperation with China by leveraging our production assets in Kazakhstan, Africa and Brazil, which are some of the world's largest in respective industry segments and produce metals and minerals which are in high demand in China."