The International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) has announced strategic research partnerships with prominent organisations, including the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI), the Enel Foundation, and Circle Economy. These collaborations aim to explore the role of the mining and metals sector in advancing a global circular economy, aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the objectives of the Paris Agreement.
ICMM’s collaboration with CCSI and the Enel Foundation will focus on investigating the conditions necessary for minerals and metals to play a pivotal role in a global circular economy. The research will specifically concentrate on the value chains of wind turbines and solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, emphasising four crucial materials: aluminium, copper, silicon and steel.
ICMM’s partnership with Circle Economy aims to enhance understanding of the flow of essential transition minerals and metals, which will be the focus of the initial research conducted with CCSI and the Enel Foundation. The research will analyze the end use of these minerals and metals in solar panels and wind turbines in key markets. The expected outcome of this collaboration is the development of a set of indicators that will assist mining companies and other stakeholders in the value chain to forge partnerships and seize business opportunities that maximise circularity while generating social, environmental and economic value.
Christian Spano, Director of Innovation at ICMM, emphasises the significance of minerals and metals in enabling a just energy transition and driving the global circular economy. He highlights the need for mining operations to embrace circular practices by eliminating waste, designing regenerative land use, and implementing initiatives to recover and repurpose metals from downstream products.
Perrine Toledano, Director of Research and Policy at CCSI, emphasises the importance of primary extractive companies adopting circularity approaches as part of a comprehensive circular economy strategy. Recognising the mineral intensity of the zero-carbon energy transition, Toledano expresses excitement about collaborating with ICMM and the Enel Foundation to drive primary extractive companies to position themselves as materials solutions providers.
