In its recent study, the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) argued that mining for minerals important for the green energy transition and sustainable development is not a major source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as opposed to coal, steel and aluminium production.
Non-coal mining represented just 0.54% of global GHG emissions in 2024, the industry body said, while emissions from coal accounted for 2.46%.
At the same time, steel and aluminium production, along with coal mining, were the largest sources of GHG emissions overall, together responsible for 93% of the sector’s scope 1 and 2 emissions in 2024. Of mining Scope 1 and 2 emissions, 82% are from coal mining.
Approximately 80% of the sector’s global scope 1 and 2 emissions originate in Asia, reflecting both the concentration of primary mines and processing facilities for most global commodities in the region, ICMM noted.
The global mining and metals sector accounted for 11% of total global GHG emissions in 2024, 3% of which (1.6 Gt CO2) comes from mining activities, and 8% (4.4 Gt CO2) from metal production.
Theodor Lisovoy, Managing Editor, Rough&Polished
