JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Platinum marketing is in urgent need of the correct coordination, collaboration and cooperation with immediate consideration needing to be given to encouraging, igniting and catalysing own-requirement growth.

With gross metal demand having seen no growth in the last ten years, pressure on the platinum industry to find new applications for platinum group metals (PGMs) metals is intensifying, against the background of platinum being constantly thrifted as well as PGM recycling regularly impacting negatively on pricing.

Sibanye strategic marketing and supply chain VP Anthea Bath sees a gap that South Africa can move into immediately with fuel cells.

“I strongly believe that fuel cells remain one of the biggest single opportunities for South Africa’s involvement,” she says, adding that there are certain stationary and niche applications that make sense for South Africa.

In these niches, consideration should be given to the way in which South Africans coordinate, collaborate and cooperate to ensure these applications develop in a way that drives the PGMs market in the right direction, she advises.

Such joint action will also help to drive industrialisation roadmaps that enable global markets.

“If you know the fuel cell business, you'll know that it’s a market that just hasn’t taken off. It’s one that tends to be right there, but not there. For ten years I’ve seen the timelines carry on moving out.

“But the fact is that it’s now starting to see growth and consideration should be given to encouraging, igniting and catalysing that growth by using our own requirements to help do that,” says Bath, who spoke at the recent panel discussion on fuel cells at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) convention centre, where she drew attention to fuel cells always making business sense in situations of access to waste hydrogen.

Moreover, she sees the 8 MW Implats project at the platinum-mining company's refinery in Springs as a great example of a fuel-cell project that makes commercial sense.

Impala has a requirement for heat and a strong business case emerges when this is combined with its energy requirements.

The Doosan system involved has a minimum of 2.5 kg of platinum per 400 kW system, which equates to about 160 000 oz of new platinum demand for every 1 000 MW of fuel cell power capacity created.

“Why do people not know that and how do we start as an industry collaboration to showcase these technologies so that they can be used by others?” she queries.

The lack of fuel cell implementation, in her view, has a lot to do with the lack of insight into successful developments that make sense.

She urges that steps also be taken to understand the full value proposition of the introduction of emission-free fuel-cell technologies in underground mining environments.

“When you start to look at it holistically, which is something many companies don’t do, you will see the extent to which these technologies make sense. The use of fuel cells to drive load haul dumpers (LHDs) and other underground equipment does make sense. The most important thing is that we need to create the right understanding in our market and develop the knowledge,” Bath urges.

An estimated 8 000 oz of platinum is required for every 1 000 fuel-cell LHDs.

For the past year, forklifts powered by fuel cells have been operating without emissions and noise within Implats' refinery precinct at Springs.

Impala Refining Services fuel cell coordinator Fahmida Smith, who chaired the recent discussion on fuel cells at the CSIR, tells Mining Weekly Online that the success of forklifts has prompted a study into the feasibility of developing fuel-cell LHDs for use in underground mining.

The feasibility study is scheduled to be finalised before Christmas and a LHD prototype request for proposal (RFP) is expected to be invited in January.

The RFPs will be due back by the end of January, development is expected by February and a factory-approved prototype a year later.

Once above-ground mine testing proves successful, underground testing will take place over a 12-month period.

A methanol-water fuelling system is envisaged for the prototype.