<article><p class="lead">South Africa's largest coal mining firm Exxaro Resources will no longer invest in thermal coal assets, its chief executive Mxolisi Mgojo said this week.</p><p>"We are not investing more in thermal coal," Mgojo said during a virtual panel on environmental, social and governance (ESG) at the African Mining Indaba conference.</p><p>Exxaro will continue to supply the Matimba and Medupi coal-fired power plants for as long as these installations are part of South Africa's mix, Mgojo said.</p><p>"A big concern [when] disposing of one's coal assets [is that] they may land in the hands of parties who may not want to act responsibly in terms of how they treat the environment and other aspects of ESG," said Mgojo. "</p><p>So for now, we will hold on to our existing coal assets, but we will not be building any new ones."</p><p>Last year, Exxaro acquired the remaining 50pc of its <a href="https://direct.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/2087458">renewable energy investment</a> in South African independent power producer Cennergi. At the time, the firm said that the acquisition was aligned to its response to "increasing negative sentiment towards coal-based electricity generation".</p><p>As part of its response to climate change, the firm aims to reduce its coal resources by 22pc and has committed to being carbon neutral by 2050.</p><p>Exxaro produced 44.9mn t of thermal coal in 2020, its most <a href="https://direct.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/2165626">recent guidance</a> shows.</p><p class="bylines"><i>By Elaine Mills</i></p></article>
