As a heavily coal-reliant country with ambitious energy transition plans, South Africa has many lessons to share on the highs and lows of implementing a just transition. It was these lessons and a famously warm welcome that brought over 100 changemakers from across the globe to Pretoria, South Africa—with many more attending online—for the 2024 International Forum for Coal Regions in Transition on October 14–15, 2024.

The hybrid policy dialogue served as an opportunity for knowledge exchange and peer-to-peer learning between stakeholders representing civil society, trade unions, the coal and renewable energy sectors, and policy-makers at the regional and national levels.

The delegates embarked on a deep dive into South Africa’s just transition approach, guided by diverse local speakers who emphasised the importance of economic diversification and community engagement across coal-dependent regions like Mpumalanga. In turn, stakeholders from Chile, Colombia, Indonesia, Mongolia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam, among others, shared insights and challenges from their respective coal regions in the spirit of mutual learning.

Keynote Speeches

In her keynote speech, Duduzile Sibiya of the Mpumalanga provincial government touched on the importance of incorporating Indigenous knowledge into just transition processes on the ground, while Innovation Regions for a Just Energy Transition (IKI JET) director Philipp Schattenmann from Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) likened the pursuit of a just transition to a marathon, in that they both require intense preparation, timing and pace. Meanwhile, Samuel Mabena of the South African Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment acknowledged his country’s continued dependence on coal and highlighted recent strategy developments, including his government’s updated Integrated Resource Plan.

Joanne Yawitch of the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) Project Management Unit touched on the challenges and opportunities South Africa is facing as an energy-intensive developing country transitioning away from coal, while Enrico Brandt, German Deputy Ambassador to South Africa, Lesotho, and Eswatini, acknowledged the host country’s recent progress on loadshedding and underscored Germany’s commitment to supporting South Africa’s energy transition. Finally, Pencho Garrido Ruiz, Deputy Head of Mission, Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of South Africa, stressed that while energy transition is inevitable, social hardship shouldn’t be.

Key Takeaways

The first session, Placing Justice at the Centre of Energy Transition Strategies, featured speakers from Indonesian and Colombian civil society. Aryanto Nugroho, National Coordinator at Publish What You Pay (PWYP), a financial transparency advocacy group, highlighted the need for better inclusion of local governments in consultations on energy transition in Indonesia. Given the need for major coal companies to transform their business models to remain viable over the next 20–30 years, he noted that the Indonesian government should support this transformation by implementing measures like fiscal incentives and infrastructure development to encourage these companies to remain in coal regions for the benefit of local communities. Meanwhile, María Elena Huertas of the think tank POLEN Transiciones Justas detailed how “energy communities” have become central to Colombia’s just transition by supporting energy democratisation, economic reorientation, and reindustrialisation. By showcasing a current POLEN project, she further explained how electric mobility can fit into this concept.

Matthieu Prin from the International Energy Agency (IEA) set the tone for Session 2, Coal Transitions as Energy Systems Transformations, by highlighting that despite one-third of global coal power being set to phase out, only 16% of global coal workers are covered by just transition policies. Next, Arionmaro Asi Simaremare of Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN), Indonesia’s state-owned electricity company, noted that PLN has a commitment to achieve net-zero and will therefore prioritise retiring coal plants that are at the end of their life-cycle rather than refurbishing them. PLN plans to convert the retired plants to run on cleaner fuels, such as ammonia, or to implement carbon capture technology—striving to balance energy security and financial stability while minimising negative impacts on workers and communities. Victoria Frohlich from the energy and sustainability consultancy Inodú outlined how Chile, despite phasing out 30% of its coal capacity since 2017, is continuing to complement its growing reliance on renewables with limited coal and gas during off-peak periods to maintain energy security. Notably, Frohlich explained that the international owners of some Chilean power plants were willing to close plants without compensation in order to meet existing climate commitments—a revelation that surprised many in the audience. Finally, Erdenedorj Batbayar from Bichura Energy LLC shared insights into a technology being used to scale up renewable heating and storage systems that use sand (a material widely available in Mongolia) to allow more flexible charging and discharging rates. This approach enables a rapid response to heating demands, creating a more effective alignment between energy production and demand.

Session 3, Coal Mine Closure and Use of Post-Mining Areas, opened with Nonhlanhla Radebe from World Wildlife Fund (WWF) South Africa. She underscored the severe environmental and social challenges that South Africa is facing as a result of coal mining—including air and water pollution, and community displacement—which the Just South Africa Programme, a project funded by the German Climate Initiative (IKI) and implemented by GIZ South Africa; Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS); National Business Initiative (NBI); and WWF South Africa are seeking to address where existing policies fall short. Ryan Driskell Tate of Global Energy Monitor, joining virtually, also emphasised the need for action to address methane leaks. Noting that 97% of the world’s annual methane emissions from coal mines is currently unmeasured and under-reported, he called for an improved measurement and transparency regime, along with increased investment and the implementation of existing mitigation techniques. Ariya Khamya, from the state-owned enterprise Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), responsible for electric power generation and transmission energy sales in the country, explained how EGAT is putting agile, innovative, and adaptable social enterprises at the forefront of an economic shift in Mae Moh, where Thailand’s last coal mine is scheduled to close by 2050.

Next, Adritha Subbiah of the Southeast Asia Energy Transition Platform (ETP), representing the IKI JET Circle of Friends, introduced the Just Coal Transition Platform (JCTP). Co-funded by ETP, the platform supports energy transition efforts in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam by facilitating early coal plant retirements, assessing each country’s readiness for transition, and analysing the social and environmental impacts of coal plant closures.

Ian Steuart of Trade & Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS) kicked off Session 4, which focused on Regional Economic Diversification and Job Creation and featured representatives from business, civil society, and governments. He outlined how South Africa’s provincial economies have long struggled with diversification, and pointed to ongoing efforts to expand exports and invest in emerging green sectors and niche industries as pathways to economic diversification. Next, María José González of the Chilean Ministry of Energy delved into Chile’s Just Energy Transition (JET) strategy, with a particular focus on the Tocopilla region, known as the country’s “energy capital.” The strategy includes large-scale projects like water desalination and green hydrogen, retraining and early retirement for coal workers, and supporting women’s participation and leadership in the energy sector. Tomás Andres Jil Breytmann from GIZ Chile further highlighted how the country is training up local workers to address the infrastructure and human capital challenges posed by its massive renewable energy build-out amid a shortage of trained personnel to install energy transmission lines in the energy-scarce northern regions and the long-standing reliance on international labour for these activities. Meanwhile, the ways in which the private sector can actively engage in the just transition were illustrated by Alejandro Echavarría of Colombian Natural Resources (CNR), a coal mining company operating in the Cesar region. By restoring natural areas, repurposing rail lines, and exploring new land uses (such as agroforestry), the company is investing in financially viable initiatives aligned with a just energy transition from coal.

Day one of the International Forum drew to a close with Session 5, Leveraging the Voice of the Labour Movement in the Global Coal Transition. Khwezi Mabasa from the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) and Matthieu Prin from the IEA opened the session by introducing a framework for just transition in South Africa and the Global South from a labour perspective. Boitumelo Molete, speaking on behalf of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), underscored that South Africa’s transition to a low-carbon economy must actively involve workers at all levels of decision-making to advance, rather than compromise, the interests of workers and their communities. Next, Tendai Makanza, representing IndustriALL Global Union in the Sub-Saharan region, added that events like this forum serve as a starting point for the participation of labour in discussions. In particular, she called for the protection of workers, an understanding of the transition’s impact on local economies, an increase in labour involvement in just transition policy-making, and the improvement of inadequate environmental and labour laws. Daniel Moreno from the Coal Power Union-ENGIE further shared the challenges of relocating workers from thermal power plants in northern Chile. Despite many workers from coal plants closing in Tocopilla being reassigned to other facilities or accessing early retirement plans, the full impact of delaying government support for relocated workers is not yet clear. Gerardo Ortiz from SintraMined, a mining workers’ union from Colombia, highlighted similar challenges in the country’s coal-rich Cesar region, where collective agreements are essential for safeguarding labour rights and job stability. Yet concerns remain about the temporary nature and regular violation of these agreements, which is why labour unions, communities, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are pushing for broader protections that go beyond company agreements.

On the final day of the forum, Rest Kanju of Indalo Inclusive kicked off Session 6 with reflections on the Role of Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) in the Just Transition. Indalo, with support from various partners, supports high-risk, early-stage SMMEs in South Africa’s just transition by providing accredited training and technical support through initiatives like the Indalopreneur-Just Enterprise Support Program to drive enterprise growth and sustainable jobs over a 50- to 60-year transition period. Recognising these efforts, Dr Sibusiso Nxumalo of South Africa’s Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment (DFFE) handed out certificates to 16 entrepreneurs who, following a rigorous selection process, have successfully completed this training programme (eight of these enterprises were awarded a grant in support of their business a few days later).

Session 7, the forum’s final session, consisted of a panel discussion on SMME Finance and Support Structures in South Africa featuring the Presidential Climate Commission (PCC), Indalo Inclusive, and Mpumalanga Green Cluster Agency (MGCA). The panel highlighted that supporting small businesses in South Africa’s energy transition requires close engagement with local communities to ensure that investments remain within these areas, directed towards vulnerable groups, and aligned with local needs.

View all presentations and recordings here.