Latest news with #industrialization
Zawya
4 hours ago
- Business
- Zawya
New Bank Leadership, Capital Strategies Drive African Mining Investment Push
Several African multilateral banks and financial institutions have undergone significant leadership transitions this year aimed at aligning financial strategies with the continent's evolving development and industrialization goals. In June, the African Export–Import Bank (Afreximbank) appointed Dr. George Elombi as President and Chairman of the Board of Directors, succeeding Professor Benedict Oramah after nearly a decade of leadership. Under Dr. Elombi, the bank aims to scale into a $250 billion institution and serve as a key enabler of investment in Africa's mining sector. The African Development Bank (AfDB) also elected new leadership in May, appointing Sidi Ould Tah to replace Akinwumi Adesina. The Bank is now expanding its capital base – reaching $318 billion – while pursuing a $25 billion replenishment round and broadening its bond issuance strategy to support infrastructure and industrialization. Leadership changes have also extended to commercial banks. Standard Bank appointed Sim Tshabalala as interim CEO in April, while Absa Group named Kenny Fihla as CEO in March. African Mining Week serves as a premier platform for exploring the full spectrum of mining opportunities across Africa. The event is held alongside the African Energy Week: Invest in African Energies 2025 conference from October 1-3 in Cape Town. Sponsors, exhibitors and delegates can learn more by contacting sales@ At this year's African Mining Week (AMW), a featured panel on The Investor Perspective – Financing Africa's Mineral Industrialization will explore how these and other institutions are adapting financial strategies to meet the continent's infrastructure and beneficiation needs. Recent deals underscore the sector's momentum. In June, Afreximbank signed a $3.8 billion agreement with Gabon to fund manganese and gold trading, energy development and rail infrastructure. It also extended a $25 million facility to Lilium Gold for operations at the Boungou and Wahgnion gold mines in Burkina Faso. Meanwhile, AfDB approved $325 million in financing for Mauritania's state-owned SNIM to upgrade logistics and equipment for its iron-ore corridor. In South Africa, Standard Bank provided $300 million to Northam Platinum for a 140 MW wind power plant, ensuring long-term energy security for mining operations. It is also co-financing a $38.5 million deal with Lotus Resources for the Kayelekera Uranium Project in Malawi. Absa Bank is backing Angola's Longonjo Rare Earth Project – operated by Pensana – with an $80 million facility. The project is expected to supply up to 5% of the world's magnet rare earth elements critical to electric vehicle manufacturing. AMW 2025 will bring together African financial institutions, mining stakeholders and international partners to forge new investment alliances and accelerate mining sector growth. Held alongside African Energy Week: Invest in African Energies 2025, AMW is the premier platform for engaging with the full spectrum of Africa's mining opportunities. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Capital&Power.
Zawya
14-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
PLD Space unveils the advanced industrialization plan for MIURA 5 and MIURA Next to its network of strategic partners
More than 100 representatives from PLD Space's national and international supply chain have participated in the Industry Days event held at the company's headquarters in Elche The company is executing this industrial flagship program with an investment of €50 million between 2024 and the first half of 2025, currently supported by an ecosystem of 397 key suppliers PLD Space has provided its collaborators with details on its integrated industrial model, the transition to serial production of MIURA 5, the initial development phases of MIURA Next, and the new infrastructure that will underpin its ambitious technological roadmap Elche (Spain). PLD Space, an international space services company with vertical integrated engineering and manufacturing, hosted the MIURA 5 Industry Days at its headquarters, a strategic event that brought together over 100 representatives from its supply chain across Spain and abroad. The goal: to share the advanced industrialization plan for MIURA 5 and MIURA Next, which will consolidate PLD Space's position as a European leader in access to space. During the event, PLD Space strengthened collaboration with its strategic national and international value chain, committed to the success of the MIURA program. 'The key to our business is providing reliable and scalable launch services with a clear market focus. To achieve this, we are forging strong, long-term alliances with our network of industrial partners' said Ezequiel Sánchez, Executive President of PLD Space. PLD Space detailed its manufacturing model based on a vertically integrated approach unique in Europe. The company designs, manufactures, tests, and operates all key subsystems of its launch vehicles internally within its own industrial, testing, and launch facilities. This industrial model enables PLD Space to ensure maximum technological reliability, control costs and timelines, and minimize risks in a highly competitive market. This strategy positions the MIURA program as a driving force for industry in Spain and Europe, as evidenced by its preselection by ESA for the European Launcher Challenge (ELC) last week. This strategic initiative, with funding of up to €169 million per company, represents a national opportunity to establish a Spanish leader energizing the launcher sector, supported by an integrated value chain currently comprising 397 key partners, predominantly located in Spain and Europe. A robust supply chain to lead satellite launches into space To meet the milestones of its roadmap, PLD Space is working to consolidate its global supplier network. Between 2024 and the first half of 2025, total investment in the MIURA 5 supply chain reached €50 million. "We are building relationships with our ecosystem of partners based on operational excellence and delivery at a competitive level in terms of timeframes and cost—unprecedented in Europe—without compromising the reliability of our rockets," Sánchez emphasised. From pre-series manufacturing to the goal of 32 MIURA 5 launchers per year by 2030 During the event, the company explained to its network of partners the transition to the serial production phase of MIURA 5. Following the success of the MIURA 1 demonstrator, which positioned PLD Space as the first private European company to launch a rocket into space on its first attempt, the company is advancing the development of the initial units of MIURA 5, set to fly from the European Spaceport CSG in Kourou (French Guiana), owned by CNES, starting in 2026. PLD Space's industrialization plan outlines a progression to reach 32 annual units of MIURA 5 by 2030. The company will go through an intermediate phase of semi-serial manufacturing of this vehicle before scaling up to full-scale production, scheduled for 2027. In parallel, it will begin manufacturing the first units of its MIURA Next launcher, capable of placing up to 13 tons into orbit. "Launch cadence and reliability are the keys to leadership. To ensure this, we have designed MIURA Next based on MIURA 5 technologies, following the same strategy as between MIURA 1 and MIURA 5. This way, our methods for producing engines, structures, or avionics are applicable to any launcher in our MIURA family, allowing us to scale and maintain production cadence at a fraction of the cost of current operators," highlighted Raúl Verdú, Co-Founder and Chief Business Development Officer of PLD Space. Additionally, to realize this vision, PLD Space plans to expand its manufacturing, testing, and launch infrastructure to support the serial production of MIURA 5, initiate production of MIURA Next, and develop the LINCE crewed capsule. About PLD Space PLD Space is an international company dedicated to transporting satellites and people into space, vertically integrating the engineering, testing, manufacturing, and operations of its reusable and sustainable rockets. Headquartered in Elche (Spain) and founded in 2011 by Raúl Torres and Raúl Verdú, PLD Space has established itself as a global benchmark in the small satellite launch sector. Its family of MIURA launchers and LINCE crewed capsule position the company as a leader in European technological sovereignty for space transportation, covering the full spectrum of space missions. With a team of more than 350 employees, PLD Space operates over 188,000 m² of facilities in Elche, Teruel (Spain), Kourou (French Guiana), and Duqm (Oman), enabling it to provide comprehensive satellite and payload launch services into space.
Zawya
10-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Africa: Emerging Hubs for Mineral Processing, Value-Added Production
Mineral-rich African countries are accelerating the rollout of refineries and processing facilities to strengthen local beneficiation, reduce raw material exports and retain more mineral value within national economies. Amid this wave of value-added industrialization, the upcoming African Mining Week (AMW) – Africa's premier gathering for mining stakeholders - will highlight the continent's downstream mining sector and connect African stakeholders with global investors to unlock new opportunities. Under the theme From Extraction to Beneficiation: Unlocking Africa's Mineral Wealth, the event will showcase Africa's commitment to transforming its mineral sector from extraction to industrialization. Democratic Republic of the Congo In June 2025, mining firm Buenassa signed an agreement with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) government to develop the country's first integrated copper and cobalt refinery. Under the agreement, the DRC government will hold a 10% golden-share in the project. Backed by a $3.5 million grant awarded in 2024, the refinery is expected to commence operations in 2027, with a projected annual output of 30,000 tons of copper cathode and 5,000 tons of cobalt sulfate. Mali In Mali - Africa's second-largest gold producer - construction began in June 2025 on a new gold refinery in Senou, near Bamako. The project – a collaboration between Mali's government, Russia's Yadran Group and a Swiss investor – aims to process up to 200 tons of gold annually. The refinery will enhance regional gold processing, reduce smuggling and increase national revenue from value-added gold exports. The Ministerial Forum to be held at AMW will spotlight national policies and incentives accelerating beneficiation across the continent. Angola Meanwhile, Angola reached a 70% completion milestone on its first gold refinery in Luanda. The $5 million facility, expected to be operational by the end of 2025, will produce 50 kgs of gold per day. Part of the country's 2023 - 2027 Sectoral Development Plan, the project reflects Angola's strategic effort to diversify beyond oil, stimulate job creation and expand value-added exports. AMW's Invest in Angola session will showcase opportunities within Angola's growing mining and refining value chain. Zambia In Zambia, Canada's Jubilee Metals is expanding its Sable Copper Refinery by adding a second tank-house to boost monthly processing capacity to between 500 and 550 tons. The upgrade supports Zambia's broader goal of reaching 3.1 million tons in annual copper output by 2031 while shifting toward value-added production. The project is set to be completed by Q1 2026. AMW will feature this and similar initiatives during a dedicated panel titled Elevating Africa's Mineral Wealth: Case Studies in Local Beneficiation – Value Addition and Industrialization. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Capital&Power. About African Mining Week (AMW): AMW, as the premier platform where Africa's mining sector opportunities and value addition efforts are discussed and optimized, will showcase these and many more projects driving the region's beneficiation agenda.
New York Times
05-07-2025
- Science
- New York Times
China Has Paid a High Price for Its Dominance in Rare Earths
Chinese mines and refineries produce most of the world's rare earth metals and practically all of a few crucial kinds of rare earths. This has given China's government near complete control over a critical choke point in global trade. But for decades in northern China, toxic sludge from rare earth processing has been dumped into a four-square-mile artificial lake. In south-central China, rare earth mines have poisoned dozens of once-green valleys and left hillsides stripped to barren red clay. Achieving dominance in rare earths came with a heavy cost for China, which largely tolerated severe environmental damage for many years. The industrialized world, by contrast, had tighter regulations and stopped accepting even limited environmental harm from the industry as far back as the 1990s, when rare earth mines and processing centers closed elsewhere. In China, the worst damage occurred in and around Baotou, a flat, industrial city of two million people in China's Inner Mongolia, on the southern edge of the Gobi Desert. Baotou calls itself the world capital of the rare earth industry, but the city and its people bear the scars from decades of poorly regulated rare earths production. An artificial lake of sludge known as the Weikuang Dam, four square miles in size, holds the waste left over after metals are extracted from mined ore. During the winter and spring, the sludge dries out. The dust that then blows off the lake is contaminated with lead, cadmium and other heavy metals, including traces of radioactive thorium, according to technical papers by Chinese scholars. During the summer rainy season, the sludge becomes coated with a layer of water that mixes with poisons and thorium. This dangerous mix seeps into the groundwater underneath the lake. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
02-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Smart Robots Market Global Forecast to 2030, with Profiles of iRobot, Softbank Robotics, ABB, Kuka, Fanuc, Yaskawa Electric, Amazon, Hanson Robotics, Blue Frog Robotics, and Kongsberg Maritime
The global smart robots market is set to surge from USD 16.20 billion in 2025 to USD 42.80 billion by 2030, with a CAGR of 21.5%. This growth is fueled by rising automation demands in sectors like logistics and healthcare. The software component is projected to dominate, essential for smart robots' intelligence and adaptability. The industrial robots segment will witness the highest growth, driven by Industry 4.0 and labor shortages. China is anticipated to lead the market by 2030, supported by rapid industrialization and government backing. Key players include iRobot, SoftBank, ABB, KUKA, and FANUC. Smart Robots Market Dublin, July 02, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Smart Robots Market by Component, Type, Operating Environment, Mobility, Application and Region - Global Forecast to 2030" has been added to offering. This comprehensive report categorizes the smart robots market by component, type, mobility, operating environment, application, and region. It outlines major market drivers, restraints, challenges, and opportunities, with forecasts extending to 2030. Moreover, the report includes leadership mapping and detailed company analyses. The global smart robots market is forecasted to expand significantly, from USD 16.20 billion in 2025 to USD 42.80 billion by 2030, with a CAGR of 21.5% during this period. This upward trajectory is driven by escalating demand for automation aimed at boosting productivity, cutting costs, and enhancing operational efficiencies. Smart robots are increasingly integral in sectors such as logistics-where they streamline inventory management and delivery, and healthcare-supporting patient care and precision surgeries, addressing both labor shortages and the demand for accuracy. Software Segment Dominates Market Share Software will garner the largest market share due to its essential role in instilling intelligence, autonomy, and adaptability in smart robots. Unlike their conventional counterparts, smart robots leverage advanced software to process sensory input, make real-time decisions, and learn from experiences. Technologies like AI, machine learning, natural language processing, and computer vision empower these capabilities. As smart robots become more prevalent in industries such as manufacturing, healthcare, and logistics, the demand for specialized software platforms designed to enhance performance and support customization Robots Poised for Highest Growth Rate The industrial robots segment is anticipated to experience the highest CAGR in the smart robots market, driven by a surge in manufacturing automation. Industries including automotive, electronics, and food & beverage are implementing smart robots to boost efficiency and accuracy while lowering operational costs. Smart industrial robots, unlike traditional ones, utilize AI, ML, and computer vision to perform complex tasks, adapt to dynamic environments, and collaborate with human workers. Rising adoption of Industry 4.0 practices, ongoing labor shortages, and the demand for continuous operations are key growth Leads in Market Share by 2030 By 2030, China is predicted to dominate the Asia Pacific smart robots market. Rapid industrialization, technological advancements, and robust government support for robotics and automation catalyze this growth. As the largest global manufacturing hub, China is increasingly integrating smart robots to boost productivity and reduce labor costs across sectors like automotive, electronics, and agriculture. Government initiatives, such as Made in China 2025, further encourage AI integration and robotics innovation, with the aging population fueling demand in healthcare and elderly care Coverage and Strategic InsightsThis report provides a thorough understanding of the smart robots market, helping leaders/new entrants with approximate revenue figures, competitive insight, and strategic positioning. It highlights key market drivers, challenges, and potential opportunities for expansion and innovation. Detailed pointers include: Analysis of market drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges. Insights into product development, upcoming technologies, and new launches. Market analysis across various regions for growth potential. Comprehensive competitive assessment of leading players like iRobot Corporation and SoftBank Robotics Group. Key Attributes: Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 298 Forecast Period 2025 - 2030 Estimated Market Value in 2025 16.2 billion Forecasted Market Value by 2030 42.8 billion Compound Annual Growth Rate 21.5% Regions Covered Global Key Topics Covered: Market Dynamics Drivers Growing Adoption of AI- And Advanced Sensor Technology-Enabled Robots in Newer Applications Rising Deployment of IoT-Integrated Robots To Ensure Cost-Efficient Predictive Maintenance Increasing Government Investments in Advanced Robotics Development Surging Demand For Automation in Manufacturing To Improve Productivity And Reduce Human Errors Restraints Data Privacy And Cybersecurity Concerns And Lack of Standardized Regulatory Framework Workforce Resistance Due To Job Displacement Concerns Opportunities Growing Adoption of Smart Robots For Elderly Care, Disability Assistance, And Companionship Advancements in Swarm Intelligence Enabling Robots To Execute Complex Tasks With Ease Rising Demand For Cobots in Human-Robot Work Environments Challenges Technical And Environmental Barriers Restricting Deployment in Critical Applications Case Study Analysis Company Profiles Key Players iRobot Corporation Softbank Robotics Group ABB Kuka Fanuc Corporation Yaskawa Electric Corporation Amazon Hanson Robotics Ltd. Blue Frog Robotics Kongsberg Maritime Other Players Universal Robots A/S ECA Group Delaval Intuitive Surgical Neato Robotics, Inc. General Dynamics Mission Systems, Inc. Rethink Robotics Aethon, Inc. Samsung Geckosystems Smart Robotics Rapid Robotics Anybotics Sota Robotics (HK) Limited Vecna Robotics For more information about this report visit About is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. Attachment Smart Robots Market CONTACT: CONTACT: Laura Wood,Senior Press Manager press@ For E.S.T Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470 For U.S./ CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
