Dar es Salaam. Authorities in Tanzania have been forced to move the two-day battery summit, which was to occur on April 24 and 25, 2024, to July this year following an increased interest among global industry players to participate in it, one of the organisers revealed Thursday.
The summit, whose full name is the 1st East African Battery Minerals Summit, would convene local, regional and global actors in key battery minerals to advance the global green economy, address climate change, and allow select companies to meet the rapidly growing demand for key energy sources.
The East African Community (EAC), the African Battery Initiative, and the government of Tanzania are organising the summit, which will now occur on July 1 and 2, 2024, in partnership with InvestBank Corp, a global investment bank.
Players would meet against the backdrop of the world grappling with the extreme effects of climate change, leading companies, investors, government agencies, and NGOs are focused on decarbonisation, sustainability, and creating significant impact.
Don Christensen, executive chairman of InvestBank Corp, confirmed Thursday that Tanzania received requests to reschedule the summit.
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“Additional time was required for the detailed security and logistical planning necessary for the greater than expected number of very high-profile dignitaries who requested to attend the summit,” he stated.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been announced as the summit’s inaugural sovereign partner, with the Future Minerals Forum (FMF) as its strategic partner.
In their statement released in January this year, organisers said that the worldwide battery electrification mega-trend has significantly increased the demand for key battery minerals.
They referred to recent studies indicating that the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Burundi, and Zambia alone account for a significant percentage of the total global deposits of key battery minerals, including cobalt – 60 per cent, nickel – 40 per cent, lithium – 35 per cent, and graphite – 45 per cent.
“The 1st East African Battery Minerals Summit offers an unparalleled opportunity for leading companies and investors to participate in the development and industrialisation of each EV battery supply chain sector in the [EAC] region,” organisers announced in January.
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“This development and industrialisation will increase the resilience of the global battery minerals supply chain by increasing the number of countries involved,” they added. “Companies will also have an unprecedented opportunity to strengthen their own battery mineral supply chains and attain supply chain security.”
According to organisers, the EAC Secretariat has prioritised the development of the region’s extractive industries and mineral value addition as a strategic value chain to facilitate socioeconomic transformation in the region.
“ The [EAC] region plans to transform itself into a stable and competitive lower-middle income region by 2030 through the sustainable use of its natural resources, the development of the green economy, and climate change adaptation and mitigation activities,” organisers announced.
