The global transition away from hydrocarbons as an energy source means a new ecosystem encompassing renewable power generation, storage, transmission and use needs to be built. This ‘infrastructure’ needs investment, but we argue that the oil industry – and the large end of the minerals extraction industry – has been slow to embrace newer, smaller and high-growth commodities and this vacuum means slow supply growth and, inevitably, high commodity prices. Governments are beginning to identify the risk that there are not enough well-funded, permitted, high-quality companies in most capital markets focused on critical minerals. Edison Group argues that the missing link is the lack of fresh capital, with incumbent large energy and mining firms tied to capital returns rather than long-term growth investing.
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