image
.
Close
Our websites Our websites
Menu
About us
Read more
Products, services & development
Read more
Sustainability
Read more
Investors
Read more
Careers
Read more
Media
Find out more about the Lambasi agricultural initiative in South Africa, supported by the Zimele fund.
Origins
Read more
Suppliers
Read more
Main Content

Watch the video

About PGM Market Development​

Developing new and sustainable demand for the six platinum group metals that we mine is a key part of Anglo American Platinum’s strategy.

Platinum group metals - platinum, palladium, rhodium, ruthenium, iridium and osmium - offer unique characteristics to a diverse range of industries with a wide variety of existing and unexplored applications, addressing key global issues such as decarbonisation & the clean energy transition. ​

Our market development activity is industry leading, encompassing a holistic ecosystem of programmes and workstreams to support PGM relevant innovations from the spark of an idea, through commercialisation to creating and sustaining scale. ​
We look beyond the direct customers of Anglo American Platinum, aiming to innovate end-user applications and markets to create sustainable, diversified demand segments and growth. We work with pioneering partners across the spectrum of activity, often setting up the necessary organisations and associations where they don’t exist, all to achieve these goals.​

Our activity is global​
Our Market Development team is based in Johannesburg, London and Shanghai and our partners and activities span further across the globe, ensuring we remain close to key end-user markets and innovation hubs globally. Our team works to find opportunities to bring these technology innovations home to South Africa, supporting sustainable job creation and beneficiation.

Programme overview

Nurturing Ideas
Please select
Overview Cancer Research Batteries

Nurturing Ideas

Our focus is to find and nurture commercial possibilities for multiple new end-uses of PGMs, ultimately building future demand drivers from a diverse range of industries and applications.​

This unique, early-stage development programme includes venture-led research and early-stage co-funding investment opportunities, originates and nurtures ideas and challenges the conventional corporate approach to co-creation of demand-centric ventures through strategic external collaboration.​

Our aim is to discover and cultivate these opportunities to become proven commercially feasible propositions ready for additional investment and scaling.


Warwick University

Anglo American have partnered with the University of Warwick to evaluate potential for a novel platinum containing anticancer drug which can be activated by light. ​

The development targets pharmaceutical cancer treatments focused on early stage cancers, followed by locally advanced and metastatic stages of cancers, and cancers that have developed resistance to the conventional platinum treatment drugs. ​

The University of Warwick has developed novel light activated treatment mechanisms where the drugs can be applied locally to the tumor and stimulated specifically in that region, therefore reducing damage to surrounding tissue. This treatment mechanism could also reduce standard side effects like nausea, loss of appetite, damage to cells, etc. ​

The project commenced in July 2020.

Lion Battery Technologies

In July 2019, Anglo American partnered with Platinum Group Metals Ltd to launch a new venture called Lion Battery Technologies to accelerate the development of next-generation batteries that use platinum and palladium. ​

Lion has entered into an agreement with Florida International University to unlock potential for lithium sulphur and lithium air battery chemistries in order to enhance their discharge capacities and cyclabilities and has potential to outperform current best in class lithium-ion batteries. ​

The development has been progressing well and is scheduled to run over a 3-year period.​

Commercialising Concepts​
Please select
Overview Venture Capital​

Commercialising Concepts

Shaping entirely new demand segments and scaling new business models and technology ventures requires a robust and comprehensive continuum of capital to develop innovative ideas and technologies into ultimately sustainable, profitable ventures.

AP Ventures

In addition to investing directly in select opportunities with PGMs at their core, Anglo American launched AP Ventures in mid-2018. With investment partners PIC, Mitsubishi Corporation, Toyota’s Mirai Creation Fund, Sumitomo Corporation and Plastic Omnium, AP Ventures is the world's first independent venture capital fund dedicated to investing in patentable technologies that use PGMs to address some of society's biggest challenges including:

  • Sustainable energy integration​
  • Growing resource scarcity​
  • Rapidly changing demographics
Engineering Growth​
Please select
Overview Jewellery Demand Growth Jewellery Design Innovation​ Investment Demand​ Food Freshness​ PGM Alloy ​Development​

Engineering Growth​

Enabling and scaling the adoption of existing technologies & products is another key programme under market development.​

Still largely in their growth phases, platinum jewellery and platinum investment are two such demand segments where this approach is applied. In these markets, significant impact can be achieved by positioning the unique properties of platinum as the product of choice versus the alternatives in the market. Our efforts to enable and scale demand for known end-use applications are channeled through relevant strategic partners with the footprint and network that enhances end-user knowledge & affinity for platinum. ​

Together with a selection of South African platinum mining houses, we founded the Platinum Guild International (PGI) and the World Platinum Investment council who carry out platinum jewellery and platinum investment market development activities respectively on behalf of the primary platinum suppliers. Both organisations are funded by the founding members, with the exception of PGI India, which is wholly funded by Anglo American Platinum.​

Platinum Guild International​

Platinum Guild International (PGI) works to grow demand for platinum as the metal of choice for fine jewellery in the four main platinum jewellery markets – China, India, USA & Japan. Through various programmes, both direct to consumer and in collaboration with retail and manufacturing partners, PGI creates consumer demand by first identifying opportunities for platinum through extensive research, and then developing commercial offerings with partners. PGI’s consumer marketing and educational programmes are focused on developing awareness and an appreciation for platinum’s unique qualities as a precious metal for fine jewellery. The PGI is primarily funded by the world’s leading platinum producers.​​

PlatAfrica​

PlatAfrica is South Africa's premier platinum jewellery design and manufacture competition, created to promote innovation and technical expertise in platinum jewellery and design within the local jewellery industry. PlatAfrica is hosted annually by Anglo American Platinum in partnership with Platinum Guild International India (PGI India) and Metal Concentrators. ​

World Platinum Investment Council​

The World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) stimulates investor demand for physical platinum through both actionable insights and targeted product development. This includes providing investors with the information to support informed decisions regarding buying or selling platinum; working with financial institutions and market participants to develop products and channels that service investor needs.​

Furuya​

Anglo American have partnered with Japan’s Furuya Metal Co. Ltd to launch a joint venture aimed at developing and commercializing low-temperature PGM-containing catalysts that maintain food freshness and lengthen fresh food shelf-life. This technology features several benefits, including significant reduction in energy consumption and food waste. Applications include home appliance components, food retail stores as well as food transport and logistics.​

Alloyed​

Anglo American have partnered with Alloyed to develop a computational platform which aids and accelerates the development and adoption of unique PGM alloy compositions for use in a wide variety of diverse applications.​

Communicating & Advocating​
Please select
Overview China Global Advocacy​ USA

Communicating & Advocating​

Effective communication and advocacy with key audiences and stakeholders is an important element of our strategy and underpins all strands of market development activity. ​

We are active members of a number of global organisations across industries with the aim of promoting the benefits and unique characteristics of PGMs & PGM-containing technologies. ​

FCVC Conference​

Launched in 2016, Anglo American is a key sponsor and participant of the International Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle Congress (FCVC) and Fuel Cell Vehicle Itinerant Exhibition & Roadshow (FCVI). The FCVC is China’s largest hydrogen fuel cell vehicle technology showcase and conference and is jointly organised by the International Hydrogen Fuel Cell Association (IHFCA) and Society of Automotive Engineers China (SAE-China), in which Anglo American is a founding member of IHFCA. The five-day event consists of a plenary meeting, forums, technical seminars and a technology exhibition as well as the FCEV roadshow and brings together delegates from across the FCEV value chain, government policy makers and academia to support the development of the hydrogen and fuel cell industry in China.​

Hydrogen Council

Anglo American are a founding member of The Hydrogen Council, a CEO-led organisation that uses its global reach to promote collaboration between governments, industry and investors, and to provide guidance on accelerating the deployment of hydrogen solutions around the world. The Council acts as a business marketplace, building a comprehensive hydrogen economy and shifting the perception of hydrogen globally. In addition, the Hydrogen Council serves as a resource for safety standards and a connection for the investment community, while identifying opportunities for regulatory advocacy in key geographies. The coalition of over 90 members including large multinationals, innovative SMEs and investors collectively represents total revenues of over €18.9 trillion and over 6.5 million jobs around the world. In 2020, Anglo American Plc CEO, Mark Cutifani was appointed to the newly elected Hydrogen Council Board.

Hydrogen Forward Coalition​

Anglo American is one of the founding members of the Hydrogen Forward Coalition, an initiative launched in January 2021 and focused on advancing hydrogen development in the United States. The coalition’s founding members are united under a shared belief in the environmental and economic benefits of hydrogen technologies. The initiative – which represents companies operating at all stages of the hydrogen value chain from source to service – is focused on showcasing hydrogen’s unique value proposition among key public and private sector stakeholders to decisively accelerate adoption of hydrogen solutions and related infrastructure build-out across the US.​

Stories

Contact us

The fields marked with * are compulsory.

PGM MARKET DEVELOPMENT - Contact us

If the contact information you require is not listed above, please fill in the form below to leave feedback.

 
 
  
 
 
Reset