The Covid-19 pandemic is likely to accelerate the use of technology in the metals and mining industry, the former chief executive officer of Norsk Hydro said.
This makes it all the more important to continue corporate research and development (R&D) functions despite efforts to trim costs, Svein Richard Brandztaeg told Fastmarkets during a webinar interview.
"We know from previous serious crises that innovation is sometimes accelerated - that is what we have seen during world wars but also during crises [such as the 1929 Great Depression and the 2008-09 global financial crisis]," he said.
"There is always new innovation coming up, and technology will move faster," he added. "The Covid-19 crisis will accelerate the digitalization of companies."