On 25 March, Edward Dowling, chairman of Polyus, joined an on-line panel for the Global Climate Governance Initiative (CGI) Summit in a discussion on how to decrease the industry’s carbon footprint and counter climate change.
The panel, entitled Achieving Net Zero: Global Metals & Mining, was moderated by Gillian Davidson, Head of Social Responsibility at Teck Resources, and Mr Dowling’s fellow speakers included Eduardo Bartolomeo, CEO of Vale, Tony Hayward, Chairman of Glencore, and Tom Palmer, President and CEO of Newmont.
During the panel, Mr Dowling highlighted the following key points.
- Climate change measures are increasingly of growing importance to investors, with the majority of stakeholders now expecting corporates to take action on climate change.
- Polyus has traditionally taken initiatives across its business to reduce its carbon intensity, and recently signed an agreement to switch its largest production cluster to hydropower, bringing the Company’s total energy demand covered by renewable sources to 90%.
- Reporting on climate change is important for all miners, but so are other initiatives. Polyus is committed to cutting its Scope 1 and 2 emissions by reducing the amount of coal used in its operations, and will also be participating in climate-related initiatives and the activities of key industry bodies.
- Change must start at the top, with the Board of Directors serving as the source of expertise and strategic oversight; Polyus has integrated change at Board level, and responsibility for ensuring management has a clear understanding of climate risks lies with the Board.
- Transparency is crucial to wider stakeholder expectations, and companies should commit to disclosure of climate risk related information. Polyus will be reporting on its sustainability in accordance with TCFD recommendations in its 2020 Sustainability Report.
Edward Dowling, chairman of Polyus, commented:“I was very pleased to represent Polyus at CGI Russia’s event and join my fellow panellists in contributing towards an important discussion on one of the greatest challenges faced by our industry today. We should all be committing to greater transparency on our climate risks, and Polyus looks forward to presenting the results of our reporting in accordance with TCFD recommendations in our 2020 Sustainability Report.”
The event is available to watch on-line at the following link: https://eng.cgi-russia.ru/cgi_russia_news/the-climate-governance-initiative-launches-its-inaugural-summit-today-urging-board-directors-to-tackle-the-climate-emergency/