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Ivanhoe Mines hopes to change copper’s environmental image

Mining
TSX:IVN
08 June 2020 13:15 (EDT)
Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. - Chairman, Robert Friedland

Source: Forbes

Ivanhoe Mines (TSX:IVN) has released its third annual sustainability report, outlining its positive environmental and societal impacts this year.

The report highlights Ivanhoe’s desire to become the greenest copper producer in the world, through improvements in water security, education and training and mining practices.

Copper mining in particularly has a long history of being environmentally damaging, through the use of sulphuric acid to extract the copper on the leaching pad.

This, coupled with the large amounts of water used in the mining process, has given copper mining a particularly bad environmental image.

But the Executive Co-Chair of Ivanhoe Robert-Friedland said the company had moved past this, and is building modern, mechanised underground mines that supplied raw materials for the global clean energy technology movement.

“We are blessed with incredibly high-grade copper deposits in areas with an abundance of clean, sustainable hydro-power potential.

“In a world committed to electrification and green power, we will use far less water, and produce far less carbon dioxide, than any of the other Tier 1 mines on the plant,” he said.

Ivanhoe maintains it is a world leader in water security, low carbon emissions and tailings management. 

Ivanhoe has pointed to the Mwadingusha hydro-power dam in the DR Congo, which is being used to power its mines in that country.

Ivanhoe is helping to redevelop the dam, to increase power generation to both mines, as well as nearby communities.

New President and CFO of Ivanhoe, Marna Cloete echoed those sentiments, and emphasised Ivanhoe’s work with its communities to achieve its sustainability goals.

“We are proud of the growing diversity of our workforce, and strongly believe that diversity is the key to nurturing talent and driving innovation at our operations,” she said. 

Ivanhoe Mines (IVN) is up 0.28 per cent and is trading at C$3.62 per share. 

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