Lobbying and Trade Association

Our advocacy initiatives are managed through a structured process involving consultation and collaboration with relevant functional heads and teams, including Operations, Marketing and Sustainability. This process supports interventions across a range of advocacy issues, including sustainability and climate change. The Board and the Sustainability Committee provide stewardship and oversight of political lobbying activities, helping ensure that our approach remains aligned with the Company’s interests and strategic priorities and complies with applicable policies, including the Policy on Influencing Public and Regulatory Policy, Policy on Business Conduct and Climate Change Policy. Advocacy matters are communicated to and reviewed by the Board and the Sustainability Committee on a half-yearly basis.

Within this governance framework, we engage with policymakers, trade associations, climate-focused membership bodies and stakeholder initiatives. We are committed to conducting all direct and indirect policy lobbying and advocacy in alignment with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Our direct lobbying efforts are guided by our policies, strategic priorities and goals. We also engage indirectly through industry organisations and think tanks at the local, regional and global levels, including WBCSD, WSA, ISA, CII, FICCI and ASSOCHAM. We recognise the value of collective action, particularly in addressing complex environmental and social issues that cannot be tackled by one organisation alone. However, membership in an organisation does not imply agreement with or endorsement of every position it may take. Accordingly, we engage with other members to encourage lobbying conducted through trade organisations to reflect our values and concerns.

More specifically, our climate-related advocacy seeks to support reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and the transition towards net zero through enabling government policies and private-sector leadership. Our engagement covers topics such as greenhouse gas emissions, energy transition, carbon taxes and carbon pricing, water and waste management, and sustainable mining.

To maintain consistency between these engagements and our commitments, we carefully assess any divergence between the evolving policy positions of trade associations and our own climate position. Where a misalignment is identified, we reserve the right to act independently and communicate our position transparently to the relevant stakeholders.

This assessment forms part of a systematic process through which we regularly review our participation in industry and trade organisations, as well as proposed involvement in new associations and policy advocacy initiatives. These reviews consider the continued relevance of each engagement to our strategy and its alignment with the Paris Agreement. Through our advocacy, we seek to build common ground and collaborate with stakeholders across our operational locations.

The Policy/Programme for Lobbying and interaction with Trade Associations applies across all jurisdictions in which the Company operates, ensuring a consistent approach to ethical business conduct, compliance, and governance standards throughout its global operations.