De Beers has overtaken gold giant Newmont to lead the environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) ranking of global miners in the first quarter of the year.
The Anglo American unit jumped to the pole position due to an increased focus on equality and sustainability.
Mining Weekly reports that De Beers scored the highest in London-based Alva's quarterly rating of environmental, social and governance perceptions.
South Africa's platinum miner Sibanye-Stillwater was ranked second as it showed the biggest improvement from the previous quarter.
The improvement in rankings was due to the company's partnership with Johnson Matthey to find more efficient uses of critical metals used in batteries.
Vale SA was ranked the least despite reaching a settlement with Brazilian authorities over a 2019 dam disaster.
"[Vale's result] is a combination of greater visibility around the original negative story and then dissenting voices on the settlement itself," Alva co-founder and chief strategy officer Alastair Pickering was quoted as saying.
The ESG criteria are being used to assess companies' non-financial performance and investors are increasingly backing companies planning for a future where sustainability and ethical impact are central to survival.
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished
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