Norilsk Nickel took part in the conference “Challenges 2030. Sustainable Development of Regions” organized by Russia’s Managers Association, the company's media communications said in a press release.
The event was attended by heads of regions, representatives of the expert community, heads of Russian and international companies - leaders of the ESG agenda. Experts gathered to discuss how - in the current conditions of global instability - to maintain sustainable development priorities and find a balance between environmental, social, economic issues and the direction of corporate governance. Also, the discussion was focused on successful cases of environmental and social projects in the regions, programs to attract investors and the experience of interaction between various companies and regional authorities.
During the forum, a solemn ceremony of presenting the award "For contribution to the development of ESG in Russia" took place. The organizing committee distributed the nominations according to 17 sustainable development goals. The Honorary Prize was awarded to two representatives of the Norilsk Nickel group of companies at once. Senior Vice President of Norilsk Nickel Larisa Zelkova became the winner in the nomination "For promoting sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all,” and Aleksey Novakov, director of Norilsk Nickel’s Polar Transportation Division, was highly appreciated by the organizers for the company’s activities to ensure the continuous operation of the port of Dudinka. As a key logistics infrastructure facility in the Arctic, Dudinka guarantees an uninterrupted supply of food and social goods to Taimyr.
Vladimir Zhukov, Vice President for Investor Relations and Sustainable Development of Norilsk Nickel, spoke about Norilsk Nickel's flagship projects in support of the regions where it operates during the plenary session.
“The first of these projects is the Norilsk renovation program until 2035 with a total funding of 120 billion rubles, more than 80 billion rubles of which is the contribution of our company. This is a unique example of a public-private partnership involving a company, federal and regional authorities,” Zhukov said. — Another flagship project that started back in 2013 and has now begun to bring visible results is our environmental program. On the Kola Peninsula, we have reduced sulfur dioxide emissions by 90%. A large-scale modernization program is underway in Norilsk, as well as the construction of the Sulfur Project. After its completion, we expect a 90% reduction in sulfur dioxide emissions in Norilsk.”
Vladimir Zhukov spoke about another important aspect of the company's work in the sphere of sustainable development - interaction with indigenous peoples. “Norilsk Nickel has historically provided active support to indigenous communities, but now the cooperation has reached a new level. Two years ago, we entered into a five-year agreement with a funding volume of 2 billion rubles, which was drawn up based on the results of a dialogue with communities taking into account their needs and requests,” Vladimir Zhukov noted.
This topic was discussed in more detail during the round table "Sustainable Development of the Indigenous Minorities of the North". Vasily Zakharov, Head of Regional Programs at Norilsk Nickel, spoke about the Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) procedure and its application in the Taimyr region in the village of Tukhard.
“One of the main instruments of interaction with indigenous peoples according to UN standards is the FPIC procedure. When a company is planning a project in an indigenous area, it must coordinate its actions with local communities in advance and in good time. In the case of the resettlement of the inhabitants of the village of Tukhard, we discussed it for five months with the indigenous people and involved experts. It took so much time for the indigenous people to develop the principles and conditions under which they give the company consent to the resettlement,” explained Vasily Zakharov.
The “2030 Challenges” Conference continued its work at several venues at once, including round tables on corporate governance trends, sessions on ecology and social issues, and corporate volunteering.
ABOUT THE COMPANY
MMC Norilsk Nickel is a diversified mining and metallurgical company, the world’s largest producer of palladium and high-grade nickel and a major producer of platinum and copper. The company also produces cobalt, rhodium, silver, gold, iridium, ruthenium, selenium, tellurium and other products.
The production units of Norilsk Nickel Group are located at the Norilsk Industrial District, on the Kola Peninsula and Zabaykalsky Krai in Russia as well as in Finland.
MMC Norilsk Nickel shares are listed on the Moscow and on the Saint-Petersburg Stock Exchanges, ADRs are accepted for trading on the Saint-Petersburg Stock Exchange.
Norilsk Nickel fully supports the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The Company considers social responsibility and commitment to the principles of sustainable development as one of the pillars of operational efficiency and business development. Nornickel seeks to continuously improve its activities in the areas of environmental protection, human rights, health and safety, environmental impact assessment, and biodiversity preservation. The company spent RUB 221.5 billion on SDG-linked projects in 2021.
