LONDON, UK: Anglo American has signed a memorandum of understanding with Aurubis AG – a global provider of non-ferrous metals and one of the world’s largest copper recyclers – to develop a copper product offering that responds to increasing expectations for future-enabling metals that are sustainably sourced and supplied.

The objective of the collaboration is to provide assurance around the way copper is mined, processed, transported and brought to market.

Applying their combined expertise, Anglo American and Aurubis will also explore the opportunity for technology-driven traceability solutions to bring greater transparency to the entire production cycle, as well as areas of common interest in technology development.

Peter Whitcutt, CEO of Anglo American’s Marketing business, said: “Copper plays such a pivotal role in addressing the challenges of climate change and raising living standards for the world’s growing population. Rightly, it needs to be produced sustainably and as part of a customer-centric supply chain.

“Together with Aurubis, and in line with our Sustainable Mining Plan goal to establish ethical value chains, we are engaging with industry participants to optimise the value that responsible supply can provide. The value chain starts from our portfolio of high-quality and long-life resource assets, now including our new world-class Quellaveco mine in Peru, and we are now working to establish a more comprehensive and integrated approach along the entirety of what is a fragmented mine-to-customer journey.”

Roland Harings, CEO of Aurubis, said: “Sustainability is a core pillar of our strategy. We are constantly investing in solutions for responsibly handling the resources entrusted to us as the most efficient smelter network globally.

This collaboration with Anglo American is yet another example of how we intend to develop and enhance the transparency of the entire supply chain. Anglo American’s Sustainable Mining Plan aligns with the pillars of the Aurubis sustainability label “Tomorrow Metals”, launched in 2021 which promises to our business partners to stay best in class in all sustainability challenges of today and the future by using our metals.” 

Anglo American and Aurubis have also committed to be assessed against the Copper Mark Chain of Custody Standard. Anglo American’s managed copper operations in Chile – the Los Bronces and El Soldado mining operations and the Chagres smelter – were awarded the Copper Mark, the assurance standard for responsible production practices, in March 2022.