Reporting in terms of the ICMM performance expectations and mining principles

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ARM is proud to be a member of the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), and shares its commitment to mining with principles.

Since F2010, we have reported in terms of the ICMM’s original ten sustainable development principles and position statements. The report of the independent assurance provider on page 190 provides an opinion on this report’s alignment with ICMM subject matters 1 to 5:

• ICMM subject matter 1:
  The alignment of ARM’s sustainability policies, management standards and procedures to the ICMM principles, any mandatory requirements set out in ICMM position statements and the performance expectations (PEs).
• ICMM subject matter 2:
  ARM’s material sustainability risks and opportunities based on its own review of the business and the views and expectations of its stakeholders.
• ICMM subject matter 3:
  ARM’s implementation of systems and approaches used to manage its identified material sustainable development risks and opportunities.
• ICMM subject matter 4:
  ARM’s reported performance during the reporting period for the identified material sustainability risks and opportunities.
• ICMM subject matter 5:
  ARM’s description of the prioritisation process for the selection of assets for PE validation.

In 2020, the ICMM launched enhanced membership requirements that further strengthen members’ social and environmental requirements, underpinned by the 38 PEs. These support progress towards the global targets of the UN SDGs and the Paris agreement on climate change.

The enhanced requirements include robust asset¹ and corporate-level validation, credible assurance and transparent disclosure to maximise the industry’s benefits to host communities and minimise negative impacts to effectively manage issues of concern to society. All assets subject to PE validation are required to conduct self-assessments once every three years and third-party validation of prioritised assets within a three-year validation cycle.

By September 2022, members were required to complete self-assessments for all assets and prioritise assets for validation in the first three-year cycle. ARM started piloting self-assessments of PEs in F2019 and in F2022, self-assessments were conducted at Cato Ridge Works, Khumani and Two Rivers mines, and ARM Corporate, with independent third-party validation by the ESG report assurance provider.

ARM's prioritisation of assets selected for PE validation aligns with the ESG report assurance process, with operations selected for external assurance visits in a given year also prioritised for PE validation. In F2023, independent third-party validation of the asset self-assessments was carried out at Modikwa and Khumani mines.

All assets will be subject to external PE validation over a three-year cycle.

Gaps in alignment with the PEs identified in these processes are being addressed.

ARM's self-assessments against the ICMM PE for all assets are available on www.arm.co.za.

As a member of the ICMM, ARM subscribes to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) – a global standard promoting transparency and the management of revenues from natural resources.

MINING PRINCIPLE				REFERENCE
	Apply ethical business practices and sound systems of corporate governance and transparency to support sustainable development.			Social and ethics committee chairman’s report (page 22) Our approach to sustainable value creation (page 32) Independent sustainability assurance provider report (page 190)
	Integrate sustainable development in corporate strategy and decision-making processes.			Executive chairman’s report (IAR) (page 22) Social and ethics committee chairman’s report (page 22) Our approach to sustainable value creation (page 32)
	Respect human rights and the interests, cultures, customs and values of employees and communities affected by our activities.			Social and ethics committee chairman’s report (page 22) Our approach to sustainable value creation (page 32) Independent sustainability assurance provider report (page 190) Our social impact (page 104)
	Implement effective risk-management strategies and systems based on sound science, and which account for stakeholder perceptions of risk.			Our approach to sustainable value creation (page 32) Enterprise risk management (page 36)
	Pursue continual improvement in health and safety performance with the ultimate goal of zero harm.			Executive chairman’s report (IAR) (page 22) Social and ethics committee chairman’s report (page 22) Safety (from page 82) Occupational health and wellness (from page 86)
	Pursue continual improvement in environmental performance issues, such as water stewardship, energy use and climate change.			Environment (from page 54) Climate change and water report
	Contribute to the conservation of biodiversity and integrated approaches to land-use planning.			Environment (from page 54) Sustainability data tables (biodiversity management) (available on our website)
	Facilitate and support the knowledge base and systems for responsible design, use, reuse, recycling and disposal of products containing metals and minerals.			Our value chain (page 111)
	Pursue continual improvement in social performance and contribute to the social, economic and institutional development of host countries and communities.			Our value contribution (page 18) Human resources management (from page 94) Community impacts (from page 104) Stakeholder engagement (from page 46)
	Proactively engage key stakeholders on sustainable development challenges and opportunities in an open and transparent manner, effectively report and independently verify progress and performance.			Stakeholder engagement (page 46)