OUR APPROACH TO ENSURING HEALTH AND SAFETY

Given the high-risk nature of the mining process, prioritising health and safety is essential to protecting our people and ensuring the overall success of our operations. 

A healthy, satisfied, and motivated workforce is key to driving the growth of our Company. We seek to achieve this objective by implementing our Health and Safety Policy. Practical measures are adopted, wherever possible, to avoid workplace accidents, eliminate occupational health hazards, and support employee well-being.

2024 Highlights

0

Work-related fatalities

2023: 0

1.25

Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR)

2023: 0.99

Health, safety and wellbeing focus areas

Systematically Managing Risks

Managing health and safety risks is at the centre of our approach to safety and is underpinned by our Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Management System. This management system follows best practice, in line with recognised international practices and the legal requirements of the countries in which we operate, and applies to our own employees and contractors alike. The OHS Management System of our operating mine sites is externally certified to ensure compliance.

In 2024, we received the DNV Level 8 Occupational Health and Safety Management System rating, becoming the first mining company to obtain it, reflecting our unwavering commitment to upholding the highest safety standards. You can find the Inmaculada and San José DNV ISRS here.

To ensure a safe working environment, we implement a systematic hazard identification, risk assessment, and control implementation process, supported by our OHS Management System. It is conducted both at a baseline annual level and at a continuous daily level by all workers at the beginning of their shifts. 

 

Investigating and Learning

All Incidents are investigated promptly and appropriate response measures were implemented. We remain committed to health and safety by continuing to promote the improvement of all activities and assess the potential occurrence of HPEs. In the event of an HPE occurring, our CEO leads a meeting with the COO and all the Operational Unit Managers to review the internal investigation. In this meeting, the root causes are discussed, and control actions are reinforced at the corporate level to share the lessons learned with the entire organisation.

During 2024, two HPEs were evaluated. We continue to work to reduce this number of HPEs to zero through a range of initiatives:

  • In Peru, the Transportation Committee led technological enhancements in personnel transport processes, such as the installation of equipment to improve cellular coverage. These measures improved the level of monitoring on frequently used routes from 50% in 2023 to nearly 70% in 2024.
  • We continue to promote leadership programs on safety through profesional supervisions in Peru and Argentina, encouraging proactive involvement and the development of safety initiatives at our mines. In Brazil, we developed a binder of lessons learned from past fatal and HPE accidents in portuguese, along with leadership training on safety management in linewith DNV.

 

Occupational Health and Safety

We ensure the safety of employees at our operations via stringent controls, training and prevention programmes. Our workers are encouraged to remove themselves from work situations that they believe could cause injury or illness. These decisions are protected by a well-established “right to refuse or stop unsafe work” policy. We also foster a "no blame" culture, to encourage our workers to report hazards or hazardous situations. The Safety HOC app is a valuable tool for reporting and ensuring appropriate follow-up measures are taken.

Across all of our mining units, we convene joint management-worker safety committees, where members are elected by all personnel. These committees meet monthly to review health and safety developments and incident investigations, as well as approve the annual safety plan, training plan and internal regulations. Management also conducts discussions on health and safety with worker representatives and trade unions.

We commit to providing an integrated approach to employee welfare, supporting our people's health and wellbeing and ultimately, improving employee motivation and productivity. To achieve this, we have dedicated teams of health and hygiene professionals at all mines, and medical facilities equipped to provide regular consultations, as well as emergencies. Hazards and risks related with health and hygiene are identified, assessed and controls established when necessary.

Contribution to the SDGs