De Beers says it could operate carbon-neutral mine within half a decade
De Beers, the world’s biggest diamond producer by value, says it could operate a carbon-neutral mine within half a decade. The Anglo American unit plans to store carbon-dioxide in kimberlite rock – a type of ore best known for containing diamonds, but which also naturally reacts with carbon to remove it from the atmosphere. By accelerating that process and using readily available waste rock, De Beers could offset the emissions from its mines, according to Evelyn Mervine, who’s leading the research project for the company. De Beers estimates it could achieve carbon-neutral status at some operations within five to 10 years and is already studying the possibilities at its Venetia mine in South Africa and Gahcho Kue in Canada. (Bloomberg)
Corporate Governance
Wal-Mart seeks anti-corruption certification, investing in compliance
Wal-Mart said on Wednesday it was considering certification under a new international program developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) that could help companies defend themselves against isolated cases of corruption or poor business practices. Wal-Mart’s executive vice president and global chief ethics and compliance officer, Jay Jorgensen, added that Wal-Mart was interested in seeing the program develop in the United States, with the government laying out its own anti-corruption compliance framework or adopting ISO standards. Since 2013, Wal-Mart has invested more than $141 million in global ethics and compliance systems. More recently, Wal-Mart has created licensing teams that monitor the more than 56,000 licenses and permits Wal-Mart needs to operate in global markets using a centralised licensing system. (Reuters)
Corporate Reputation
Investigation launched into KPMG audit of Rolls-Royce
Britain’s accounting watchdog has launched an investigation into KPMG’s auditing of Rolls-Royce after the engineer admitted to a string of bribery and corruption offences over a period stretching from 1989 to 2013 – and was fined £671 million in a global settlement. Long criticised by investors for a lack of transparency in its accounting for the long-term service agreements it strikes with airline customers, Rolls Royce admitted to several charges including falsifying accounts to hide the illegal use of local middlemen, attempting to thwart investigations into corruption, and paying tens of millions in bribes to win deals in emerging markets including Indonesia and China. KPMG has been auditor to Rolls-Royce since 1990 and is due to be replaced by PwC next year. (Financial Times)*
Responsible Investment
EIB signs €150m sustainable shipping deal with ABN Amro
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has entered an agreement with Dutch bank ABN Amro to invest €150m to support the development of a sustainable shipping fleet in Europe. It will be backed up by the European Commission’s ‘Connecting Europe Facility’ initiative, and is intended to ensure financial benefits to promoters of sustainable maritime transport projects in the Netherlands. Financial benefits will be provided to both retrofitting of existing shipping, as well as developments that involve the construction of vessels featuring environmentally friendly technology. EIB vice-president Pim Ballekom said: “By allowing the EIB to take more risk, the Investment Plan for Europe enabled us to create a new instrument to support shipping companies in complying with the European sustainability standards.” (Ship-Technology)
Waste
Nespresso launches coffee capsule recycling service in London
Nespresso has teamed up the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea to recycle consumer aluminium coffee capsules in the local area. The six-month pilot project will see the council provide a kerbside collection service for Nespresso Club members, who will receive purple bags to place alongside other recycling bins. The capsules will be removed from these households via waste management company Suez, which will then send the pods to a dedicated Nespresso recycling facility, to be recycled into nutrient-rich compost. Nespresso exclusively uses aluminium to package coffee as it provides a dual benefit of protecting coffee freshness and quality and being infinitely recyclable. The retailer hopes to increase consumer awareness of the recycling potential behind aluminium.
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