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FYI Resources (ASX:FYI, OTC: $FYIRF) is on a mission to contribute to a more sustainable future. They intend to do this through responsible innovation, giving back to its communities, while reducing the environmental impact for future generations.
The company is jointly developing a project with Alcoa to produce the critical mineral, high purity alumina (HPA), using their unique commercial refining process that creates a higher quality product. HPA is an in-demand mineral for the growing EV battery market, LED lighting and a wide range of electronic, glass and ceramic applications.
FYI Resources is an agile, innovative and entrepreneurial company that is aligned to the future. The company is truly committed to pursuing an ESG standard that will give them an edge over their competitors.
The ESG journey for FYI Resources began with a simple question - How can we contribute to a better world? Managing Director, Roland Hill, recounts “we knew that in order to do this, we had to look at the way we conduct our business so that it not only benefits our core business and growth aspirations but the people and environment around us.”
To make a measurable difference, the FYI Resources team with the support of the board, decided to move forward with the adoption and integration of ESG. The company didn’t just want to report on ESG, they wanted to embed it into their current and future business strategies, and decided they needed an internal champion to drive these ambitions forward.
FYI Resources brought in Harvard alumna, Dr Sandy Chong, to lead the company through its ESG journey - a sustainability and ESG leader with impressive credentials. Dr Chong is the founding chair of the UN Sustainable Development Goals Forum series and was named Asia’s Top Sustainability Woman of the Year in 2019. She was also awarded Australia Community Citizen of the Year in 2020 for her contributions both in Australia and abroad.
As Dr Chong articulates, “FYI Resources is an agile, innovative and entrepreneurial company that is aligned to the future. The company is truly committed to pursuing an ESG standard that will give us an edge over our competitors.” When the company looked to embed ESG into their business they asked themselves four key questions:
By looking at their business through those lenses, the team realised that they had already been practising ESG and that by making a commitment to it, they could extend their leadership position in this area.
As an early adopter of Socialsuite’s ESG platform, the team at FYI Resources saw an opportunity to help educate others about ESG. Dr Chong says, “We want people to understand what ESG means and that for us, it is more than just the ‘E’ or being a clean resources company. ESG is adopted as a business-wide practice that encompasses everything we do from our day-to-day operations to how we create a more sustainable, equitable workforce.”
Although there are yet to be mandated regulations for ESG in Australia, The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC), the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) do recommend or require organisations to consider various sustainability-related risks for reporting. FYI Resources wasn’t going to wait for regulations to come around. Instead, they wanted to be a leader in the industry and own their narrative of proactiveness in ESG. Following an excellent independent ESG rating, FYI Resources decided to build on its ESG credentials with Socialsuite.
Socialsuite’s SaaS platform enables FYI Resources to:
For FYI Resources, ESG is more than sustainability, “companies that are committed to sustainability don’t just talk about it, they can demonstrate it. With Socialsuite’s ESG platform, we can capture our ESG data and report on it. This enables us to validate our programs, set benchmarks and improve our competitive advantage.”
The team at FYI Resources recognises that the genuine commitment that they’re making to ESG today will create value in the future. As they look to the expansion phase of their major HPA project, ESG will enable them to attract the right kind of partners who value the quality and transparency of their commitments.
In addition to ESG reporting, the company is also a member of the UN Global Compact, further validating their commitment as a leader to a more sustainable future, rather than a follower.
Since reporting on ESG, the company has improved its Sustainalytics ratings from 23.8 to 21.4, achieving a ranking of 5 out of 172 amongst Diversified Metals Industry peers. FYI Resources continues to make progress towards ESG metrics in a meaningful way to benefit their employees, customers, shareholders, and the planet.
As the company looks to the future, they will continue to focus on:
The next big question for FYI Resources according to Mr Hill, is “how do we extend our ESG practices once we move to production?”. As a leader in the space, we’re sure that they’ll find the answers as they embark on the next phase of their ESG journey.
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Learn more about FYI Resources Ltd and read their latest report.
Are you interested in starting your ESG journey? Start here.