Community and Social Commitment

One of the key elements of our sustainability policy is our commitment to society and the community. Our primary objective is to generate corporate value through ethical and socially responsible conduct.

We are conscious of the problems and needs in the regions where we conduct our activities and we establish integrated lines of work in our business in order to build a sustainable company that benefits society.

We evaluate local needs, we promote participation in the community and we build alliances with stakeholders in the regions where we do business.

We establish a Social Commitment Plan, which sets out the lines of support and medium- and short-term actions, which will help strengthen our surroundings, improve employment and business relationships and promote a safe and healthy environment.

From the social point of view, there are several positive actions carried out, some of them even before the company started its commercial activity, as a sign of commitment to the social environment:

• In May 2016, Strategic Minerals signed a collaboration agreement with the Viana do Bolo City Council (Viana do Bolo is the council to which the Penouta mine belongs). By virtue of this agreement, SMS undertook to hire residents of the council, as well as to promote the execution of service contracts with the companies of the municipality, to supply the needs of the mine; and even the creation of an Interpretation Classroom at the mine, aimed at carrying out cultural and/or social activities (visits to schools, institutes, neighborhood associations, the elderly, etc ...)
• In the Lease agreement signed with the Community of Montes that owns the land on which the mine is located, SMS undertook to hire the local people.
• In the contracts that are signed with the different contractors that carry out stable work within the mining area, whether they are from the area or from outside, it is agreed by contract that at least 30% of the personnel to be employed should be local people.

A sample of these commitments is that, on the one hand, within the direct workers employed in the company, 57% are from the Council, 71% from the areas close to it, and if we relate it to the contractors (services contracted with the companies in the area, such as canteen services, civil works, earthworks, etc.), 82% of the people who work directly and indirectly in the mine are from the Viana Council and its immediate surroundings.

As part of its commitment to the community, and as an advocate of the positive values taught by sports, SMS participates in the sponsorship of the Viana Do Bolo Sports Club soccer team. We are proud of the fact that several of the players are workers of the penouta mine work center.

As part of its corporate responsibility, SMS collaborated with Atlético de Madrid (Spanish soccer team, champion of the Spanish league in 2020) so that, together with the Orense Provincial Council and the City Council of Viana do Bolo, the first Summer Sports Campus was held in Viana Do Bolo. This Campus was held during the first week of August of this year 2021, and consisted of the outdoor development of a sports school for the children of the environment, and the province of Ourense in general, which intended that all of them were part of a sports experience aimed at sharing in a playful way, the values of friendship, companionship, and equality”

Our actions are based on values such as excellence, a commitment to sustainable development, transparency, dialog, trust, ethical conduct, mutual commitment and seeking to have high safety and quality standards in all of our projects.

We also try to develop and create a vision and the values of the Organization, encouraging our suppliers, customers and companies or collaborating entities to adopt the same conduct based on guidelines similar to those outlined in our Code of Conduct.

Our code of conduct not only establishes internal lines of communication, between the directorate and the staff, but also external lines of communication.

Our code of conduct unites all groups involved in the commitment that our organization has made to uphold the social and environmental values of Strategic Minerals Europe.

We would like to highlight:

• Our transparency, which is the clarity with which an organization exposes its management results to various stakeholders.
• Good corporate governance, which is the way an organization manages its resources, avoiding any potential fraud, tricks or hidden advantages.
• The participation of both our partners and our workers.