On June 13, the winners of Russia’s Best ESG Projects were announced. Experts selected 66 projects from over 600 entrants. Nornickel won the award in three categories.
The project of greenhouse gas absorption by waste storages from polymetallic ore processing won the award in the Fight against Climate Change category. Nornickel’s specialists established that waste mineralization facilitates CO2 removal from the atmosphere which is one of the most important ESG goals. The project does not require massive investment while the carbon footprint reduction is substantial. The research continues.
SERGEY VAGNER,
Head of Recycling and By-product Involvement Technology, Technological Innovation Department:
“The company has developed a strategy to achieve carbon neutrality which incorporates a portfolio of projects. Many of them are finalized technical solutions that are adopted at different sites.
We plan to develop a methodology to estimate and calculate carbon units using the obtained results. It will then underlie the standard for measuring carbon units. With this methodology, we will be able to estimate the absorption capacity of tailings dumps based on the mineralogical composition of a ton of mined ore. It will help us understand how much ore we have processed and how much CO2 has been absorbed".
The drone surveillance project to monitor areas of Nornickel’s operations was voted best in the Responsible Consumption and Production category. The Arctic is associated with extreme weather conditions and long distances, making it often difficult to reach remote locations even by special vehicle.
Drones can quickly fly to a specific location and transmit a video to the monitoring station for further processing with AI-powered tools. Drones can be used not only for observations but also to collect water samples and even count the polar bears.
Nornickel’s newly launched website won the prize for Biodiversity Conservation. The website features Arctic flora and fauna living in the areas of the company’s operations and highlights Nornickel’s efforts to preserve the fragile Northern nature.
Drones can quickly fly to a specific location and transmit a video to the monitoring station for further processing with AI-powered tools. Drones can be used not only for observations but also to collect water samples and even count the polar bears.
Nornickel’s newly launched website won the prize for Biodiversity Conservation. The website features Arctic flora and fauna living in the areas of the company’s operations and highlights Nornickel’s efforts to preserve the fragile Northern nature.
Photos by Nornickel
June, 2024
