Polymetal takes top spot in major sustainability rankings

Polymetal International was celebrating on Thursday, after it was awarded the top rating in environmental responsibility among Russian metals and mining companies.

The FTSE 250 company said the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Global Environmental Facility, and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation, had published the results of their environmental responsibility assessment for Russian metals and mining companies.

Among the 33 companies included in the rating, Polymetal was tied for first place with Kinross Gold, based on three categories - environmental management, environmental impact and disclosure and transparency.

The board noted that it was a “major improvement” from the previous rating, where Polymetal was ranked seventh.

“First place in this rating is the result of our multi-year effort to improve sustainability at Polymetal,” said chief sustainability officer Daria Goncharova.

“The result reaffirms our approach in favour of complex and best-practice measures that form a crucial part of our strategy.”