Press releases

Polyus joins ESG Alliance of Russian companies

PJSC Polyus (LSE, MOEX: PLZL) («Polyus», or the «Company») is pleased to announce that it has signed an agreement with Sber and 30 leading Russian companies to form the ESG Alliance.

The agreement was signed during a meeting on 1 December, which was attended by CEOs of some of the largest companies in Russia.

The aim of the ESG Alliance is to provide a solid platform for dialogue, to share knowledge and expertise between businesses, government agencies and broader society, and to support the development and facilitate the implementation of new sustainability principles and standards.

The ESG Alliance’s mission is to promote the transition of the Russian economy to a sustainable development model that ensures environmental protection, the wellbeing of society and long-term business prosperity in light of the existing natural resource constrains and with a view to meeting the common interests of all stakeholders through cooperation and partnerships.

Pavel Grachev, Chief Executive Officer of PJSC Polyus, commented:

«Polyus has extensive experience of collaborating with its global peers to develop sustainability standards for the industry. We are delighted to support the creation of a cross-industry platform that will support Russian companies in implementing the best ESG practices in the regions where they operate. Polyus looks forward to contributing to initiatives that will help transform the Russian economy in line with the sustainability agenda».

Herman Gref, Sber CEO and Chairman of the Sberbank Executive Board, commented:

«As we discussed the issues of corporate social responsibility, transparent and impactful corporate governance and environmental protection, we came to understanding that leading companies needed to combine their efforts to drive this agenda in the country.
We realized that we had to work on shaping regulatory frameworks, standards, and implementation control procedures, forming a new legislation that will stimulate all market participants to comply with ESG standards, and promoting the interests of Russia and Russian companies internationally.
These are the key objectives that form the core of the ESG Alliance’s charter.
The founding members of the Alliance currently include 28 companies, which are responsible for 10% of the Russian GDP and represent 18 sectors of the Russian economy. Membership in the Alliance is voluntary, and we encourage other companies to join it. I believe this initiative may lead to a useful and effective solution to promoting ESG agenda in Russia».

Polyus

Polyus is the world’s fourth-largest gold mining company by production volumes and the largest gold miner in terms of attributable gold ore reserves. The company has the lowest production costs among major global gold producers. Its principal operations are located in Siberia and the Russian Far East: Krasnoyarsk, Irkutsk and Magadan regions and the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). 

Enquiries
Investor and Media contact

Victor Drozdov
Director, Communications & Investor Relations (CIR) Department
+7 (495) 641 33 77
drozdovvi@polyus.com

Forward looking statement

This announcement may contain «forward-looking statements» concerning Polyus and/or Polyus group. Generally, the words «will», «may», «should», «could», «would», «can», «continue», «opportunity», «believes», «expects», «intends», «anticipates», «estimates» or similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements include statements relating to future capital expenditures and business and management strategies and the expansion and growth of Polyus’ and/or Polyus group’s operations. Many of these risks and uncertainties relate to factors that are beyond Polyus’ and/or Polyus group’s ability to control or estimate precisely and therefore undue reliance should not be placed on such statements which speak only as at the date of this announcement. Polyus and/or any Polyus group company assumes no obligation in respect of, and does not intend to update, these forward-looking statements, except as required pursuant to applicable law.