Kingsrose Mining (ASX:KRM) recently released its inaugural sustainability report for FY2024, integrating ESG principles into its exploration activities. The report addresses key ESG themes, including biodiversity, Indigenous rights, water stewardship, and governance. Managing Director Fabian Baker emphasizes the company’s commitment to transparency and accountability, stating that sustainability performance and exploration success are intertwined.
While major mining companies have made strides in ESG, a gap persists between them and junior explorers. Research firm ISS notes that ASX-listed mining companies generally have low environmental and social performance scores. Kingsrose aims to pioneer ESG practices at the ground level by embedding biodiversity assessments, ecological surveys, and water quality sampling into early exploration phases. The company has also appointed a Head of Sustainability to its senior leadership team.
Kingsrose emphasizes the importance of capacity, consistency, and collaboration for small-cap explorers to improve sustainability reporting. This includes targeted funding, standardized reporting frameworks, and shared knowledge platforms. The company is drafting a Climate Change Policy and preparing a greenhouse gas emissions inventory to align with net-zero emissions targets. Baker believes the mining sector plays a pivotal role in the energy transition, demanding leadership and responsible scaling.
