Research Paper

• Complicity in the Congo: Investor Risk in the Minerals Supply Chain (.pdf)
• Executive Summary (.pdf)

Presentation

• Webinar recording: Complicity in the Congo (.wmv)
• Presentation slides only (.pdf)
• Q&A Sheet (.pdf)

Products that have electronic circuit boards and components, which include consumer electronics (such as digital cameras), IT (such as cell phones and laptops), aerospace, automotive, medical supplies (such as hearing aids), and appliances, are the largest consumers of tantalum in particular (60 per cent of the world’s annual production according to Fauna & Flora International). According to estimates by GHGm, these products which contain electronic components also consume 36 per cent of the world’s annual tin production, 30 per cent of the world’s annual tungsten production, and roughly 9 per cent of the world’s annual gold production. Because these metals are used in most products that use electrical current, it remains unclear precisely what proportion of global usage of the 3Ts is attributed solely to IT applications.

Sustainalytics is proud to be part of a multi-stakeholder group that submitted recommendations to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as part of their rule-making process under the Dodd-Frank Act – Special Disclosures Section 1502 (Conflict Minerals Amendment). The group includes corporations, investors and civil society organizations and was led by Responsible Sourcing Network (www.sourcingnetwork.org). These recommendations were the only ones submitted to the SEC from a group of diverse stakeholders. The recommendations can be found here.