Eramet Grande Côte demonstrates the Eramet Group's commitment to responsible mining by achieving IRMA 50 performance level
Paris, February 5th, 2026, 08:30 a.m.
PRESS RELEASE
Eramet Grande Côte demonstrates the Eramet Group's commitment to responsible mining by achieving IRMA 50 performance level
- Eramet Grande Côte, Eramet Group’s first site audited according to the IRMA standard, a global benchmark for responsible mining.
- First site audited according to the IRMA standard in Senegal, and the first mineral sands site to achieve this level globally.
- Eramet Grande Côte is now among the 14 mining sites worldwide with an IRMA performance evaluation
- A voluntary approach to enter the IRMA audit process, announced by Eramet as early as 2022.
- An independent external audit conducted according to the IRMA standard, assessing the robustness of the site's environmental, social, and governance practices
- An audit report made public on the IRMA website, as part of a follow-up audit cycle every 18 months to assess ongoing compliance with the standard's requirements.
Eramet announces that its Eramet Grande Côte (EGC) site, specializing in mineral sands mining in Senegal, has achieved the IRMA 50 performance level, becoming the first site within the Group to be audited under the IRMA standard. This evaluation is part of the Eramet Group’s voluntary approach, initiated in 2022 through its CSR roadmap Act for Positive Mining, and is based on an independent external audit confirming the robustness of the site’s environmental, social, and governance practices.
IRMA, a reference standard for responsible mining
The IRMA Standard for Responsible Mining was developed through a broad public consultation process involving more than 100 organizations and stakeholders: NGOs, unions, communities, mining companies, clients, and end-users of mining products. Recognized as one of the most comprehensive and demanding evaluation frameworks in the sector, an IRMA Achievement distinguishes four performance levels: IRMA Transparency, corresponding to third-party evaluation and the publication of results; IRMA 50, 75, and 100, reflecting the progressive compliance with a set of critical requirements and a score of at least 50%, 75%, or 100% in each of the four principle area of the Standard: social responsibility, environmental responsibility, business integrity, and planning for positive legacies.
Robust results across all pillars of the IRMA standard
The audit of Eramet Grande Côte highlights a solid foundation of environmental, social, and governance practices, with the following performance levels:
- Business integrity (governance, transparency and ethical practices): 74%
- Planning for positive legacies: 67%
- Social responsibility: 74 %
- Environmental responsibility: 67 %
These results highlight robust practices, while also identifying areas for improvement addressed through dedicated action plans.
An audit approach based on transparency
The IRMA approach undertaken by Eramet is voluntary and based on an independent external evaluation, accompanied by the full publication of the audit report. This choice reflects a commitment to transparency regarding the site’s practices and to the structuring of a continuous improvement process.
In accordance with the IRMA standard requirements, the audit will be supplemented by follow-up audits conducted every 18 months to verify the continued maintenance of the level achieved. The results will continue to be made publicly available on the IRMA website and the Eramet Grande Côte website for all stakeholders.
Frédéric Zanklan, Managing Director of Eramet Grande Côte
«Eramet Grande Côte is the first mine to obtain IRMA in West Africa. This IRMA 50 result clearly marks an important milestone for EGC, its teams, and local communities. It is fully aligned with the directions promoted by the State of Senegal, which seeks to position the mining sector as a lever for economic sovereignty, local value creation, and responsible development, based on high standards of transparency and good governance. Through this demanding audit, we reaffirm our commitment to continuously strengthen our practices and anchor our operations in a dynamic of long-term value creation, in close collaboration with local stakeholders and in full alignment with Eramet’s Act for Positive Mining vision.»
Virginie de Chassey, Chief Sustainability and External Affairs Officer of the Eramet Group
« Achieving the IRMA 50 level validates the progress made by the Eramet Grande Côte site and the commitment of the Act for Positive Mining roadmap across all our mining sites. IRMA provides the most comprehensive, transparent, and rigorous standard in our sector, and this evaluation confirms that our integrated responsible mining practices deliver measurable and concrete results on the ground. We also intend to leverage this approach to sustainably engage our stakeholders in the adoption of increasingly demanding environmental and social practices. This milestone reflects not only the work of the Eramet Grande Côte teams, but also our determination to build trust by operating to the highest standards. »
Aimee Boulanger, Executive Director of IRMA
« This report demonstrates that mines can point to transparent, independent evaluations of their environmental and social performance. Through detailed IRMA audit reports, mining companies, communities and companies that purchase mined materials can gain the information they need, to decide what’s going well — and what may require more attention — at specific mines. »
Identified areas for improvement to sustainably enhance performance
Through the IRMA audit, Eramet Grande Côte has identified several improvement levers aimed at further enhancing its performance and impact on local territories. These insights are part of a continuous improvement approach, supported by the definition of dedicated action plans.
The priorities notably focus on consolidating best practices and optimizing stakeholder engagement, strengthening the effectiveness of the grievance management mechanism, improving the monitoring of resettlement processes, and improve water quality and quantity monitoring of water, including the analysis of potential exceedances and the implementation of appropriate actions.
The full IRMA audit report is available on IRMA’s website and can be accessed via the following link:
ABOUT ERAMET
Eramet transforms the Earth’s mineral resources to provide sustainable and responsible solutions to the growth of the industry and to the challenges of the energy transition.
Its employees are committed to this through their civic and contributory approach in all the countries where the mining and metallurgical group is present.
Manganese, nickel, mineral sands and lithium: Eramet recovers and develops metals that are essential to the construction of a more sustainable world.
As a privileged partner of its industrial clients, the Group contributes to making robust and resistant infrastructures and constructions, more efficient means of mobility, safer health tools and more efficient telecommunications devices.
Fully committed to the era of metals, Eramet’s ambition is to become a reference for the responsible transformation of the Earth’s mineral resources for living well together.
| INVESTOR CONTACT Director of Investor Relations Sandrine Nourry-Dabi T. 02 | PRESS CONTACT Media Relations Manager Fanny Mounier T. 83 Media Relations Officer Nedjma Amrani T. 49 |
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