Horizonte Updates on Its Community Engagement and CSR for the Local Communities Surrounding the Araguaia Nickel Project

LONDON, Dec. 20, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Horizonte Minerals Plc, (AIM/TSX: HZM) ('Horizonte' or the ‘Company') the nickel development company focused in Brazil, is pleased to announce an update on its Corporate Social Responsibility (‘CSR’) program in the communities surrounding its Araguaia Nickel Project (‘Araguaia’), south of the Carajás Mining District in the Pará State, north east Brazil.

Key Highlights

• Horizonte has supported local communities since its initial discovery of the project;
  
   
• The Company is running several new social impact projects, tackling issues specific to the region, in partnership with local community organisations;
  
   
• These projects include:
  • Strengthening the local supply chain;
  • Sex education and reproductive health; and
  • Diversification of the rural economy.

Jeremy Martin, CEO of Horizonte Minerals, commented:

“We are very proud of what we have achieved, and are continuing to achieve, on the ground at Araguaia working in partnership with the communities and local authorities. Since Horizonte’s initial discovery of the project, we have always strived to ensure that the local communities not only benefit from us being there, but also embrace this project as valued partners.

This means ensuring our community programmes are a core part of our strategy, where socio-economic development is prioritised as a fundamental aspect of our work in the region. We are particularly proud of the economic agricultural diversity projects we have helped to establish, working to empower and support local business, including participation of women and young people. We look forward to 2020 and new opportunities to make a difference in the community”

Detailed Information of CSR Projects:

      1.       FIEPA (State of Pará Federation of Industries) Partnership

The single largest economic contribution to the local society for most mining projects occurs in the supply chain. Horizonte’s FIEPA Project will promote the introduction of a local supplier development program, focusing on mapping, registration, and training of local suppliers, while creating procedures for communicating future supply opportunities. The aim of this project is to ensure that the maximum amount of goods and services are sourced from the project's local municipalities, thereby boosting the local economy.

     2.       Barong Institute Partnership - “JUVENTUDE! A NOSSA VEZ” - “YOUTH! OUR TIME ”

The purpose of the Barong Institute Partnership project is to educate the local community on safe sexual and reproductive health issues.   Horizonte has partnered with the Barong institute to work closely with regional stakeholders and provide a platform for young people to seek information on sexual health in a safe and supportive environment.

The project will develop a group of local educators to provide and promote information on reproductive health, which we hope to have a real and lasting impact on a number of health indicators in the local communities.

Partnerships are being developed with university institutions and the Local Municipal Government’s Education/Health/Tourism/Social Welfare departments to ensure that the beneficial work of this project will be replicated and integrated across the broader project area of influence throughout 2020.

      3.       Economic agriculture diversification projects:

Flour Production Facility - Casa de Farinha

The Flour Production Facility is a partnership formed between the local Joncon community, the Municipal Conceição do Araguaia government, the EMMATUR Association (rural assistance association), and Horizonte.  As a result of the partnership, the community has built a flour production facility, the “Casa de Farinha”, and provided training to develop entrepreneurial skills of the project participants. 

The focus of this enterprise aims to enable rural women to diversify their skillsets and benefit economically from the efficient cultivation of cassava (locally known as mandioca) which will then be processed to make flour.  The cassava root is particularly vital in Brazilian culture, forming an important source of carbohydrate and has been cultivated for centuries in traditional cultures.  The Women’s Flour Facility will purchase the cassava roots from local farms to be milled into flour or sold on for direct consumption.

During the third quarter of 2019 Horizonte donated building materials to construct the facility and played an important role in attracting other community partners into the project.

             

Cocoa Crops Cultivation

The Company, in partnership with EMMATUR Association, has developed a project to support the technical training of rural producers in the region for the cultivation of cocoa crops.

Having built a nursery, more than 17,000 cocoa seedlings – in addition to several species of native Brazilian trees, were grown and produced, ready for planting. Horizonte worked to provide free technical training to over 30 local producers during the course of 2019.

Horizonte’s involvement included visits to existing cacao producers in nearby regions of the state of Pará, as well as identifying potential cacao crop locations, sourcing water permits, and the implementation of programs to ensure environmental control measures in line with the Company’s own strict sustainability standards.

Support to Local Agribusiness

Since 2018, the Araguaia Nickel Project has been supporting a frozen fruit pulp processing agribusiness, led by COPAG - Araguaia Small Farmers' Cooperative.

Initially Horizonte supported the industrial facility by supplying building materials but is now financing the electrical fit out to allow the facility to be fully commissioned and the Company looks forward to the results which are expected in 2020.

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About Horizonte Minerals:

Horizonte Minerals plc is an AIM and TSX-listed nickel development company focused in Brazil. The Company is developing the Araguaia project, as the next major ferronickel mine in Brazil, and the Vermelho nickel-cobalt project, with the aim of being able to supply nickel and cobalt to the EV battery market. Both projects are 100% owned.

Horizonte shareholders include: Teck Resources Limited, Canaccord Genuity Group, JP Morgan, Lombard Odier Asset Management (Europe) Limited, Richard Griffiths and Glencore.