Visit the minerals tracker

Demand for minerals like lithium, cobalt, copper, and nickel is expanding as companies race to produce the technology needed to support the low-carbon transition, from electric vehicles to solar panels to wind turbines.

But companies’ human rights due diligence isn’t keeping pace with expanding exploration, increasing the risk that the transition fuels further abuse in an already troubled sector.

Today (5/9/19) the Resource Centre launches a new Transition Minerals Tracker tool providing data to investors, businesses and civil society groups to inform decisions and improve business practice in this vital field for tackling the climate crisis. 

The Centre has also conducted research on the human rights policies and allegations relating to companies mining cobalt, copper, lithium, manganese, nickel and zinc, minerals that are crucial in the transition to low-carbon technologies (including solar panels, wind turbines and electric vehicle batteries).

Companies were selected if they were among the top five global producers of one of these minerals, or alternatively, if they were among the top five producers of one of these minerals in the Southern Africa Development Community. The findings are available below.

August 2019 Snapshot

Learn more about the main concerns raised in the allegations recorded on the Transition Minerals Tracker, and how growing demand could exacerbate existing issues.

Southern Africa

Half of the top companies in Southern Africa producing six key minerals - lithium, copper, cobalt, manganese, nickel and zinc - have been accused of human rights abuses, from violating access to water and land rights to corruption, violence and deaths.

Read it here.