IOC’s annual sustainable development report captures its progress to date, its greenhouse gas performance and targets and its contributions to the future sustainability of the communities where it operates. In 2020, IOC created 981,339 tonnes of CO2e of greenhouse gas emissions (Scope 1 and 2). In October, 2021 Rio Tinto unveiled a longer term strategy that set a new target for its subsidiaries, including IOC, to reduce its Scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions by 50% by 2030, more than tripling its previous target, and is bringing forward its 15% reduction in emissions to 2025 (previously 2030). Rio Tinto is focussed on developing technologies such as hydrogen or plasma torches which can use renewable energy to potentially replace fossil fuels for heat and steam. Four plasma torches were ordered in 2021 for a trial at IOC’s pellet plant.

IOC undertakes a number of initiates to monitor and report on its sustainability progress. IOC is a member of the Mining Association of Canada and continuously meets the requirements of its Toward Sustainable Mining program, which provides a set of guiding principles that allow it to track and improve its social and environmental performance year-on-year. This framework also allows IOC to benchmark its performance against other organizations in the mining sector in the areas of: Energy and Greenhouse Gas Management, Tailings Management, Safety and Health and Biodiversity.