Vale informs that it has strengthened its low-carbon advantage with independent third-party limited
assurance of additional nickel products. About 83% of Vale’s Class 1 nickel now has an independently
verified carbon footprint, underscoring Vale’s commitment to delivering low-carbon metals while ensuring
responsible carbon data management and transparency. Nickel rounds from Vale’s Long Harbour refinery in
Newfoundland & Labrador are already among the lowest-carbon intensive globally, with 4.4 tonnes of CO2
equivalent per tonne of nickel.
“Sustainable, reliable production of high-quality nickel is essential to global decarbonization
efforts,” said Deshnee Naidoo, Vale’s Executive Vice President of Base Metals. “Our low-carbon products
show we have the right assets in the right geographies, and the technical expertise to unlock long-term
value for the business and society.”
The scope of the assurance work by Intertek Group Plc affirmed nickel pellet and powder products from
the Copper Cliff Nickel Refinery in Sudbury, Canada had a carbon footprint of 7.3 tonnes of CO2
equivalent per tonne, while pellet product from the Clydach refinery in Wales had a carbon footprint of
33.1 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per tonne. The carbon footprint of Vale’s Canadian nickel operations ranks
within the top 10% globally with Clydach in line with the industry average.
Carbon footprint includes Scope 1 and 2 emissions generated during mining, milling and refining, as well
as upstream Scope 3 emissions from inputs and was measured in accordance with the Product Life Cycle
Accounting and Reporting Standard for the GHG Protocol, a comprehensive global standardized framework
for measuring and managing greenhouse gas emissions. Carbon footprint of the nickel and copper products
is based on 2020 data, the last complete year for which figures are available.