From provenance and carbon emissions intensity, to safety and social responsibility, ValutraxTM aims to provide a single point of access to information on your purchase’s sustainability credentials.
As key ingredients to clean technology applications and central to the decarbonisation and electrification of the global economy, the metals and minerals we mine play a fundamental role in underpinning the success of the energy transition.
At Anglo American, we are committed to providing the products that will enable a more sustainable future in a responsible way – a commitment articulated in our Sustainable Mining Plan (SMP), which we created to foster innovation and deliver step change results across the entire mining value chain, from mineral discovery right through to marketing. These efforts are crucial, and align with growing trends confirming that environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors increasingly affect consumer trust and purchasing decisions.
Meet ValutraxTM – designed to improve value chain traceability
As key industries focus on building resilient and sustainable supply chains, we are working to provide our customers with greater visibility of the origination, and value chain, of the metals and minerals they purchase.
One of the ways we do this is by leveraging digital solutions that allow our counterparts to access key information about our products by using secure and transparent blockchain-based technology. In November 2022, we introduced ValutraxTM, our new, customer-focused digital traceability solution, to a select group of pilot customers.
ValutraxTM uses blockchain technology to provide an at-a-glance, parcel-level view of key information used as a measure of our sustainability performance. As well as meeting evolving consumer preferences, it has been designed to help ensure regulatory compliance by allowing direct access to a shipment’s core information and sustainability indicators through an easy-to-use, secure and customised digital interface.
By using ValutraxTM, our customers can have access to:
- A user-friendly dashboard providing key sustainability analytics – by commodity and site – of aggregated data, measurable by relevant indicators and that in time will enable the generation of targeted action plans to specific value chains.
- A dedicated digital label providing a parcel level, at-a-glance view of the indicators underpinning the ferronickel products’ sustainability credentials. This solution provides full visibility and reassurance to customers that their purchase is sourced and produced in accordance with Anglo American’s industry leading sustainability standards.
ValutraxTM also comes with the following advantages:
- Assurance that purchases are sourced and produced in accordance with Anglo American’s sustainability standards, as set out in our Sustainable Mining Plan.
- Visibility of key indicators for any product purchased, tracing the journey from mine to market.
- Clear, transparent, secure and accessible information, adhering to industry-leading standards for ethical and responsible sourcing assurance.
Every journey begins with the first step
The pilot version of ValutraxTM has been made, as an application within our online Customer Portal. This first release – which has benefitted from valuable customer input and engagement throughout the development process – marks an important milestone in our shared journey towards digitally-enabled traceability.
One of the other advantages of using a blockchain-based system is that, once established, it is scalable, with few technical limitations. This means that as well as extending the solution to other commodity areas in future, there is the potential to share data and connect ValutraxTM to other ecosystems. As we develop the solution further, our ambition is to extend its availability to other customers in future.
