Sustainability · Governance & risk
Risk is managed where it arises, and recorded where it is decided.
BYM is a small company working in a difficult environment. Its governance is built around that: clear responsibility at each site, documented decisions at the company, and conduct rules that apply to everyone acting for BYM.
How risk is managed
On site, and at the company.
On site
Each site has a manager responsible for safety, equipment, water and sediment control, security arrangements and relations with the cooperative and the local authorities. Daily checks on pumps, excavators and the working face are the first line of risk control; problems are reported up before they become incidents.
At the company
Management in Kinshasa and Ontario holds the register of risks below, approves site plans and partner agreements, and keeps the registration, licensing and weighing records that partners ask to see. The company’s legal structure and registration facts are set out on the governance page.
Risk register
Principal risks and how they are mitigated.
| Category | Mitigation |
|---|---|
| Geological | Several concession areas rather than a single working face reduces dependence on one deposit. |
| Regulatory | Operations through licensed cooperatives under the DRC Mining Code, with compliance reviewed on an ongoing basis. |
| Logistics | Pre-positioned equipment, alternative transport routes and fuel reserves on site. |
| Security | Site security arrangements, community integration and coordination with local authorities. |
| Gold price | Low-cost gravity processing keeps break-even output modest relative to targets. |
| Operational | On-site maintenance teams, spare parts inventory and equipment redundancy. |
| Environmental | Water and sediment management designed in from the start, with rehabilitation planning. |
| Currency | Gold is priced in US dollars; local currency exposure is limited to operating costs. |
Conduct
Four commitments that apply to everyone acting for BYM.
- 01
Anti-corruption
No payments, gifts or favours are offered or accepted to obtain licences, access, approvals or business. This applies to BYM staff, cooperative partners acting with BYM, and anyone representing the company.
- 02
Due diligence for conflict-affected and high-risk areas
BYM operates in eastern DRC and applies the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals: knowing who is at the site, who provides security, and where the gold goes, and recording it so that buyers can rely on it.
- 03
Chain of custody
Gold is weighed at the site when it is recovered and again on transfer, and the weighing records travel with each batch. The same records support cooperative revenue sharing and reporting to the authorities.
- 04
Whistleblowing
Anyone, inside or outside the company, can report suspected corruption, unsafe practice or wrongdoing to management or directly to the corporate address, and will not be penalised for doing so in good faith.
Status
These are commitments. Written policies exist as working documents and are available to partners and counterparties on request; they have not been published on this website.
Reports under the whistleblowing commitment can be sent to info@blackyellowminerals.com.