Our Roadmap to Shared Value

The energy revolution is accelerating. For this transition to be sustainable, the world needs ESG-minded leaders to develop holistic solutions.

Sustainability is Embedded in our Mineralogical Signature

Graphite underpins COUNTLESS APPLICATIONS FOR RENEWABLE ENERGIES AND CLEANTECH. We take great responsibility in the privilege of extracting and transforming this finite resource.

We are building a business model around our vision for a cleaner future.

We are committed to creating value at every level, while offsetting the potential impact on our environment. Carbon-neutrality is not a goal, it is a foundation. So is sound governance and stakeholder collaboration.

We are Nouveau Monde; a novel route to driving sustainability thanks to advanced materials.

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Our Objectives

Nouveau Monde has mapped an incremental plan to generating positive returns in line with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

ESG Report 2022 - NMG

Economic Performance Driving Impact

By developing a solid enterprise, with sound economic parameters, a supportive shareholder base, and long-term vision, we are positioning Nouveau Monde as a catalyst for environmental, social, and financial benefits.

On our Way to Net Zero

Already carbon neutral, we are working toward a complete transition to Net Zero by 2030.

We firmly believe that this approach is essential to protect the environment and provide a sustainable future for generations to come.

Here’s how we plan to get there.

People & Community

Health, safety and community socioeconomic wellbeing are central to our sustainability commitment for they propel our success and growth.

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Safe work environment for staff and business partners

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Health plan for our employees and their families

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Partnerships and sponsorships for community vitality

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Fostering social dialogue

In building our company, we have placed great emphasis on gender equality, inclusive workplace, and opportunities for professional development. Nouveau Monde is recognised as an employer of choice and a preferred business partner.

Partnered Development

The main industries in the Matawinie property region are recreation and forestry. In keeping with our COLLABORATIVE AND RESPONSIBLE APPROACH, Nouveau Monde has launched many initiatives since the deposit discovery to align our project with the realities, concerns, and values of the local community.

  • Over 70 information events to establish an open and constructive dialogue with local organisations, residents, cottage owners, and members of First Nations.

  • Creation of a monitoring committee to build trust with stakeholders throughout the mining development process and integrate concerns and expectations in the project design.

  • Consultations as part of the environmental and social impact assessment to analyze resident perspectives and identify mitigation or enhancement measures.

  • Pre-development agreement with the Atikamekw First Nation to provide a guideline for negotiating an Impact and Benefit Agreement for the Matawinie project.

  • Proactive voluntary acquisition program for landowners within a 1-km radius of the mining site. Agreements have been reached with all parties interested.

Through this partnered development, we have adapted the mine operating schedule to the tourism context and optimised the site layout.

82%

of community members support the project

82%

of community members support the project

Nouveau Monde has also created a territory integration plan to enhance the surroundings of the mining site and improve the region’s tourist and educational experience. It includes an eco-adventure park with 35+ km of mountain bike and hiking trails, a graphite education centre with industrial tours, a residential development, and upgrading of spaces nearing the project.

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Nouveau Monde has also established a collaboration and benefit-sharing agreement with the municipality of Saint-Michel-des-Saints to set out a concrete social, economic and environmental development partnership through financial and participatory mechanisms.

Active discussions are progressing with the Aitkamekw First Nation to finalise a similar agreement.

Springboard for Growth

Our project shall be a catalyst for the socio-economic development of our communities.

  • Creation of 250+ jobs

  • $350+M investments with economic spin-offs for communities and Québec

  • On-the-job training program leading to a Diploma of Vocational Studies

  • Prioritizing of local workers and suppliers

  • Sociovocational integration program for members of the Atikamekw First Nation

Environment

We chose to put our ideas and ideals into practice by RE-IMAGINING TRADITIONAL INDUSTRY PRACTICES to propose an innovative and bold project. From all-electric operations to tailings management, we have developed an eco-responsible and modern business model that reflects our vision of a greener future.

Goal: Zero net loss

Respect for our natural environment is the cornerstone of our development strategy.

As such, the environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) for our Matawinie project was conducted per sustainable development principles. Complete inventories of fauna and flora were carried out to optimise our development by reducing the project’s footprint, avoiding sensitive habitats and integrating mitigation measures for vulnerable species. All impacts generated associated with the project have been controlled and contained within 1 km of the mining site.

Nouveau Monde received a positive assessment from the governmental consultative body Bureau d’audiences publiques sur environment following public hearings on our Matawinie project.

“At the end of its analysis, the Commission notes that the Matawinie mining project would bring interesting economic diversification to the Haute-Matawinie region and would meet a demand for graphite that is set to strongly grow for several years. Innovations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and tailings management through co-disposal, in particular, would also be interesting from an environmental standpoint. Compensation and accommodation measures for the human environment should also be highlighted, including the land integration program, benefit-sharing agreements with host communities, the voluntary acquisition plan and the operations schedule adapted to tourism.”

– Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement, June 2020

Clean Water

Water is the source of life for ecosystems and communities around and downstream from our Matawinie project. We have developed a water management program that meets the highest environmental standards.

Our state-of-the-art water treatment plant is already operational at the mining site for our demonstration activities.

Tailings Management

The development of a deposit implies responsibilities with regard to the footprint on the natural and human environment both during and after the operations, particularly when it comes to tailings which can constitute an environmental liability.

Nouveau Monde has put forward innovative design criteria by prioritising design for closure, dry-stack tailings, the desulphurisation of tailings, the gradual backfilling of the pit, and the co-disposal of waste rock and tailings.

Our system is aligned with recent standards and requirements of the world’s best recognized practices for tailings management such as The Global Tailings Review, the International Network for Acid Prevention and the Canadian Mine Environment Neutral Drainage Program.

Leadership & Accountability

We pride ourselves on our SOLID WORK ETHIC. Every interaction, meeting, and partnership, whether it be with our communities, regulators, or customers, is approached with the same values of safety, responsibility, openness, integrity and entrepreneurial spirit.

As our company grows, we are implementing policies to strengthen our commitment towards transparency, fairness and equality, and superior management.

Sustainability knows no competition nor boundaries. We are driving collaboration across our sector and beyond, to truly reinvent models of resource extraction and transformation.