Dear Stakeholders,
It was 52 years ago that HZL was first formed through nationalisation to scientifically develop the Zinc Lead deposits in Rajasthan. Since that time we have grown to become India's largest and world's second largest zinc mining company with nearly more than 19,000 workforce across its operations, providing the products which are essential in improving people's quality of life in form of better health and nutrients.
Now more than ever, major shifts in urbanisation, a rapidly growing middle class and the transition to a low carbon, water neutral economy are driving factors for consistent demand of metals and minerals we produce. Meeting this demand in a responsible and sustained way is essential to the continued growth and success of our business. Technology and innovation is one tool which is rapidly turning the world and is key to the success of any growing organisation.
It is surely changing the way mining is done globally and we at HZL, are leveraging the power of advanced technology like robotics, artificial intelligence and Internet of Things to enhance our sustainability quotient across various facets of operations.
The strategic use of technology as the basic element to catalyse a sustainable transformation across the organisation and its outcomes till date are captured in this report, aptly titled - TechTattva.
AugmenTECH
Our goal is to equip each mine with technology which will augment safety and productivity. Autonomous drilling, autonomous haulage, remote-controlled operations and real-time asset tracking and mine monitoring are the features we aim to make standard in all our mines in the coming three years. A prototype of such a digital mine is already operational in Sindesar Khurd.
Aided by technological interventions, and coupled with the expertise and commitment of our talented workforce, this year too we posted a healthy growth of 19% in zinc and lead metal production and touched a new high of 960 kt. Our sliver production peaked to 558 MT, a massive 23% growth as compared to the previous year.
Re-archiTECH
Over and above our own operations, technology is helping enhance the efficiency of our supply chain. E-enabling our entire Transport Management System has helped reduce manual intervention, leading to zero spillage and pilferage plus ensured secure movement of goods. It has not only resulted in the reduction in carbon emissions, but has enhanced accountability as well.
To further enhance ease of doing business with HZL, we implemented SAP Ariba. The benefits are multi-fold - automated vendor registration, speed of contracting, steep fall in delayed payments, and efficient online negotiations and auctions. To compel our supply chain to upgrade to global standards and to ensure better compliance towards UK Modern Slavery Act 2015, this year we modified our Supplier and Contractor Sustainability Management policy.
ProTECH
Our human resources are what sets HZL apart and we constantly invest in their safety and development. An underlying principle we follow to enhance the safety quotient of our operations is to reduce the proximity of our employees from potential hazards. Towards this objective, during the reporting period, we automated the process of hot metal transfer and eliminated manual interface. Four 8-seater capacity refuge chambers were installed at our Rampura Agucha site to protect our employees in case of any untoward incident.
Integral to our proactive and preventive approach towards health and safety is our positive safety culture. Aarohan, a Company-wide initiative, focusess on eliminating fatalities and serious injuries through positive safety behaviour and a better understanding of the consequences of unsafe acts.
In recognition of our safety performance and efforts to strengthen safety culture, we were awarded the 'Safety Innovation Award 2017' by the Institution of Engineers (India). Our Health and Safety scores on VSAP, our internal risk management tool, recorded an improvement from 54 last year to 63 this year.
HolisTECH
Technology is only as good as the talent manning it. Thus along with their safety, we constantly develop the potential of our employees and provide them the platform to perform. The reporting period was replete with trainings on new processes and upgraded equipments. With a view to inject higher efficiency and better response time, even our HR processes were digitised.
TECHjuvenate
The general narrative of sustainability pitches technology and development as adversaries of the environment. But it is our strong belief that technology, when done right, can not only help protect the environment, but also help rejuvenate it. The fumer project at our Chanderiya Zinc Smelter is a case in point. It will help reduce waste, increase metal recovery and reduce land requirement. To spearhead many such waste reduction and value extraction initiatives across the organisation, we constituted a Waste to Wealth Committee this year.
Along with waste management, we are implementing technology interventions for water conservation, heat recovery and mitigating climate change. We have adopted Science Based Targets and are committed to reduce absolute Scopes 1 and 2 GHG emissions 14% by 2026 from a 2016 base year and also committed to reduce absolute Scope 3 GHG emissions 20% by 2026 from a 2016 base-year.
During the reporting period, we signed an MoU with Udaipur Smart City Limited for establishing another 40 MLD STP, which would double the sewage treatment capacity and significantly reduce our fresh water intake.
EduTECH
Just as technology is an instrument for sustainable transformation, education is the instrument to herald social transformation. At HZL, we are leveraging technology to enhance the effectiveness of our CSR programmes, make them cost-effective and add scale to our interventions.
Our Nandghars are powered by solar energy and fully equipped with internet for e-learning. The Anganwadi Smart System tracks performances of each Anganwadi on multiple parameters and helps us identify intervention areas to enhance their functioning.
Jeevan Tarang is an initiative where we have distributed smartphones with a special app to enable visually impaired students to access e-bookshare and special games. Even our football academies are equipped with the latest teaching and management technologies.
The Mining Academy, in partnership with the Skill Council of Mining Sector and the Indian Institute of Skill Development, provides training to the youth of our country in emerging mining technologies to make them future ready.
Along with education, our CSR programmes are designed in alignment with stated national priorities such as sanitation, sustainable livelihood, women empowerment, health and water.
While technology is helping us raise the performance bar across all three bottom-lines, it is also our key ally in communicating our sustainability efforts and performance to stakeholders with transparency, authenticity and integrity.
A vibrant exchange leads to higher trust which, in turn, strengthens the societal license to operate and enables accelerated growth. A stakeholder perceptions survey commissioned this year reported an overall brand image score of 79, wherein media had the highest brand image score of 90. As part of our engagement, we also re-validated our materiality issues with key stakeholders.
I thank everyone who supported us in our sustainability journey.
Our yearly Sustainability Report is a vital unit in this ongoing dialogue and I urge you to read it in detail, and share your feedback with us.
Warm regards,
Sunil Duggal
CEO and Managing Director
