COVID-19

COVID-19 Management Policy

Molycop acknowledges the public health challenge presented by COVID-19, and in response has taken swift and significant action to protect the health and wellbeing of employees, contractors and customers in line with our longstanding health and safety culture.

In response to the COVID-19 (Corona) Virus, we are initiating several control initiatives. New information from Government, the WHO, medical professionals and other businesses is being examined to formulate our decisions. It is important to note that this situation is extremely dynamic in nature. Accordingly, we will be constantly reviewing the appropriateness of our response and accordingly initiatives may be modified, added to or discontinued at short notice based on information we receive.

Click here to read our policy

Positive COVID-19 result or high potential exposure response protocol

Molycop has developed a protocol to be enacted in response to a confirmed positive or high potential risk exposure (close contact with confirmed positive).

The protocol has been communicated and deployed across all regional operations.

We continue to enact measures to reduce the likelihood of transmission within our operations including;

• Travel bans since beginning of March 2020,
• Stringent return to work protocols including self-isolation requirements ahead of Government mandates,
• Remote working for non-essential staff,
• Elimination of shift crew overlaps,
• More frequent workplace cleaning,
• Elimination of person-to-person contact in our freight/logistics supply chain.

Click here to view our response protocol

Global Mitigation Actions

In response to this epidemic Molycop has implemented a wide range of mitigation activities to protect our people, suppliers, customers and the viability of our business operations

• Molycop established a COVID-19 Crisis Management Team, including in-country response teams, led by CEO Jim Anderson.
• Strict site entry protocols, including potential COVID-19 exposure screening and 100% temperature checking.
• Enhanced site cleaning protocols and capability to undertake “deep cleaning” if required.
• Proactive implementation of risk reduction strategies including, travel bans since beginning of March 2020, stringent return to work protocols including self-isolation requirements ahead of Government mandates, remote working for non-essential staff, eliminations of shift crew overlaps, more frequent workplace cleaning, elimination of person-to-person contact in our freight/logistics supply chain.
• Active employee engagement with more stringent standards applied to critical contractors.
• Development of a protocol to manage a COVID-19 positive or high potential exposure cases.
• Provide regular updates to our employees, suppliers and customers.

It is important to note that this situation is extremely dynamic in nature. Accordingly, we are constantly reviewing the impact of the government measures on our business and the appropriateness of our response.

What is being done to manage business continuity?

• We have completed scenario planning work to prepare for different contingencies.
• Across the entire network we strive to ensure we have at sufficient inventory of both finished goods and raw materials.
• We have identified exposure points in certain raw materials and product lines and mitigation plans have been enacted.
• Current capacity prioritized for existing customers.
• Global supply chain group formed to leverage our global network to meet demand for our global customer base.
• We have deployed overtime shifts in some operations to optimise our inventory position.
• Access to all sites has been limited to essential personnel only.

Molycop is well positioned to provide continuous support to customers.

• We have multiple manufacturing plants located in multiple regions, close to customers.
• 12 operations in 8 countries so we are not dependent on one plant or significantly impacted by the response of an individual government.
• Many of our plants are located within major mining regions – reducing supply chain times and reliance on customer site-based inventory
• We are not dependent on one raw material supplier.  Each region has both domestic and overseas steel bar suppliers, plus we have our own steel manufacturing facility in Australia.
• Molycop is the world’s largest manufacturer of grinding media with installed capacity of ~1.8mtpa.

La Joya Restart

The COVID-19 virus emergency is having a dramatic impact on society and the way we live and work.  In order to comply with the Peruvian authority’s requirement to re-commence supply to the mining industry in Peru, we have restarted operations at our Lima and La Joya manufacturing facilities after a mandated lock down period.

Due to mobility restrictions imposed during the state of emergency, especially in the Arequipa district, our team transformed some of the administrative areas within our plant into temporary accommodation areas, where our staff can spend the night and rest.  This measure has allowed us to minimize the movements of people (trips from home to our facilities, and vice versa) and take care of the sleep and rest needs of our staff so that they comply with their typical shift structure then return to their homes.

That is why we would like to recognize the effort of our Safety, Health & Environment (SHE), Human Resources, Logistics, and Operations Departments that have been able to successfully restart our Peruvian operations and ensure the safety of our employees.

Sources of Useful Information About COVID-19

These uncertain and rapidly evolving times, can result in increased feelings of fear and anxiety.  Be mindful of the sources of your information and ensure you are accessing good quality and accurate information from a reliable source.

Below are some examples of reliable sources of information on the virus;

• World Health Organisation
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Know the signs
• Stop the spread
• Tips to manage your mental health

How are we keeping our people safe?

• Molycop has implemented travel bans on all employees.
• Returning overseas workers to home base.
• Return to work plans including self-isolation.
• Contractor suspension until we understand and are satisfied with their COVID-19 management plans.
• Increasing cleaning standards.
• General precautionary & hygiene steps implemented
• Clarifying leave arrangements.
• Site access control including blanket temperature checking.
• Releasing our protocol for confirmed positive or high-risk exposures.
• Enabling remote working.
• Canteen lunch room protocols.