Vedanta Resources

Sustainability strategy and accountability

Vedanta Resources applies a mitigation hierarchy approach which covers avoidance, mitigation and biodiversity offsets, to its biodiversity targets.

Stakeholder engagement

Vedanta Resources discloses an overview of the issues raised during its stakeholder engagement activities. The company discloses how often and through which channels it engages with various stakeholder groups. The company discloses how its stakeholder engagement activities impact its sustainability strategy.

Solid and air pollution

Vedanta Resources is reducing the production of hazardous waste. The company discloses the proportion of hazardous waste treated to reduce pollution compared to total waste, the hazardous waste diverted from disposal and the waste directed to disposal.

Invasive species

Vedanta Resources identifies the activities that could lead to the introduction of IAS in its own operations and value chain. The company’s biodiversity risk and impact assessment include assessing the accidental introduction of invasive alien species, which highlighted the activities that should be considered in its operation and value chain.

Indigenous peoples’ and land rights 

Vedanta Resources is committed to respecting Indigenous Peoples’ rights. The company discloses its processes for identifying and recognising the rights of Indigenous Peoples when activities in its own operations may impact their rights, and it describes how it obtains Indigenous Peoples’ free, prior and informed consent. 

Sustainability strategy and accountability 

Vedanta Resources discloses its process for identifying and prioritising its most relevant sustainability impacts as well as the outcome of this process, in relation to its sustainability strategy. While the company discloses some sustainability targets and reports progress against them, no evidence that the company has group wide targets on key sustainability topics for the most material parts of its value chain based on the SBTN Sectoral Materiality Tool. Additionally, the company does not disclose whether its highest governance body has expertise regarding nature-related topics. 

Lobbying 

Vedanta Resources discloses a list of trade associations of which it is a member wherever it operates. However, the company does not disclose a clear and detailed framework for assessing alignment of its trade associations with nature-positive policies. The company does not report (potential) misalignment between the lobbying activities of its trade associations and nature-positive policies. 

Impact and dependencies assessment 

Vedanta Resources has not holistically assessed its impacts or how it depends on nature, including biodiversity. It has an opportunity to start such an assessment across its value chains, focused on quantification of its impacts or dependencies. 

Key areas and species 

Vedanta Resources discloses the locations that are in or adjacent to areas important for biodiversity within its own operations. The company discloses the status according to national and international conservation lists of species identified in its own locations. However, the company does not disclose the locations of its suppliers that are in or adjacent to areas important for biodiversity. The company also does not disclose species populations existing in or adjacent to its own locations and those of its suppliers.  

Ecosystem conversion and restoration 

Vedanta Resources does not disclose a commitment to ensure zero conversion. The company does not disclose activities or targets to achieve conversion-free supply chains. The company does not disclose activities to minimise ecosystem conversion. While the company discloses details and outcomes of ecosystem restoration projects in areas affected by its own operations or by its suppliers, the company does not disclose a commitment to restore ecosystems. 

Resource exploitation and circularity 

Vedanta Resources does not disclose its inputs, including its material footprint. The company does not report quantitatively on its group-wide circularity performance. While the company discloses activities to improve soil health or agrobiodiversity in its production or sourcing practices, it does not disclose a target to improve soil health. 

Water 

Vedanta Resources has a time-bound target to reduce water withdrawal in its own operations and reports progress against the target. While the company discloses its amount of water withdrawal, no evidence that the company reduces water withdrawal across the company’s own operations. The company does not report how much water is withdrawn for its own operations in water-stressed areas. The company does not engage with suppliers to reduce water withdrawal.  

Vedanta Resources reports a decrease in water pollution. However, the company does not disclose its processes for managing and monitoring discharge water quality. The company does not regularly report on water pollution, nor does it disclose targets to reduce water pollution. The company does not disclose a commitment to respect the right to water. The company does not disclose its processes for implementing preventive and corrective action plans for identified specific risks to the right to water and sanitation in its own operations. 

Solid and air pollution 

No evidence that Vedanta Resources reduces plastic use and waste in its own operations was found. The company does not report on the amount of plastic waste generated and proportions directed from or to disposal. While the company reports regularly on air quality parameters of emissions of harmful air pollutants, it does not report time-bound targets to reduce air pollutants across most material parts of its value chain. 

GHG emissions 

No evidence that Vedanta Resources reduces its scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions was found. While the company has a time-bound target to reduce its scope 1 and 2 emissions, no evidence that it is aligned with a 1.5-degree trajectory was found.  

Vedanta Resources is reducing its scope 3 emissions, yet the company does not disclose a time-bound target to reduce its scope 3 emissions.  

Safe, healthy, clean environment 

While Vedanta Resources aims to improve the quality of life of local communities, it has an opportunity to make a commitment to respect the right to a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment. While the company organizes several healthcare initiatives, no evidence that these initiatives track the company’s actual or potential negative impacts on the health of local communities. The company is not committed to zero tolerance for acts of violence, threats, intimidation or judicial harassment committed against land and environmental rights defenders. 

Indigenous peoples’ and land rights 

While Vedanta Resources discloses its regulations to meet the requirements of international standards on use of land and resettlement, it has an opportunity to make a commitment to respect ownership and use of land and natural resources and related legitimate tenure rights. No evidence was found that the company requires its business relationships to have a process to identify legitimate tenure rightsholders, paying particular attention to vulnerable or marginalised tenure rightsholders, and to negotiate with them to provide adequate compensation. 

While Vedanta Resources discloses that it conducts periodic reviews and risk assessments in all group companies to identify potential human rights, it has an opportunity to specify that it conducts human rights due diligence that includes a process for identifying human rights risks and impacts through its business relationships. The company has an opportunity to describe a process for assessing the human rights risks it has identified and to disclose what it considers to be its salient human rights issues. A description of this process would include how relevant factors are considered, such as geographical, economic and social factors. No evidence was found that the company has a global system to act on its salient human rights issues.

While the company discloses the categories of stakeholders it engages with generally on sustainability issues, it is not clear if these stakeholders are those whose human rights have been or may be affected by its activities. No evidence that the company provides examples of its engagement with stakeholders whose human rights have been or may be affected by its activities was found.

Vedanta Resources has a publicly available policy statement which shows that it is committed to respecting the health and safety of workers and that it expects its suppliers to also commit to it. While the company ensures that the ratios of entry level wages meet or exceeds the legal requirements and complies with all applicable laws, it has an opportunity to disclose a time-bound target for paying all workers a living wage or that it has achieved paying all workers a living wage. No evidence that the company describes how it determines a living wage for the regions where it operates was found. While the company states that it expects its suppliers to pay wages that are sufficient for workers and their families to fulfil their basic needs, it has an opportunity to disclose how it works to support the payment of a living wage by its suppliers.

Vedanta Resources discloses the proportion of its total direct operations workforce covered by collective bargaining agreements. No evidence that the company describes how it works to support the practices of its suppliers in relation to freedom of association and collective bargaining was found.

Vedanta Resources discloses a global tax strategy. The company takes steps to identify and address bribery and corruption. No evidence that the company includes anti-bribery and anti-corruption clauses in its contracts with business relationships was found. No evidence that the company has a publicly available policy statement or policy setting out its lobbying and political engagement approach was found. No evidence that the company has a publicly available policy statement that specifies that it does not make political contributions was found.