Bogotá, April 12, 2023
Relative to the information disseminated on the return of two properties located in La Jagua de Ibirico, Cesar, Drummond would like to make the following clarifications:
- To develop the El Descanso mining contract, in the year 2007 the National Authority for Environmental Licenses (ANLA) ordered Drummond Ltd. to negotiate the acquisition of all the properties in the Mechoacan subdivision, which consists of more than 130 lots.
- Drummond Ltd. conducted group negotiations, through public discussion tables, asking the State to intervene as a guarantor that everything would be done with respect for the rights of the community and within the applicable legal framework.
- The government institutions that participated were: the Office of the Inspector General (guarantor of the interests of the parties involved and, especially, the most vulnerable parties), the Colombian Institute for Rural Development – INCODER (responsible for the studies of the title deeds of each property in the Mechoacan subdivision) and the Agustín Codazzi Geographical Institute – IGAC (responsible for the case-by-case assessment of the properties to be negotiated and the determination of the minimum price for the start of the negotiations of the economic aspects).
- The former owners of the rights to the Mechoacan subdivision were represented by lawyers with recognized local and national experience, and had the opportunity to negotiate all aspects related to the purchase and sale of the properties.
- As a result of these negotiations, the properties of the Mechoacan subdivision that could be acquired were identified. Some properties were excluded when circumstances or reasons for doubt were identified that suggested it would be better to refrain from purchasing them until those issues were resolved.
- Drummond Ltd. did everything in its power, beyond what was required by law, to obtain a real and well-founded conviction that the properties it acquired could be legitimately purchased, in accordance with the highest standards required by good faith, without affecting the rights of third parties and/or people in vulnerable situations.
- Drummond Ltd. acted with rigorous due diligence, and justifiably trusted that the intervention of several institutions of the Colombian State was a full guarantee that the negotiation process would be conducted with respect for the common good and the rights of the entire community.
Lastly, Drummond Ltd. reiterates that neither the company nor its executives have or have had any ties to illegal organizations of any origin.
Since the beginning of its operations in Colombia in the late 1980s, the company has adhered to the laws that govern the country, and has adopted the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights, as well as the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.