Theo Yameogo

Buenos dias, bom dia, hello everyone and welcome. On behalf of the entire EY Metals and Mining team, we are so glad to have you join us for this year's Americas Metals and Mining Forum. My name is Theo Yameogo, EY Americas Metals and Mining Leader and I'm always excited to be joined by my good friend and co-leader, Kaki Giauque, who is EY Americas Metals and Mining Assurance Leader.

We brought together voices from across the Americas to share real world insight and fresh perspective on the challenges and opportunities that are shaping our sector.

Kaki Giauque:

Thank you, Theo. It is my pleasure to join you today.

This year’s theme is ‘Driving innovation: the essential role of metals and minerals in shaping a sustainable future’ and captures a pivotal moment in time. The world is changing fast, and our sector has a critical role to play.

Today, we’ll hear from leaders who are pushing boundaries in sustainability, innovation, and long-term value creation. It’s all about learning from each other - what’s working, where we’re headed, and how we can continue to lead responsibly.

Theo Yameogo

Before we dive in today's agenda, here are some quick housekeeping notes. For the polling questions that will be pushed through the sessions, results won't be displayed live, but we will review and analyze your input after the event so that we can share key insight through email and through our website. You can submit questions for our panelists at any time using the Q&A chat box. We’ll address as many as we can, and we will also follow up for particular questions if needed.

And a reminder if you are pursuing CPE credits today, please stay logged into the live webcast and respond to all polling questions when they appear.

Today we've got a great line up ahead, timely topics, bold ideas, and big thinking within the sector.

First, I will be joining a keynote conversation with Shaun Usmar, CEO of Vale Base Metals. We will explore the current state of the sector, the journey that Vale Base Metals has been on since he took over, and how the company is positioning itself for the future of critical minerals across the Americas and, actually, across the world. Following that, we will turn to COP30. As you know, COP30 will be happening in Brazil in November, and the integration of sustainability strategies into mine planning and investment decisions are going to be very, very important for COP30.

Next, we'll examine how companies are balancing capital, growth and energy demand in the minerals sector. Then we'll shift focus to precious metals, where we'll discuss how the sector is redefining strategies to address declining grade, rising cost pressure amid a geopolitical environment of uncertainty. And finally, we'll wrap up with a few reflections and key takeaways.

Kaki Giauque

In today's forum, you'll learn about the essential role of metals and minerals in shaping a sustainable future. Our discussion will focus on key considerations such as decarbonization, capital allocation, energy transition and innovative approaches to value recovery in precious metals. By the end of this session, you'll be able to determine how decarbonization and sustainability factors influence mine planning, investment decisions, and return on that investment; assess the impact of energy transition, government incentives and demand trends on capital allocation. We'll identify innovative strategies to address declining ore grades in rising cost pressures. And finally, recognize the broader implications of sustainability-driven transformation on operating models and stakeholder expectations.

Before we dive into the discussion, let's start with a quick poll to hear your perspective.

Which of the following forces do you believe will most reshape the future of metals and minerals sector?

Take a moment to share your thoughts.

And now let's get started with our keynote.