- Achieved full traceability for Minsur’s tin supply chain - tracking over 30,000 MT per year from San Rafael mine to smelter facility and on to downstream clients.
- Helped Minsur to distinguish their tin from other products on the market by adopting Digital Product Passports and highlighting their extensive health and safety, ESG and sustainability efforts.
Minespider and Minsur have been working together since 2018, when they were part of a consortium that aimed to make the mineral-tracking process more transparent for everyone along the value chain - from miners to consumers. After five years, Minespider and Minsur expanded their collaboration and brought to life the first full-scale mineral traceability project.
Why is it important to track tin?
Tin is known for its malleability, corrosion resistance, and ability to form alloys with other metals which makes it demanded in many applications.The largest use of tin is in soldering, essential for the electronics industry, production of EVs and other infrastructure. Twenty percent of tin is used to produce tinplate that is used for food packaging. And tin alloys are used in the production of tools, weapons, and machinery.
More and more attention is paid to the critical minerals supply chain, and tin is no exception. A typical smartphone contains around two grams of tin. Tin is primarily used as solder to connect wires and components on the circuit boards inside the device.
Over the years, illegal tin mining has been a problem - mining in certain high-risk areas is associated with violations of human rights and environmental safety and is often organized by criminal syndicates.
To address the problem of illegal mining, governments and NGOs try to protect high-risk areas, tight mining regulations, formalize small-scale mining, and create alternative livelihoods. One of the examples is the Critical Raw Materials Act. The regulation requires EU importers of tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold to ensure they are sourced responsibly and that their supply chains are conflict-free. Importers must conduct due diligence to identify and address risks in their supply chains, following the OECD Due Diligence Guidance. While the regulation has the potential to make a positive impact, some argue it has not yet achieved notable results in supply chains or producing countries.
Minsur’s example
Minsur is a mining company from Peru that produces tin, gold, niobium, and tantalum. Minsur is one of the global leaders in tin production with over 46 years of experience and consumers in Latin America and across the world. Its San Rafael mine produces 12% of the world's tin.
Today, responsible producers implement technologies to prove the origin of their minerals using blockchain and digital product passports. Minespider and Minsur initiated their collaboration in 2018. Minsur and Minespider were both part of a Consortium that ran a pilot project at this mine site with partners such as Google, Cisco, SGS, and Volkswagen. Starting in 2019, Minsur and Minespider implemented traceable tin production with Minespider’s Digital Product Passports, scaling in 2023 to ensure tin traceability for all their output. Minsur’s direct and indirect customers worldwide can now verify that the tin used in their products comes from a responsible source in Peru.
“We developed sustainability principles for all of our operations based on our corporate purpose and values, strengthening our commitment to social and environmental responsibility. Our dedication to these principles not only ensures long-term success for our business and partners but also contributes to the well-being of society and the betterment of our world. Traceability through blockchain technology makes this commitment tangible, sincere and transparent.”
- Gonzalo Quijandria, Director of Corporate Affairs and Sustainability, Minsur S.A.
"Though countless companies talk about sustainability, only a few mineral firms truly embrace traceability in their operations and surpass the demands of regulations like the Critical Raw Materials Act. Among the major tin producers, Minsur stands out for its commitment to extensive sustainability projects and the integration of blockchain traceability across all aspects of its operations. This example will be followed by other industry players to take tangible strides towards sustainability.”
- Nathan Williams, Founder & CEO, Minespider.
Find out more about Digital Product Passports and learn more how you can improve the transparency of your mineral supply chains.
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