Message from the Vice President
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Paul Henning Vice-President, British Columbia Operations, and Strategic Projects, Western Canada |
It was yet another watershed year for our operations in British Columbia in 2007. Not only did we manage unexpected challenges of flooding, avalanches, generator failure and raw-material issues, but – most notably – we became part of Rio Tinto Alcan, an expanded product group within global mining and metals leader Rio Tinto.
We also continued to advance the Kitimat Modernization Project. Pending completion of Board review and final approval, the end result will be a complete replacement of the smelting technology that is at the core of our operations.
Yet through all this change, it was also a year of considerable continuity. From the outset, one of the key rationales for the Rio Tinto acquisition was compatibility – in terms of operations and markets, yes… but, equally importantly, in terms of commitments to safety, environmental performance, and other aspects of sustainable development.
Day-to-day experience since the acquisition confirms for us that the values we lived by as an Alcan operation are shared within Rio Tinto Alcan. And while a change of this type is always an occasion for reflection, I sense comfort – internally and externally – that we remain committed to the same level of performance across the same breadth of sustainable-development metrics.
We conducted our business during 2007 along dual and complementary tracks – focusing, on the one hand, on moving forward and preparing for modernization and, on the other, on continuing to optimize the performance of the existing smelter and other aspects of our operations.
We have decisively turned the corner on modernization. While we began 2007 without any of the pre-conditions for submission to the Board in place, all three were satisfied by early 2008. Operationally, we continued to address the impacts of industry-wide raw-material issues, and dealt with an unprecedented set of weather-related challenges.
Our performance results described in this report reflect the impacts of those challenges and our determination to address them, within a broader context that includes support for economic diversification in our operating area. The results also reflect values that we believe are shared not only within Rio Tinto Alcan but also among our stakeholders.
Information in this report has been reviewed by the relevant functional specialists and Rio Tinto Alcan Primary Metal BC management. Various control and assurance measures are applied to the data upon which it is based, and it is supported by internal documentation. Rio Tinto Alcan Primary Metal BC management accepts responsibility for the preparation of this report and the accuracy of its contents.
Your feedback is welcome, and can be provided via either 1-866-252-2652 or www.alcaninbc.com.
Paul Henning
Vice President
BC Operations and Strategic Projects, Western Canada
