Wheaton Precious Metals Releases Inaugural 2019 Sustainability Report and Provides Update ON Community Support and Response Fund
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE TSX: WPM
May 28, 2020 NYSE: WPM
WHEATON PRECIOUS METALS RELEASES INAUGURAL
2019 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT AND PROVIDES UPDATE
ON COMMUNITY SUPPORT AND RESPONSE FUND
Vancouver, British Columbia – Wheaton Precious Metals™ Corp. ("Wheaton" or the
"Company") is pleased to re lease its inaugural 2019 Sustainability Report, which highlights
the Company’s environmental, social and gov ernance ( “ESG”) performance and
achievements. In addition, Wheaton is providing an update on the Community Support and
Response Fund ( “CSR Fund”) launched in April to help combat the impacts of COVID-19
on global communities. All amounts are in US dollars unless otherwise noted.
Inaugural Sustainability Report
“We are excited to release our inaugural Sustainability Report, which shares our approach
towards environmental and social sustainability. Our commitment to promoting responsible
mining practices and supporting local communities has been ing rained in our corporate
culture since we founded Wheaton over 15 years ago,” said Randy Smallwood, President &
CEO of Wheaton. “We have been leaders in the metals streaming space in this regard, and
we intend to continue to set a high standard for ou r peers. The long -term sustainability of
the mining industry is dependent on our collective efforts to operate responsibly through
strong ESG policies and processes, irrespective of whether we are the operator or a
streaming and royalty company. It is the right thing to do.”
The topics and content covered in the 2019 Sustainability Report were determined through
a detailed, multi-step materiality assessment. This resulted in a final list of t opics deemed
material to th e Company and its stakeholders. Wheaton’s ina ugural report hi ghlights the
Company’s ESG performance and achievements in 2019 a s well a s historical information.
Wheaton first launched the Partner Corporate Social Responsibility Program in 2014 and
was proudly the first streaming/royalty company to init iate support fo r the mining
communities where the precious metals are produced. Details on the se programs can be
found in th e r eport. The 2019 r eport a lso serves as W heaton’s firs t Communication on
Progress as part of its commitment to the U nited Nations Global Compact. A copy of the
report is available on the website at www.wheatonpm.com.
Community Support & Response Fund Update
In April 2020, Wheaton launched a $5 million CSR Fund to support the global efforts to
combat the COVID -19 pandemic and its impacts on our communities. The CSR Fund is
designed to address the immediate needs in the following areas of suppor t: community
healthcare, food security and socio-economic impacts. The funds have been used to
purchase Personal Protective Equipment (PPE ), test kits, portable ventilators, medical
equipment, food and hygiene products, as well a s s upporting frontline non-profit
organizations including food banks, shelters and hospitals.
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Eighty percent of the CSR Fund has been targeted to the communities that are directly
influenced by the mines on which we have precious metals streaming agreements and the
remainder has been allocated to local pr ograms in Vancouver and Grand Cayman where
our offices are located.
Since l aunching the fund , Wheaton ha s committed $1.7 million to in itiatives with our
partners in mining communities. A few key programs funded to date are highlighted below:
• Constancia (Peru): Funded the purchase of test kits, PPE, hygienic items as well
as blankets and jackets for families in need.
• Salobo (Brazil): Funded an initiative to provide over 4,200 families with a monthly
supply of food and hygiene products.
• Sudbury and Voisey’s Bay (Canada): Supported a number of charities in Sudbury
and Goose Bay including the United Way, a regional hospital foundation and a
women’s shelter.
• San Dimas (Mexico): Funded the purchase of medical equipment including
portable ventilators, an X-ray machine and related supplies for the local community.
“Hudbay is very grateful for Wheaton’s continued commitment to support the communities
surrounding the Constancia mine in Peru,” said Carlos Castro Silvestre, Executive Director,
Business Development and Corporate Affairs at Hudbay Perú S.A.C. “Wheaton’s
contribution of $500,000 will be used to support COVID -19 initiatives to ensure the health
and safety of our workforce and the local communities during this difficult time.”
Locally, Whe aton has deployed 75% of the fund allocated to Va ncouver and Grand
Cayman. This includes donations to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank, Covenant House
Vancouver, The Frontline Fund, The Salvation Army-BC Division, Union Gospel Miss ion,
KidSafe Project Society, Act of Random Kindness, Kiwanis Club of Grand Cayman, among
many others.
“On behalf of our clients, staff and volunteers I want to extend our heartfelt gratitude for the
grant we recently received from Wheaton for CA$100,000,” said Cynthia Boulter , Chief
Operating Officer at the Greater Vancouver Food Bank. “This level of transformative g ift
provides us with so much security, and the confidence that we will continue to be able to
provide healthy food to those in need in the months to com e, as we are expecting the need
in our communities to steadily increase.”
We will continue to work with our mining partners and non-profit organizations to identify
where funds could make th e greatest impact and alle viate pressures resulting f rom the
pandemic.
About Wheaton Precious Metals Corp.
Wheaton is the world's premier precious metals streaming company with the highest-quality
portfolio of long -life, low-cost assets. Its business model offers investors commodity price
leverage and exploration upside but with a much lower risk profile than a traditional mining
company. Wheaton delivers amongst the highest cash operating margins in the mining
industry, allowing it to pay a competitive dividend and continue to grow through accretive
acquisitions. As a result, Wheaton has consistently outperformed gold and silver, as well as
other mining investments. Wheaton creates sustainable value through streaming.
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CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING-STATEMENTS
This press release contains “forward -looking statements” within the meaning of the United
States Private Securities Litigat ion Reform Act of 1995 and "forward -looking information"
within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation concerning the business,
operations and financial performance of Wheaton and, in some instances, the business,
mining operations and p erformance of Wheaton’s precious metals purchase agreement
(“PMPA”) counterparties. Forward -looking statements, which are all statements other than
statements of historical fact, include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to timing
or achieve ment of future goals, programs, and related disclosure with respect to our
operations, development, sustainability, environmental, safety and diversity initiatives, the
impact of epidemics (including the COVID -19 virus pandemic), the ability of Wheaton’s
PMPA counterparties to comply with the terms of a PMPA (including as a result of the
business, mining operations and performance of Wheaton’s PMPA counterparties) and the
potential impacts of such on Wheaton and the ability of Wheaton’s PMPA counterparties to
comply with the terms of any other obligations under agreements with Wheaton.
Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and
other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or
achievements of Wheaton to be materially different from those expressed or implied by
such forward -looking statements, including but not limited to risks associated with
fluctuations in the price of commodities (including Wheaton’s ability to sell its precious
metals or cobalt production at acceptable prices or at all), risks of significant impacts on
Wheaton or the Mining Operations as a result of an epidemic (including the COVID-19 virus
pandemic), risks related to the Mining Operations (including fluctuations in the price of the
primary or other commodities mined at such operations, regulatory, political and other risks
of the jurisdictions in which the Mining Operations are located, actual results of mining, risks
associated with the exploration, development, operating, expansion and improvement of the
Mining Operations, environmental and economic risks of the Mining Operations, and
changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined), the ability of each party to
satisfy their obligations in accordan ce with the terms of the PMPAs, and other risks
discussed in the section entitled “Description of the Business – Risk Factors” in Wheaton's
Annual Information Form available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com, and in Wheaton's Form
40-F for the year ended December 31, 2019 and Form 6 -K filed March 11, 2020, both on
file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington, D.C., as well as the
updates contained in Wheaton’s managements’ discussion and analysis for the period
ended March 31, 2020 available on SEDAR and on file with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission (the “Disclosure”).
Forward-looking statements are based on assumptions management currently believes to
be reasonable, including (without limitation): that neither Wheaton nor the Mini ng
Operations will suffer significant impacts as a result of an epidemic (including the COVID-19
virus pandemic), that each party will satisfy their obligations in accordance with the PMPAs,
Wheaton’s ability to complete goal and initiatives in the areas o f, among other things,
sustainability, environment, safety and diversity, and such other assumptions and factors as
set out in the Disclosure. There can be no assurance that forward -looking statements will
prove to be accurate and even if events or results described in the forward -looking
statements are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will
have the expected consequences to, or effects on, Wheaton. Readers should not place
undue reliance on forward-looking statements and are cautioned that actual outcomes may
vary. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, reflects
Wheaton’s management’s current beliefs based on current information and will not be
updated except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
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For further information, please contact:
Patrick Drouin
Senior Vice President, Investor Relations
Wheaton Precious Metals Corp.
Tel: 1-844-288-9878
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.wheatonpm.com