As the global shift towards clean energy accelerates, the demand for critical minerals essential to this transition is surging. However, this demand is being accompanied by persistent human rights abuses linked to the extraction of these minerals.
According to the latest data from the Transition Minerals Tracker, compiled by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRRC), over 630 allegations of human rights violations have been associated with the mining of critical minerals since 2010. In the past year alone, 91 new allegations were recorded.
The Transition Minerals Tracker monitors the extraction of seven key minerals, including copper, lithium and bauxite—essential components for solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicles and other electrification technologies. The data reveals widespread violations, particularly against Indigenous peoples, including forced relocations, water pollution, and the denial of access to traditional lands. The tracker also highlights attacks on human rights defenders and severe abuses of workers’ rights.
Since 2010, the BHRRC has documented 53 cases of work-related deaths in the sector, with 30 percent of these deaths newly reported in 2023.
Caroline Avan, head of natural resources and just transition at BHRRC, emphasized that the situation is not improving. “The sector is blatantly failing at protecting those who generate its profits, and this is only the tip of the iceberg,” she stated. Avan noted that the data likely represents only a fraction of the actual abuses, as many incidents go unreported. The BHRRC offers companies the opportunity to respond to the allegations it tracks.
Notably, ten companies have been linked to more than half of all allegations since 2010, including major players like China Minmetals, Glencore, Grupo Mexico, First Quantum Minerals, and Solway Group. A significant portion (46%) of these allegations originates from South America. Avan explained that many abuses follow a pattern that begins with environmental violations, such as water or soil pollution, exacerbated by inadequate consultation with local communities, ultimately leading to long-term conflict.
The Las Bambas copper mine in Peru, owned by MMG Ltd (a company with China Minmetals Corporation as its major shareholder), stands out as the site with the most reported rights abuses, both in 2023 and throughout the tracker’s entire 13-year monitoring period. The mine’s infrastructure and expansion plans have caused significant social and environmental impacts, sparking protests and blockades by Indigenous communities. In November, 1,500 workers went on strike, demanding a larger share of the mine’s profits.
Neither CMC, MMG, nor Las Bambas have responded to the BHRRC’s reported allegations.
As the International Energy Agency projects that mineral demand for clean energy applications will grow by three and a half times by 2030, the persistence of human rights abuses in mineral mining is likely to attract increasing attention. The BHRRC report indicates that the mining sector is under growing pressure from civil society, Indigenous groups, and global policymakers to improve human rights protections.
For instance, the recently adopted EU Batteries Regulation requires end users of battery minerals to conduct thorough supply chain due diligence. “We are seeing the automotive industry asking more of the upstream mining sector, and that is good news,” Avan said. “But we are not seeing enough from the renewable energy sector in terms of asking mineral suppliers to ensure their operations are not linked with abuses.”
Last month, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres launched a high-level panel on Critical Energy Transition Minerals, tasked with developing global principles to safeguard environmental and social standards during the energy transition. Guterres emphasized the need for properly managed supply chains to ensure that developing countries benefit fairly and that environmental and human rights are protected.
“Too often, the production of these minerals leaves a toxic cloud in its wake: pollution, wounded communities, childhoods lost to labor, and sometimes dying in their work,” Guterres said at the panel’s launch. “This must change… The race to net zero cannot trample over the poor.” The panel is expected to deliver initial recommendations ahead of the UN General Assembly in September.
Avan expressed concern over the rush by countries in the Global North to secure mineral supplies from resource-rich countries in the Global South, often without imposing stringent human rights protections on the involved companies. The BHRRC’s report urges companies to adopt robust human rights policies and ensure that affected communities share in the benefits and governance of mining projects.
Avan concluded by stressing the need for government regulation and improved business practices to ensure a just global energy transition that respects human rights and fosters fair negotiations and shared prosperity. “The alternative is rising resistance, conflict, and distrust – all threatening to slow the pace of the transition,” she warned.
