Material Topic: Indirect Economic Impacts
203–2 Significant indirect economic impact, including the extent of impacts
Boliden’s mining and smelting operations are often of considerable importance in terms of employment in the local community, making Boliden an important local stakeholder. The Group’s operations have not only a substantial impact on job opportunities but also affect suppliers’ purchasing power elsewhere in the local business sector, which, in the long term, impacts the development of the communities’ service sectors.
In 2017, Boliden commissioned EY to review its economic contributions to the economy in the four countries with mining and smelting operations. The analysis is based on Boliden’s financial data, purchasing pattern and publicly available statistics. The acquired Kevitsa operation has not been included in the assessment. The results show that Boliden’s activities support the creation of 30,000 jobs, in Sweden (15,800), Finland (10,900), Norway (1,500), and Ireland (1,800). These are direct jobs (5,650), those indirectly supported through subcontractors and suppliers (10,735), or those supported through the induced effect of the employees’ expenditure (11,400). The average amount of jobs created per Boliden employee is 4.3 and as a consequence, Boliden also contributes to the public finances both through direct taxes and through the taxes paid by suppliers and customers. In our most recent calculation, based on the preliminary 2017 financial results, Boliden’s total contribution to public finances through taxes in Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Ireland is estimated at SEK 14,000 million.
Compared to earlier assessments based on the 2016 results, job creation has increased from 25,300 jobs to 30,000 jobs in 2017. The job creation variations between the units can to some extent be explained by the ongoing investment programmes.
Jobs created per country
Boliden participates in the development of education for future engineers within the mining and metals industry.
The Group’s operations not only impact the local communities at large: employees, shareholders, customers, and suppliers all depend on Boliden’s profitability by improving this aspect of the operations even further, Boliden will be able to continue making a positive economic and social contribution to the development of these communities and their society.
