2023 Annual Report

Global Partnerships

• ICA enjoyed a record 10 speaking engagements at COP28 in Dubai. The launch of the Global Renewables and Energy Efficiency Pledge, which was endorsed by 130 countries was encouraging, and ICA contributed to the language on energy efficiency. The topic of critical minerals was high on the COP28 agenda, which provided an opportunity for ICA to advocate for copper.
• To date, the Cornerstone of Rural Electrification (CORE) has partnered with local governments and universities to deliver 15 training courses to more than 1,500 people in 12 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. More than 80 people are now qualified to train and certify energy practitioners. CORE puts ICA and its members at the nexus of energy access and efficiency while making a positive impact on local communities.
• 2023 saw advancement for ICA's newest partnerships on energy efficiency, the Grid Efficiency and Resilience (GEAR) project in Zambia and the Motor Efficiency Global Alliance (MEGA). Concept notes for Zambia's electrical grids through GEAR and an energy-efficiency project for the mining sector in Chile were developed for the Mission Efficiency Marketplace to evaluate. The Marketplace was created by ICA to scale investments in energy efficiency, which now proudly has more than two dozen partners.

Strategic Communications

• The Strategic Communications team led the launch of Copper-The Pathway to Net Zero, which highlights members' plans to reach net zero by 2050. Launch materials encompassed a panel discussion in Brussels, articles in top-tier publications, a supportive video by UNEP Director, Inger Andersen, and an award-winning thought leadership video series
• This year's Circular Copper campaign took an educational approach, demonstrating the industry's role in advancing circularity, highlighting copper's inherent properties and sharing copper's role as an enabler of circular systems. Campaign elements focused on innovative technologies by "making the invisible visible," giving the viewer an inside look at circular systems. The launch video alone reached 352k people who viewed the content more than 987k times. 
• ICA sponsored a panel at Concordia's Annual Summit in New York last September. The panel entitled, "Critical Minerals: The Building Blocks of Decarbonization," included the Copper Development Association's President, Andy Kireta Jr., as well as leaders from Rio Tinto, the Business Council for Sustainable Energy and Volvo, giving ICA the opportunity to discuss copper's vital role in a green future to a global audience.
• ICA China completed an effective campaign centered on green development. The campaign's social component garnered more than 16.6k engagements, a 43 percent increase over ICA China's typical WeChat engagement rate. The campaign's booth at the Industrial Green Development Exhibition and Conference reached 2k visitors.

Green and Healthy Buildings

• ICA assisted the Sichuan Department of Housing and Urban-Rural Development to develop a PEDF (Photovoltaic, Energy Storage, Direct Current, Flexibility) system standard handbook covering items such as short-circuit current calculation and energy storage system capacity. The draft was submitted for approval and is expected to be issued in 2024.
• The final agreement on a revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) includes several provisions recommended by the European Copper Institute. The EPBD will drive building renovation in Europe, including the deployment of solar energy, heat pumps and charging points for electric vehicles. 
• As a result of recurrent electrical accidents in Mumbai, ICA India participated in an expert committee established by the Maharashtra government to draft a report emphasizing the need for electrical safety engineers, building inspection and stringent adherence to national codes, standards and regulations. 
• The Copper Development Association (CDA) launched a website and marketing campaign targeting decision makers in states slated to receive significant federal funding for lead service line replacement. CDA works to maintain and grow copper's 70 percent market share to capitalize on the potential 145,000 tonne demand over the next 10 years. 
• 2023 marked the 12th year of a successful building wire campaign in Mexico with the support of Programa Casa Segura, an umbrella electrical safety program. The campaign has successfully kept copper-clad aluminum from becoming the approved material for interior electrical installations.

Market Intelligence

• An ICA commissioned study highlighted the socio-economic value generated by the copper industry, about $73 billion per year globally. This value includes long-lasting positive impact on society and the role copper mining plays in fostering socio-economic activities for mining communities. Copper mining was shown to be socially equitable, economically beneficial and environmentally sustainable​​.
• At CESCO in Santiago, Chile, ICA presented research spotlighting copper as a key driver of the green transition. Research showed system optimization has become an important driver for substitution, making relative material cost less important in material choice.
• During Asia Copper Week in Shanghai, China, ICA sponsored a panel covering the use of recycled content in copper products. The results of a global survey focused on advancing scrap recycling, identifying barriers and understanding demand for recycled copper. Cost, ESG ambitions and consumer expectations were noted as key drivers of scrap use​​.
• ICA's intelligence outreach program works to publish content in a broad range of publications and leading industry magazines. ICA's data has appeared in Modern Mining, Mining Journal, Copper Worldwide, Reuters, Bloomberg and Mining and Minerals Today. 

Market Strategy

• In 2023, India's Central Public Works Department (CPWD) revised the standards for electrical installations, incorporating the latest technological trends, green building norms and safety requirements for buildings constructed and maintained by CPWD. ICA India positioned copper as a preferred conductor, and as of July 2023, the revised specification mandated copper for all wires and cables within government buildings.
• ICA prevented All Aluminum Cable (AAC) from becoming the China State Grid's default cable material in Shandong province. Copper power cable share remains above 87 percent in China. The China State Grid is the single largest copper user in the world, purchasing 677k tonnes of copper power cable in 2023.
• A dedicated task force with ICA and International Wrought Copper Council (IWCC) members was established to address the opportunities and threats of the high voltage cables in the EU offshore wind market. About 90,000km of these cables are planned for installation between 2022 - 2032, representing an approximately one million tonne opportunity for copper.
• ICA engaged dozens of North American original equipment manufacturer material decisionmakers and influencers across four growth markets (automotive, commercial vehicles, industrial electrical equipment and alternative energy) to identify strategic design initiatives and trends impacting current and future copper use. Key takeaways include specific copper application miniaturization targets and timelines, and the existence of several downstream knowledge gaps regarding upstream sustainability/ESG initiatives.

Material Stewardship

LIFE-CYCLE SERVICES

• ICA publishes industry-best Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) for global copper concentrate and cathode: The updated datasets and environmental profile published in three languages aim to support those making decisions on material selection in the marketplace and under regulatory frameworks with robust and high quality, industry average data on copper (independently reviewed for ISO compliance), unavailable elsewhere. This unique offering by ICA relies on member participation and data, and is sought after by life cycle practitioners and other stakeholders, and frequently referenced by market analysts as a benchmark.
• ICA in collaboration with International Wrought Copper Council and Copper Development Association (CDA) member companies completes LCAs for nine copper and copper-alloy semi-fabricated products, as well as a copper tube LCA representing 50 percent of China’s copper tube production: These datasets demonstrate sustainability credentials (e.g., carbon footprint) of copper products, and support copper product selection in the marketplace and along supply chains versus products made from competing materials.

TECHNICAL ADVOCACY IN THE EU AND CHINA

• ICA advocacy results in recognition of the role of responsible production certification schemes, such as the Copper Mark^®, in meeting human rights due diligence requirements in new EU legislation. These efforts enable members to demonstrate their sustainable practices through existing frameworks already in use, thereby reducing the reporting burden for companies.
• The EU Parliament adopted three legislative amendments recognizing bioavailability (i.e., copper in water that is available for uptake by organisms – usually less than total copper) under the Water Framework Directive following advocacy by ICA. These amendments will ensure that state-of-the-science approaches are used to set environmentally relevant and reasonable emissions limit values for copper in water, positively impacting permitting for copper facilities in the EU.
• After three years of collective advocacy with the Chinese copper industry, ICA launched a pilot project in Huangshan City to use recycled copper from end-of-life electrical equipment in state grid infrastructure.

COMMUNICATING INFORMATION ON COPPER MATERIAL HAZARD

• At a major U.S. symposium on health product declarations, CDA won an All-Star Case Study award for showcasing a model for trade association engagement on sustainability and material health. The case study sets the standard for how to best disseminate state-of-the-art science health hazard information on copper to those making decisions on material selection.