QIT Madagascar Minerals

Fort Dauphin, Anosy

QIT Madagascar Minerals (QMM), near Fort Dauphin in the Anosy region of south-eastern Madagascar, produces ilmenite which is a major source of titanium dioxide, predominantly used as a white pigment in products such as paints and paper. 

QMM includes the deep-water Port d’Ehoala, where the raw material is shipped to the Rio Tinto Fer et Titane plant in Canada and processed into titanium dioxide. 

QMM is a joint venture between Rio Tinto (80%) and the government of Madagascar (20%).

Protecting the environment

We are committed to protecting the plants and animals of the Anosy region, near our QMM operations in Madagascar.

We have environmental and social obligations to fulfil as part of our mining license and environmental permits. To meet these commitments and to minimise any potential environmental impacts, we use the mitigation hierarchy: avoid, minimise, restore and offset.

Maintaining access to wetland resources

At QMM, wetlands play a vital role as a habitat for birds, fish and plants and in the culture and way of life for the Antanosy people living in Anosy. The wetlands are a source of material for their day-to-day life, including Mahampy reeds that are used for mats and basket weaving and the Ravinala tree which is used for building houses.

Restoring the wetlands after mining is therefore an important part of QMM’s approach to operating the business, and we are working with communities to improve natural resource management and contribute to the conservation of sensitive ecosystems.  For example, we work with communities to ensure that restored reed beds are harvested sustainably so that the new wetlands remain intact and help protect the community against flooding from cyclones.

Restoring wetlands is no easy feat. They need a consistent water source, which in turn requires the right topography. Crocodiles in the region also present safety considerations for the QMM team as well as the local community. Overcoming these challenges calls for an innovative and collaborative approach. For example, the team designed rafts made of bamboo to populate the centre of the water body with wetlands species typical of the region. Doing so eliminates the need to use a boat, making the practice safer.

QMM communities

At QMM, partnership with the local community is important to us, and we aim to work in ways that deliver sustained value for both our business and our host communities.

For example, QMM provides funding for equipment and marketing as well as business development training to a local honey co-operative. This support helps producers to harvest and sell more than 4,800 litres of honey from 500 beehives in the remote region of Ampasy Nahampoana.

QMM also works with the Centre d’Affaires Régional Anosy (CARA). Established in 2012 to support local businesses, CARA is a partnership between QMM, the Integrated Pole of Growth project, Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Fort Dauphin and the Association for the Promotion of Entrepreneurship. Its work includes providing finance, marketing and training to micro, small and medium-sized businesses and has, since inception, trained more than 4,500 people and supported around 200 businesses.

Cultural heritage

We work with the Malagasy people and with archaeologists to survey and map sites and artefacts of cultural significance. Malagasy culture assigns special status to sites including:

• Kibory - Tombs which Malagasy people consider the place where ancestors live
• Orimbato - Stone slabs near the paths beside a tomb
• Fisorogna - Places of sacrifice
• Doany - Places of worship

Land agreements

QMM was the first mining company in Madagascar to recognise the land rights of traditional land users. In 2016, we signed an agreement with the government of Madagascar and the Mandena communities on which the mining concession sits, which set up a framework to provide a legal basis for the joint rights of each party within the mining concession.

As part of its mining license agreement, QMM committed to a biodiversity conservation programme that included the identification and management of protected areas and offset areas. These areas are designed to ensure gains in natural forest cover, preserve priority species and ensure that the loss of biodiversity in mining areas is compensated for.

QMM works in partnership with organisations to manage these sites, for example with Asity, a Malagasy NGO, Birdlife International and Missouri Botanical Garden (MBG), who have a long history of conservation work in Madagascar. 

Sourcing locally

Supporting the sustainable development of the local economy through partnering with local businesses is a key part of the procurement approach at QMM. The procurement procedures ensure local suppliers are considered at every stage of the process. This approach is outlined in the RTP Africa Preferential Procurement Policy document.