This page is part of our public exclusion list — a transparency tool that shows which companies we screen out and why. It is not investment advice, and it is not an accusation. But it is subject to change as our understanding of the facts evolves.
Southern Copper is assessed at Level 3 (Integrating into Operational Decision Making) on the Transition Pathway Initiative’s management quality ladder, indicating it has basic governance structures in place but lacks a strategic, forward-looking climate transition plan. The company acknowledges climate change as a business issue and reports its Scope 1 and 2 emissions, but it does not disclose materially important Scope 3 emissions, which for a mining company include the downstream processing and use of its products. It has not set long-term quantitative targets aligned with the Paris Agreement, does not incorporate climate change performance into executive remuneration, and does not undertake climate scenario planning or disclose an internal carbon price.
The company’s current posture represents climate intransigence by omission. It has not committed to phasing out capital expenditure on carbon-intensive assets, aligning future investments with decarbonization goals, or ensuring its climate policy is consistent with the positions of its trade associations. This lack of forward-looking commitments and strategic integration, particularly for a carbon-intensive extractive company, constitutes an active failure to prepare for the low-carbon transition.
Southern Copper Corporation, part of Grupo México, operates large-scale copper mining projects in Peru and Mexico that have generated documented environmental damage and social conflict. In Peru, the company’s Tía María project in Arequipa has faced sustained local opposition over concerns of water contamination and depletion in an agricultural valley, leading to protests and fatalities. The company’s operations have also been linked to allegations of judicial harassment against environmental defenders opposing its projects.
The company’s Buenavista del Cobre mine in Sonora, Mexico, was the site of a major environmental disaster in 2014 when a pipeline failure released 40,000 cubic meters of copper sulfate acid solution into the Sonora and Bacanuchi rivers. The spill contaminated water supplies across seven municipalities, affecting approximately 24,000 people. Mexican authorities documented widespread impacts on livestock, crops, and local livelihoods. Grupo México’s subsidiary was fined, and a trust fund was established for remediation, though community groups have reported ongoing contamination and inadequate compensation.
Southern Copper’s environmental record includes significant regulatory penalties. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency lists multiple Grupo México subsidiaries as potentially responsible parties at Superfund sites due to historical mining waste. The company’s operations demonstrate a pattern of large-scale industrial activity in ecologically sensitive areas, resulting in contamination, water resource conflicts, and community harm.
Research Sources
2 organizations
Related Exclusions
Wondering what we do invest in?
The Naughty List
A digest of changes to our exclusion list — new additions, removals, and the evidence behind them. We review the list continuously as new evidence surfaces.
Companies appear on our exclusion list based on our investment judgment — not because they've done anything illegal. This is a difference of values and opinion, not an accusation of wrongdoing. Exclusion does not constitute a recommendation against investing in any company, and absence from the list does not constitute a recommendation to invest.
This information is provided for educational and transparency purposes only and should not be relied upon as investment advice. Data is drawn from independent watchdogs, NGOs, government registries, and Ethical Capital's ongoing research — see Research Sources for the full list.
Ethical Capital LLC is a state-registered investment adviser in Utah (CRD #316032). Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training.