Wheaton Precious Metals Corp
WPM
Materials
2
exclusion reasons
2 themes
Wheaton Precious Metals Corp is screened out under 2 exclusion reasons spanning 2 issue categories.
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. It is a statement of values.
Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. is a precious metals streaming company whose business model is fundamentally tied to the extraction of non-fuel minerals. The company enters into long-term purchase agreements with mining operators, providing upfront capital in exchange for the right to buy a percentage of future production at a fixed, low cost. This revenue-sharing model directly finances and profits from the physical mining of gold, silver, and other precious metals. Wheaton holds over 20 such streaming agreements with 17 different mining partners globally, deriving its income from the sale of over 29 million ounces of precious metals.
While the company does not operate mines directly, its financial success is contingent on the continued operation and expansion of extractive projects. Its streaming contracts cover mines across multiple jurisdictions, linking its revenue to the environmental footprint and social impacts inherent to large-scale mining operations. The company’s “Partner Community Investment Program” acknowledges its connection to the communities influenced by these mining activities.
Wheaton Precious Metals provides upfront financing to mining companies in exchange for long-term streaming agreements to purchase metals at reduced prices. The company does not operate mines, but its financing model creates direct economic exposure to environmental outcomes at partner sites.
The most significant liability is Wheaton's streaming agreement tied to Barrick Gold's Pascua-Lama project on the Chile-Argentina border. A Chilean court suspended the project for "imminent environmental danger," citing contamination of highland wetlands and discharge of acidic water containing arsenic and aluminum into local waterways.
The Pascua-Lama suspension demonstrates how streaming agreements transmit environmental risk without operational control. Wheaton's capital is deployed at sites where the operator makes the environmental compliance decisions, but Wheaton's returns depend on those sites producing metal regardless of ecological cost.
Research Sources
13 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.