Glossary

Management system for achieving continuous and sustainable ­process improvement.

Unrefined porous copper. During solidification, dissolved gases form small blisters in the copper. Blister copper is also purchased as a raw material.

The sum of equity, provisions for pension ­liabilities, and financial liabilities, less cash and cash equivalents.

(Formerly Carbon Disclosure Project) non-profit ­organization with the objective of encouraging companies and towns to publish their environmental data.

Both primary and secondary raw materials are becoming more ­complex, that is, their copper content is decreasing and the levels of by-elements and impurities contained in them are increasing.

Compliance means conforming to certain rules. Apart from laws, directives, and other standards, it also refers to corporate guidelines (e.g., codes of conduct).

Products manufactured from endless strands produced in a ­continuous casting process. Continuous cast shapes are processed into sheets, foils, profiles, and tubes by rolling and extrusion.

Semi-finished product produced in a continuous process and used for the fabrication of copper wire.

Quality product of the copper tankhouse (copper content: 99.99 %) and the first marketable product in copper production, which can be sold on the metal exchanges.

A product resulting from the processing (enriching) of copper ores, the Aurubis Group’s main raw material. Since copper is found almost exclusively in ores, in compound form, and in low concentrations ­(usually below 1 % copper content), the ores are enriched in processing facilities into concentrates (copper content of 25 to 40 %) after ­production in the mine.

Surcharge for high-quality cathodes, which are used for the production of continuous cast wire rod and continuous cast shapes, among other products.

The EU’s Corporate Social Responsibility Directive requires exchange-listed companies of a certain size to disclose non-financial information. The German CSR Directive Implementation Act transposes the EU law into national law.

Earnings before interest and taxes are an indicator of a ­company’s operative earning power, ignoring its capital structure.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amorti­zation are an indicator of a company’s operative earning power, ­ignoring its capital structure and propensity to invest.

Earnings before taxes are an indicator of a company’s earning power.

Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (also known as the EU eco-audit). EMAS was developed by the EU and is a joint system comprising environmental management and environmental auditing for organizations that want to improve their environmental ­performance.

The generated surplus of cash and cash equivalents, taking into account cash-related changes in working capital, and after deducting capital expenditure. It is available for a company’s ­dividend and interest payments, as well as for the redemption of financial liabilities.

New, innovative metallurgical procedure for the processing of ­complex raw materials.

This organization publishes the GRI Standards, which are the standards and indicators for sustainability reporting. The GRI Standards are established internationally as a framework for voluntary sustainability reporting.

The Core Labour Standards of the International Labour Organization (ILO) of the United Nations comprise four basic principles: upholding freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining, eliminating forced labor, abolishing child labor, and eliminating discrimination in respect of employment and occupation. These are found in the eight fundamental ILO Conventions, which are referred to as the ILO Core Labour Standards.

A by-product of copper production in the refining process. Formed using sand from iron that is chemically bonded to copper concentrates and recycling raw materials. Mainly used in the construction industry as granules/sand or in lump form.

An international standard that establishes the criteria for setting up and monitoring companies’ environmental management systems. A company can receive proof of a functioning environmental management system (certification) through an external expert.

An international standard that establishes criteria for initiating, operating, and continuously improving an energy management system. The objective of the standard is to steadily improve companies’ energy-related performance. Energy-intensive companies have to be certified in accordance with EMAS or ISO 50001 to be eligible to receive concessions on the levies under the German Renewable Energies Act.

Kayser Recycling System, a modern recycling plant in Lünen for the treatment of a wide range of copper-bearing secondary raw materials.

The most important metal exchange in the world, with the highest turnover.

Lost time injury frequency rate (accident frequency).

Metal yield that a smelter can extract beyond the paid metal content in the raw input materials.

Consist of long- and short-term financial ­liabilities, less cash and cash equivalents.

The generated surplus of cash and cash equivalents after taking into account cash-related changes in working capital. It is available for payments in conjunction with a company’s investing and financing activities.

Performance, Responsibility, Integrity, Mutability, Appreciation. The first letters of these values spell the German word “prima,” ­meaning “great”.

Production of copper from copper concentrates.

Fee for the processing of copper cathodes into copper products.

Materials in a closed-loop economy. They arise as residues from ­production processes or during the preparation of end-of-life ­products and rejects.

Return on capital employed is the ratio of EBIT to capital employed as at the balance sheet date. It describes the efficiency with which capital was utilized during the reporting period.

Production of copper from recycling materials.

Official cash selling rate on the LME. Price basis in annual sales ­agreements.

Daily business, market for prompt deliveries.

In the tankhouse, an electrochemical process, the last refining stage in metal recovery, takes place. For copper, anodes and cathodes are hung in a sulfuric acid solution (electrolyte) and connected to an ­electric current. Copper and baser elements (e.g., nickel) are then ­dissolved from the anode in the electrolyte. Copper from the solution is deposited on the cathode with a purity of 99.99 %. Precious metals (e.g., silver and gold) and insoluble components settle as “anode slimes” on the bottom of the tankhouse cell.

Surcharges on the purchase price of metals, charged for turning these raw materials into the commodity exchange product – copper cathodes – and other metals.

The United Nations Global Compact is an international initiative for responsible corporate governance. Companies that commit to upholding the UNGC acknowledge its ten principles, which include the topics of human rights, labor standards, the environment, and preventing corruption.

The purpose of the EU’s WEEE directive 2002/96/EC for waste electrical and electronic equipment is to responsibly handle the increasing volumes of electronic scrap. The WEEE End Processor Standard is a voluntary standard for the treatment and/or processing of precious metal-bearing WEEE fractions. Aurubis supported the development of this standard and has been certified in accordance with it since 2015.