POPE Leo XIV will host senior mining and energy executives at the Vatican on Saturday (January 31) for discussions on ethical approaches to the resources sector, including BHP CEO Mike Henry, Vale CEO Gustavo Pimenta and Ivanhoe executive chair Robert Friedland.
The private audience scheduled for 11am will bring together over a dozen industry leaders, said the Financial Times. With an estimated 1.4 billion followers globally, the Catholic Church often maintains a presence in remote communities impacted by resources projects amid mounting competition to extract metals including copper, gold and silver, the newspaper said.
The meeting will provide an early indication of how Pope Leo, the first US-born leader of the Catholic Church, plans to approach the industry. His Argentine predecessor Pope Francis took a combative line with extractives companies, telling BP and ExxonMobil heads in 2018 to stop exploring for new fossil fuels, said the Financial Times.
Pope Leo is expected to adopt a less confrontational tone whilst sharing concerns about impacts on vulnerable populations, said analysts. Leo, formerly Robert Prevost, spent nearly 20 years in Peru until 2023 when Francis summoned him to Rome. He remained closely involved with Latin American Catholic Church affairs as president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, which organised Saturday’s meeting.
“For the church, the basic message is always the protection of human dignity and the human good,” said Severine Deneulin, co-author of last year’s Vatican report Catholic Approaches to Mining.
Rohitesh Dhawan, head of the International Council on Mining and Metals, said dialogue helps the industry recognise obligations “through the lens of the church”.
Leo previously acknowledged technological development depends on mining whilst expressing dismay at extraction conditions, citing coltan from Democratic Republic of Congo extracted through “paramilitary violence, child labour and displacement of populations”.
