Posts

Company outperforms on water conservation achieving more than 90 percent less use than open-field growing average

Increases B Corp score against added challenge of expanding farm network and ramping up production

Establishes Board of Directors-level oversight for sustainability

Earns Certified Living Wage Company designation

MOREHEAD, Ky., June 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AppHarvest, Inc. (NASDAQ: APPH, APPHW), a sustainable food company, public benefit corporation and Certified B Corp building some of the country’s largest high-tech indoor farms to grow affordable, nutritious fruits and vegetables at scale while providing good jobs in Appalachia, today announced its B Corp recertification score improved 15% over its original certification and published its 2021 “Fight the Food Fight” Sustainability Report measuring progress on its environmental, social and governance (ESG) commitments. The “Fight the Food Fight” campaign is a call to action for consumers to join the company’s mission in creating a more resilient food system that delivers far more using far fewer resources for the wellbeing of people and planet.

B Corp Recertification
As both a Certified B Corp and a public benefit corporation, ESG issues are core to the AppHarvest mission. Since first becoming B Corp Certified in 2019, the company has increased its overall impact score to 95.4 – a 15% improvement. This increase came during a period of hyper-growth as the company went public, opened its 60-acre flagship farm in Morehead, Ky., and grew from a handful of employees to several hundred.

Key actions that helped boost the company’s recertification score include establishing a Board of Directors-level Sustainability Committee; tracking and reporting data for water, energy, carbon and waste; and ensuring the highest standard of health and safety are achieved.

“The increase in our Certified B Corporation score demonstrates our commitment to continuous improvement, and I’m so proud the team achieved this while working to rapidly ramp up production and expand the farm network,” said AppHarvest Founder & CEO Jonathan Webb. “Disrupting agriculture to build a climate-resilient, domestic food supply that is more sustainable for the next generation and beyond isn’t easy, but the B Corp validation is a symbol that we are committed to ‘Fight the Food Fight’ to provide good jobs and better access to nutritious fruits and vegetables while conserving the increasingly precious resource of water.”

The B Corp Certification is issued by B Lab, an independent non-profit organization that assesses a company’s entire social and environmental performance on more than 200 ESG topics. Certification is awarded to for-profit organizations that balance profit and purpose by meeting high standards in social and environmental performance, legal accountability and public transparency. An assessment must be completed every three years to maintain certification.

2021 Fight the Food Fight Sustainability Report
“Fight the Food Fight!” That’s the AppHarvest rally cry to build a robust, climate-resilient food system that’s better for both people and planet. It’s also the focus of AppHarvest’s third sustainability report detailing progress during fiscal year 2021 (January 1 to December 31, 2021) on the company’s three specific public benefit goals: empower individuals in Appalachia, improve the lives of company employees and the communities in which we operate and drive positive environmental change in agriculture. The report also discusses our approach to zero waste and actions we’re taking to reduce our energy and carbon footprint. The reporting in this report is in accordance with the GRI (Global Reporting Initiative) Content Index and SASB (Sustainability Accounting Standards Board)’s agriculture standards.

Highlights from the report that illustrate AppHarvest’s substantial environmental and social impact include:

• Hiring ~500 employees as of 2021 for certified living wage jobs in Central Appalachia and training them during COVID-19 while remaining safe.
• Continuously ramping up production at our first facility to deliver more sustainably grown tomatoes to top national grocery store chains and restaurants.
• Leveraging our closed-loop irrigation to use more than 90% less water than open-field agriculture while preventing runoff pollution of waterways in an era of exceptional water shortages around the world.
• Dedication to Integrated Pest Management as our primary line of defense against pests and disease and innovating in this space to reduce pesticide use.
• Progress on recycling and minimizing food waste.
• Leverage real-time data to optimize our production capabilities and innovate sustainability measures.

“2021 marks our first full year of operations, and we can more clearly see the opportunities, challenges and the critical need to leverage controlled environment agriculture (CEA) as a solution to many of the obstacles threatening our U.S. food supply —drought, wildfires, flooding, ice storms, extreme temperatures and exceptional wind events,” said AppHarvest Chief Sustainability Officer Jackie Roberts. “With our long-term commitment to doing right by our broad range of stakeholders across the ESG spectrum, we will continue to bring a focus on ensuring domestic food security and the ability for CEA to accomplish that while providing good jobs in agriculture in areas of the country that need it most.”

The full sustainability report is available here.

About AppHarvest
AppHarvest is a sustainable food company in Appalachia developing and operating some of the world’s largest high-tech indoor farms with robotics and artificial intelligence to build a reliable, climate-resilient food system. AppHarvest’s farms are designed to grow produce using sunshine, 100% rainwater and up to 90% less water than open-field growing, all while producing yields up to 30 times that of traditional agriculture and preventing pollution from agricultural runoff. AppHarvest currently operates its flagship farm – about the size of 50 football fields – in Morehead, Ky., producing tomatoes. The company is developing a network of farms to produce a variety of vine crops, salad greens and berries with three more farms currently under construction that are expected to be operational by the end of 2022. For more information, visit https://www.appharvest.com/.

Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements included in this press release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements generally are accompanied by words such as “believe,” “may,” “will,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “expect,” “should,” “would,” “plan,” “predict,” “potential,” “seem,” “seek,” “future,” “outlook,” “can,” “goal,” “target” and similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters. All statements, other than statements of present or historical fact included in this press release, regarding AppHarvest’s intention to build high-tech CEA farms, the anticipated benefits of and production at such facilities, including implementation of a phased approach at each facility, timing and availability of tomatoes at top national grocery stores and restaurants, anticipated benefits of the second season harvest, AppHarvest’s future financial performance, as well as AppHarvest’s growth and evolving business plans and strategy, ability to capitalize on commercial opportunities, future operations, estimated financial position, projected costs, prospects, plans and objectives of management are forward-looking statements. These statements are based on various assumptions, whether or not identified in this press release, and on the current expectations of AppHarvest’s management and are not predictions of actual performance. These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as, and must not be relied on as, a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction, or a definitive statement of fact or probability. Actual events and circumstances are difficult or impossible to predict and will differ from assumptions. Many actual events and circumstances are beyond the control of AppHarvest. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including those discussed in the company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC by AppHarvest on May 3, 2022, under the heading “Risk Factors,” and other documents AppHarvest has filed, or that AppHarvest will file, with the SEC. If any of these risks materialize or our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. In addition, forward-looking statements reflect AppHarvest’s expectations, plans, or forecasts of future events and views as of the date of this press release. AppHarvest anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause its assessments to change. However, while AppHarvest may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, AppHarvest specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing AppHarvest’s assessments of any date subsequent to the date of this press release. Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed upon the forward-looking statements.

Media Contact: Darla Turner, Darla.Turner@appharvest.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/585f2a17-c626-4a42-994c-e40946bb8262

CARLSBAD, Calif., June 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Acutus Medical, Inc. (“Acutus” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: AFIB), an arrhythmia management company focused on improving the way cardiac arrhythmias are diagnosed and treated, granted equity awards on June 1, 2022 that were approved by the Compensation Committee of its Board of Directors under Company’s 2022 Inducement Equity Incentive Plan, as a material inducement to employment to 3 individuals hired by Acutus in May 2022. The equity awards were approved in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4).

The employees received, in the aggregate, 10,000 restricted stock units (“RSUs”). One-fourth of the RSUs granted to each employee will vest yearly on each anniversary of the grant date, such that the RSUs granted to each employee will be fully vested on the fourth anniversary of the grant date, in each case, subject to each such employee’s continued employment with Acutus on such vesting date.

About Acutus Medical, Inc.
Acutus is an arrhythmia management company focused on improving the way cardiac arrhythmias are diagnosed and treated. Acutus is committed to advancing the field of electrophysiology with a unique array of products and technologies which will enable more physicians to treat more patients more efficiently and effectively. Through internal product development, acquisitions and global partnerships, Acutus has established a global sales presence delivering a broad portfolio of highly differentiated electrophysiology products that provide its customers with a complete solution for catheter-based treatment of cardiac arrhythmias. Founded in 2011, Acutus is based in Carlsbad, California.

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes statements that may constitute “forward-looking” statements, usually containing the words “will,” “believe,” “estimate,” “project,” “expect” or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that would cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, the Company’s ability to continue to manage expenses and cash burn rate at sustainable levels, continued acceptance of its products in the marketplace, the effect of global economic conditions on the ability and willingness of customers to purchase the Company’s systems and the timing of such purchases, competitive factors, changes resulting from healthcare policy in the United States and globally, including changes in government reimbursement of procedures, dependence upon third-party vendors and distributors, timing of regulatory approvals, the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and Acutus’ response to it, and other risks discussed in the Company’s periodic and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. By making these forward-looking statements, Acutus undertakes no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release, except as required by law.

Investor Contact:	Media Contact:
Caroline Corner	Holly Windler
Westwicke ICR	M: 619-929-1275
D: 415-202-5678	media@acutusmedical.com
caroline.corner@westwicke.com

For every qualified* branded checking account opened, the community bank will donate funds to the LGBTQ+ nonprofit

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., June 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Values-based community bank Climate First Bank today announces the development of their newest charitable product in celebration of Pride Month – Pride Banking. With every Pride Checking account opened, the bank will contribute donations to a partnering LGTBQ+ charity or nonprofit. In selecting the first account beneficiary, Climate First Bank joined forces with KindRED Pride Foundation to help the nonprofit organization and its celebration of diversity, inclusion, equality, safe expression and kindness.

“For Climate First Bank, flighting the climate crisis is never just an environmental issue – it’s a social justice issue too. We’ve seen time and time again how marginalized communities are disproportionately affected by the negative impacts of the climate crisis,” said Director of Client and Mission Partnerships Lauren Dubé. “With Pride Banking, we hope to uplift the LGBTQ+ community and establish a model for community impact with this type of charitable partnership. Our plan is to have the partnering LGBTQ+ organization change biannually, so we can spread our support to organizations that matter the most to our community.”

The Pride Checking account features:

• One $50 donation made by Climate First Bank directly to the partnering LGTBQ+ organization for every qualifying* account opened
• Accounts earn 0.10% interest with no minimum account balance and no monthly fee
• Account holders receive free Pride Banking checks
  

KindRED Pride Foundation was inspired by the desire to expand the magic created by the 30-year tradition of the original “Gay Day at Magic Kingdom” in Orlando. The event started with only a handful of people, who all decided to meet on the first Saturday in June in front of the castle in 1991. Since none of them had ever met in person, they all wore red t-shirts to identify one other. KindRED Pride Foundation’s mission is to honor the kindred spirit, bravery and courage of the original attendees by not only inviting the LGBTQ+ community to Orlando but also challenging everyone to wear red on the first Saturday of June as a sign of solidarity around the world. Additionally, it supports endeavors of like-minded charities within the LGTBQ+ community by producing sport, music and other special events. Its upcoming Pride Cup (June 3-5, 2022) and Diversity in Sports Summit (June 2, 2022) is sponsored by Climate First Bank.

“There’s a special kind of magic that happens when two purpose-driven organizations come together to have a positive impact on the community,” said Billy Looper, president of KindRED Pride Foundation. “We’re proud to partner with Climate First Bank to create more spaces where people are encouraged to belong and express their true selves in a safe place.”

Climate First Bank will also be sponsoring St. Petersburg Pride as a “Partner of Pride” and will participate in the concert on June 24, 2022 and will have a booth at the Pride in Grand Central Street Carnival on June 26, 2022. Other charitable banking initiatives include Climate First Bank’s planet-saving Regeneration Checking account – to learn more visit climatefirstbank.com.

*The $50 donation will be made following the establishment of a reoccurring direct deposit totaling $750 or more within 90 days of account opening.

About Climate First Bank
Climate First Bank is a values-based community bank offering a complete, full-service portfolio of simple and easy-to-use traditional banking products. These products are powered by high technology to meet the expectations of today’s consumers. In addition to offering standard banking services, the company places a special emphasis on non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and businesses committed to sustainability. Eco-conscious customers will find dedicated loan options for solar photovoltaic (PV), energy retrofits and infrastructure to help combat the climate crisis. Member FDIC.

About KindRED Pride Foundation
KindRED Pride Foundation is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization whose mission is to support the endeavors of like-minded charities for the education, promotion, and celebration of Diversity, Inclusion, Equality, Safe Expression, and Kindness and create a global movement for the first Saturday of June each year where all LGBT+ persons and allies wear a RED Shirt as a message of our “KindRED” spirit.
For more information, go to www.kindredpride.org.

Media Contacts
Ericka Rivera
Uproar PR for Climate First Bank
erivera@uproarpr.com

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 31, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Eldorado Gold Corporation (“Eldorado” or “the Company”) is pleased to release its 2021 Sustainability Report (the “Report”), which includes details of the Company’s environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) performance. The Report is available on Eldorado Gold’s website (https://sustainability.eldoradogold.com).

Report Highlights (organized by the four pillars of our Sustainability Framework):

Safe, Inclusive and Innovative Operations

• Exceeded gender parity on our Board, with 56% of members identifying as female as of January 2022.
• Focused on creating a safety-first culture and proactive health and safety management through leading indicators to reduce safety incidents and achieve a zero-harm workplace
  • Zero lost-time injuries at three of our four operating sites, Kisladag, Efemcukuru (4^th consecutive year), and Lamaque (3^rd consecutive year).
• Despite our progress, we were unable to achieve our targets to reduce total recordable injury frequency rate and lost-time injury frequency rate by 10% from 2020 levels.

Engaged and Prosperous Communities

• Committed to local employment and procurement:
  • 81% of our employees are from the local communities surrounding our operations;
  • 99% of our employees are from the countries in which we operate;
  • Over $728 million was paid to domestic suppliers.
• $2.59 million in community investments, with over 40% focused on socioeconomic capacity-building and physical infrastructure that support current and post-mining community needs.
• Zero major community or human rights incidents.

Responsibly Produced Products

• Conducted Sustainability Integrated Management System (“SIMS”) self-assessments across our global operating mine sites.
• Continued to implement the Voluntary Principals on Security and Human Rights across our global operating mine sites.
• Adopted a Social Performance Policy and updated our Health and Safety, Environment, and Human Rights Policies
• Completed Year 2 assurance requirements towards alignment with the World Gold Council’s Responsible Gold Mining Principles (“RGMPs”) in 2022. We also completed assurance against the World Gold Council’s Conflict-Free Gold Standard (“CFGS”) for our 2020 operations.

Healthy Environments Now and for the Future

• Industry leader in dry-stack tailings implementation.
• Launched our climate change strategy in alignment with Eldorado’s lower emission intensity in relation to industry peers.
  • Set a target to mitigate greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions by 30% by 2030, on a business-as-usual basis.
• Over 23 hectares of land reclaimed in 2021.
• Zero major environmental incidents and no significant spills across our global sites.

“Eldorado’s vision is to build a safe, sustainable, high-quality business in the gold mining sector, creating value today and for future generations,” said George Burns, Eldorado’s President and CEO. “Our achievements in 2021 and our goals for the future affirm our commitment to incorporate sustainability from the ground up in all aspects of our business. In 2021, we made our greatest progress on climate action yet and committed to mitigating our GHG emissions, which marks our biggest step so far towards building a business that is resilient to climate change and meaningfully contributes to a lower-carbon future.”

“Eldorado’s 2021 Sustainability report summarizes our performance across our global sites and focuses on our four producing mines – Lamaque, Kisladag, Efemcukuru, and Olympias. As we look forward, we will continue to build on our solid foundation, challenge the status quo and find better ways for sustainable mining practices,” stated George Burns.

The Report is our 10^th annual published report and has been produced in accordance with the requirements of the core Global Reporting Initiative ("GRI"), and serves as our Communication on Progress for the United Nations Global Compact in support of the Sustainable Development Goals. The report and disclosures are also aligned with the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board ("SASB") - Metals and Mining standard. 

Feedback

We welcome feedback from all stakeholders regarding our sustainability reporting. Please direct comments or requests for further information to Investor Relations.

About Eldorado Gold

Eldorado is a gold and base metals producer with mining, development and exploration operations in Turkey, Canada, Greece and Romania. The Company has a highly skilled and dedicated workforce, safe and responsible operations, a portfolio of high-quality assets, and long-term partnerships with local communities. Eldorado's common shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: ELD) and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: EGO).

Contact

Investor Relations

Lisa Wilkinson, VP, Investor Relations
604.757 2237 or 1.888.353.8166
lisa.wilkinson@eldoradogold.com

Media

Louise McMahon, Director Communications & Public Affairs
604.757 5573 or 1.888.353.8166
louise.mcmahon@eldoradogold.com

Cautionary Note about Forward-looking Statements and Information

Certain of the statements made and information provided in this press release are forward-looking statements or information within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and applicable Canadian securities laws. Often, these forward-looking statements and forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as "anticipates", "believes", "budget", "continue", "estimates", "expects", "forecasts", "forward", "future", "goal", "intends", "plans", "projected", "scheduled", "target", "vision" or the negatives thereof or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "could", "may", "might", "will" or "would" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements or information contained in this release include, but are not limited to, statements or information with respect to: establishing sustainability and environmental targets, goals and strategies, including related to GHG emissions; our expectation as to our future financial and operating performance; and our strategy, plans and goals, including our proposed exploration, development, construction, permitting and operating plans and priorities.

Forward-looking statements and forward-looking information by their nature are based on assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. We have made certain assumptions about the forward-looking statements and information, including assumptions about: our preliminary gold production and our guidance; benefits of the completion of the decline at Lamaque, the improvements at Kisladag and the optimization of Greek operations; tax expenses in Turkey; how the world-wide economic and social impact of COVID-19 is managed and the duration and extent of the COVID-19 pandemic; timing, cost and results of our construction and exploration programs; the geopolitical, economic, permitting and legal climate that we operate in; the future price of gold and other commodities; the global concentrate market; exchange rates; anticipated values, costs, expenses and working capital requirements; production and metallurgical recoveries; mineral reserves and resources; and the impact of acquisitions, dispositions, suspensions or delays on our business and the ability to achieve our goals. In addition, except where otherwise stated, we have assumed a continuation of existing business operations on substantially the same basis as exists at the time of this release. Even though our management believes that the assumptions made and the expectations represented by such statements or information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that the forward-looking statement or information will prove to be accurate. Many assumptions may be difficult to predict and are beyond our control.

Furthermore, should one or more of the risks, uncertainties or other factors materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements or information. These risks, uncertainties and other factors include, among others: inability to meet sustainability, environmental, diversity or safety targets, goals and strategies; inability to meet the Sustainability Framework  and SIMs; inability to achieve the expected benefits of the completion of the decline at Lamaque, the improvements at Kisladag and the optimization of Greek operations; inability to assess income tax expenses in Turkey; risks relating to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and any future pandemic, epidemic, endemic or similar public health threats; risks relating to our operations being located in foreign jurisdictions; community relations and social license; climate change; liquidity and financing risks; development risks; indebtedness, including current and future operating restrictions, implications of a change of control, ability to meet debt service obligations, the implications of defaulting on obligations and change in credit ratings; environmental matters; waste disposal; the global economic environment; government regulation; reliance on a limited number of smelters and off-takers; commodity price risk; mineral tenure; permits; risks relating to environmental sustainability and governance practices and performance; non-governmental organizations; corruption, bribery and sanctions; litigation and contracts; information technology systems; estimation of mineral reserves and mineral resources; production and processing estimates; credit risk; actions of activist shareholders; price volatility, volume fluctuations and dilution risk in respect of our shares; reliance on infrastructure, commodities and consumables; currency risk; inflation risk; interest rate risk; tax matters; dividends; financial reporting, including relating to the carrying value of our assets and changes in reporting standards; labour, including relating to employee/union relations, employee misconduct, key personnel, skilled workforce, expatriates and contractors; reclamation and long-term obligations; regulated substances; necessary equipment; co-ownership of our properties; acquisitions, including integration risks, and dispositions; the unavailability of insurance; conflicts of interest; compliance with privacy legislation; reputational issues; competition, as well as those risk factors discussed in the sections titled "Forward-looking information and risks" and "Risk factors in our business" in our most recent Annual Information Form & Form 40-F. The reader is directed to carefully review the detailed risk discussion in our most recent Annual Information Form & Form 40-F filed on SEDAR and EDGAR under our Company name, which discussion is incorporated by reference in this release, for a fuller understanding of the risks and uncertainties that affect our business and operations.

The inclusion of forward-looking statements and information is designed to help you understand management's current views of our near- and longer-term prospects, and it may not be appropriate for other purposes.

There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements or information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements or information contained herein. Except as required by law, we do not expect to update forward-looking statements and information continually as conditions change and you are referred to the full discussion of the Company's business contained in the Company's reports filed with the securities regulatory authorities in Canada and the U.S.

RAPID CITY, S.D., May 31, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Black Hills Corp. (NYSE: BKH) today announced plans for its Colorado Electric utility subsidiary, doing business as Black Hills Energy, to achieve a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 based on 2005 levels. This milestone, and the journey to 2030, is outlined in the company’s Clean Energy Plan, “2030 Ready Plan,” submitted to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission on May 27, 2022.

The plan establishes a roadmap and preferred resource portfolio for Black Hills Energy to cost-effectively achieve the state of Colorado’s “80 x 30” requirement calling upon electric utilities to reduce GHG emissions by a minimum of 80% by 2030.

“Leadership in emissions reduction is nothing new for Black Hills Energy,” said Linn Evans, president and CEO of Black Hills Corp. “Our 2030 Ready Plan builds on a clean energy journey that began over a decade ago, when we began transitioning our fleet to lower emissions natural gas generation and emissions-free renewable generation, while maintaining system safety and reliability.”

“As proposed, our plan will achieve a 90% reduction in emissions and result in 79% of our Colorado customers’ electricity being generated by carbon-free sources by 2030,” Evans added. “We’ll get there by adding 450 megawatts of new renewable energy and battery storage to our Southern Colorado system.”

The preferred resource portfolio recommends the addition of 149 MW of wind and 258 MW of solar generation and 50 MW of battery storage to its Colorado electric system. The final composition of resources will be determined during a competitive solicitation process to be held in 2023, with new renewable energy resources coming online between 2025 and 2030. In accordance with Colorado state statute, Black Hills Corp. and its affiliates would have the ability to own up to 50% of the energy and capacity associated with the clean energy resources developed for a Clean Energy Plan.

“Our ability to serve our customers with more renewable energy is possible in large part due to the flexibility provided by our Pueblo Airport Generating Station,” stated Evans. “The power supplied by our modern, highly-efficient natural gas-fired generating units provides critical operational flexibility and the firm, dispatchable, quick-start resources essential for integrating higher levels of variable renewable resources.”

Black Hills Energy’s 2030 Ready Plan will undergo an extensive review process before the Colorado PUC to evaluate the company’s modeling assumptions and preferred resource portfolio recommendations. This Phase I proceeding will occur over the next several months, with a decision anticipated by April 2023 after which time a request for proposals for renewable resources would commence.

Black Hills Corporation
Black Hills Corp. (NYSE: BKH) is a customer focused, growth-oriented utility company with a tradition of improving life with energy and a vision to be the energy partner of choice. Based in Rapid City, South Dakota, the company serves 1.3 million natural gas and electric utility customers in eight states: Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming. More information is available at www.blackhillscorp.com and www.blackhillsenergy.com.

Investor Relations
Jerome E. Nichols
605-721-1171
jerome.nichols@blackhillscorp.com

24-hour Media Assistance        
888-242-3969

Caution Regarding Forward Looking Statement
This news release includes “forward-looking statements” as defined by the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC. We make these forward-looking statements in reliance on the safe harbor protections provided under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included in this news release that address activities, events or developments that we expect, believe or anticipate will or may occur in the future are forward looking statements. This includes our ability to obtain Colorado Public Utilities Commission approval to add up to 450 megawatts of renewable energy and battery storage to our Southern Colorado electric system. These forward-looking statements are based on assumptions which we believe are reasonable based on current expectations and projections about future events and industry conditions and trends affecting our business. However, whether actual results and developments will conform to our expectations and predictions is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that, among other things, could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements, the risk factors described in Item 1A of Part I of our 2021 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC, and other reports that we file with the SEC from time to time.

New factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in forward looking statements emerge from time-to-time, and it is not possible for us to predict all such factors, or the extent to which any such factor or combination of factors may cause actual results to differ from those contained in any forward-looking statement. We assume no obligation to update publicly any such forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

WASHINGTON and SOUTHFIELD, Mich., May 31, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Suppliers Partnership for the Environment (SP) and the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) today announced the publication of a new guidance document, “Evaluating the Carbon Intensity of Materials Used in Automotive Products.”

This guidance document was produced through a collaborative process by the Suppliers Partnership for the Environment’s (SP) Sustainable Materials Work Group, whose members include automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) such as Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Honda Development & Manufacturing of America, LLC, Stellantis, Toyota Motor North America and their suppliers, in collaboration with the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG).

The purpose of the guidance document is to introduce the concept of carbon intensity and outline a straightforward and consistent approach for evaluating carbon intensity information for materials used in automotive products. The document is intended as the beginning of a larger conversation on opportunities to reduce carbon intensity and ultimately improve the consistency and quality of carbon-related reporting and decision-making along the supply chain.

“Together with corporate carbon footprint and energy intensity, product carbon intensity information can help companies to better understand and evaluate the carbon impacts and decarbonization potential of specific input materials and technologies within their value chain. This document highlights how high-quality carbon intensity information can support industry in identifying upstream carbon hotspots and in assessing potential opportunities for sourcing lower-carbon solutions,” said Kristin Oswick, Sales Director, Monolith.

“It can be difficult to assess the upstream sustainability impacts of individual material, process and technology choices when looking at a company’s total carbon footprint alone. The ability to understand upstream factors influencing best-case carbon intensity will be important to the value chain as decarbonization efforts progress and this effort was designed to provide a common foundation to build from as companies work toward long-term industry goals of carbon neutrality and improved sustainability,” said Kellen Mahoney, Director, Suppliers Partnership for the Environment (SP). 

“Designed to support companies that are new to the process with a better understanding of how to calculate their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, this document provides a consistent approach for assessing carbon intensity information for input materials. With detailed case studies to illustrate the different inputs to these calculations and their importance, this guidance will help companies assess their current programs and identify opportunities to pursue changes in sourcing and improve decarbonization within their processes and supply chain,” said Lecedra Welch, Program Manager, Environmental Sustainability, Automotive Industry Action Group.

This carbon intensity guidance follows two prior sustainable materials guidance documents recently released by SP and AIAG related to measuring the use of recycled content and renewable content in automotive products. These complimentary downloads are available through SP at www.supplierspartnership.org/recycledcontent and www.supplierspartnership.org/renewablecontent, respectively, and www.aiag.org/sp-aiag-downloads via AIAG’s website.

The new guidance document is also available to download at no cost at www.supplierspartnership.org/carbonintensity and www.aiag.org/sp-aiag-downloads.

About SP

The Suppliers Partnership for the Environment (SP) is an association of automakers and their suppliers working in collaboration with the US EPA and other governmental entities toward a shared vision of an automotive industry with positive environmental impact. www.supplierspartnership.org

About AIAG

The Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) is a unique not-for-profit organization where OEMs, suppliers, service providers, government entities, and individuals in academia have worked together for 40 years to drive down costs and complexity from the automotive supply chain. With more than 4,400 member companies, AIAG provides a legal, non-competitive forum for collaboration on innovative solutions to common industry issues. www.aiag.org

Contact:
Greg Creason
Marketing Director – AIAG
gcreason@aiag.org

Findings Include Recommendations to Significantly Reduce the Environmental Impact

NEW YORK, May 31, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- fifty-five, a global MarTech consultancy that empowers brands to unite and fully optimize siloed data across all channels to drive business results, today announces the findings of a study it conducted on the carbon impact of advertising campaigns, with a primary focus on digital. This study is the first iteration of a global and collaborative approach that allows brands to work together on their digital and energy transformation. The study, as well as the measurement methodology and best practices for reducing this impact, are available as an open-source tool, allowing anyone to access and leverage it to drive environmental improvements with regards to their digital marketing efforts.

“We chose to publish this study with the methodology in open source so that it can be shared and optimized by all in the industry,” said Robin Clayton, managing director U.S. for fifty-five. “Our goal is to encourage the advertising industry to collaborate and to think of ways to ultimately help the sector activate concrete levers to reduce the footprint of campaigns. Eventually, the objective will be to extend the scope of the study to other types of advertising campaigns, including TV, radio, print, out-of-home, etc., for broader use cases and impact.”

Global warming due to human activity requires all businesses to reduce their carbon footprint. However, the reality of this situation faces a major obstacle: the lack of accurate and reliable data on the real carbon "cost" of goods and services. At the same time, the digital ecosystem is responsible for more than 3.5% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions and is growing at a rate of 6% per year, which is more than global civil aviation.  

“We, as an industry, need to collaborate on this critical issue to help establish guidelines and best practices for brands, publishers and advertising technology providers to follow,” said Brian O’Kelley, advertising technology veteran and co-founder and CEO of Scope3, the source of truth for supply chain emissions data. “I’m excited to see fifty-five taking a leadership role in the movement to measure the carbon impact of advertising campaigns and how to address that to decarbonize advertising. I look forward to working with fifty-five to help drive this important initiative forward.” 

The fifty-five study presents the issues related to the carbon footprint of a theoretical campaign and offers recommendations on the best ways to reduce its negative impact. To determine this, fifty-five leveraged existing work and a methodology for calculating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, based on an indicator common to all sources of emissions, namely the mass of CO2 equivalent (CO2eq). According to estimates by fifty-five, a single digital campaign can generate more than 70 tons of CO2eq, the equivalent of the carbon footprint of about seven people for a year. 

The study then highlighted approaches a company could take to reduce emissions by nearly 50%, and in one case, by 70%. These recommendations include favoring reasoned filming, optimizing video content, and delivering campaigns via Wi-Fi versus mobile networks, among others.

To review the complete study and its supporting recommendations, visit: https://get.fifty-five.com/carbon-footprint-study-en/ 

About fifty-five
As a part of The Brandtech Group, fifty-five is a data company that helps brands collect, analyze and activate their data across paid, earned and owned channels to increase their marketing ROI and improve customer acquisition and retention. Headquartered in Paris with offices in London, Hong Kong, New York, Shanghai, Geneva, Shenzhen and Taipei, the data company was named by Deloitte as one of the fastest-growing tech firms in Europe, owing to its unique approach that blends consulting, operational and technology expertise.

Media Contact

Aqilah Allaudeen

Account Manager, Tier One Partners

aallaudeen@tieronepr.com

• Carbon offsets purchased to account for 2021 GHG emissions
• Canada-wide Thermal Residential Heating Project funded
• Vision to design Canada’s first carbon neutral gold mine

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 31, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mayfair Gold Corp. (“Mayfair” or the “Company”) (TSX-V: MFG; OTCQB: MFGCF) is pleased to announce that the 100 percent controlled Fenn-Gib Project (“Fenn-Gib”) is now Canada’s first carbon neutral gold project following the completion of carbon offset purchases to account for emissions from Company-wide activities undertaken during 2021, the Company’s first year of operations. Located in the Timmins region of Northeast Ontario, Fenn-Gib hosts a NI43-101 Indicated Resource of 2.08M ounces (see “About Mayfair” section below) with disseminated gold mineralization striking east-west on the Pipestone Fault over 1.25 kilometers (km) and up to 300 meters (m) wide at the west end.

Mayfair Gold President and CEO Patrick Evans commented: “Gold is Canada’s most valuable mined commodity, valued in excess of $12 billion annually. The industry is a significant driver of economic activity across Canada, directly employing approx. 400,000 Canadians and offering the highest average annual industrial rate of pay in the country. The future of the industry depends critically upon sustainable development. At Fenn-Gib, we are laying the foundation for Canada’s first carbon neutral gold mine. Our commitment started on January 1, 2021, when Mayfair acquired Fenn-Gib, and will continue through our exploration program, mine development, operations and eventual closure.”

An independent assessment of the Company’s activities, conducted by Toronto-based Carbonzero, determined that 738 tonnes of CO₂-equivalent greenhouse gas emissions were generated in 2021, which covered the Company’s Scope 1, 2 and most material Scope 3 emissions. These emissions were principally related to exploration activities at Fenn-Gib, where a total of 54,741m was drilled in 89 holes. To compensate for these emissions, Mayfair has purchased carbon offsets from the Canada-wide Thermal Residential Heating Aggregation Project, with the offsets being retired on the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) Clean CleanProjects^® Registry. The project, which is verified under ISO-14064-2, replaces conventional residential fossil fuel combustion heating with solar heating systems located at private residences across Canada and other facilities. The offsets were specifically selected to directly benefit a broad range of Canadians.

Mayfair’s current 80,000m infill and expansion drill program is nearing completion with approx. 75,300m completed to date. The Company in on track to report a resource update in Q3 2022. In parallel, Mayfair has successfully completed metallurgical testing which confirms that the Fenn-Gib deposit can deliver robust gold recoveries through both whole ore cyanidation (84.3 percent recoveries) and flotation (94 percent recoveries).

About Mayfair

Mayfair is a Canadian mineral exploration company focused on advancing the 100% owned Fenn-Gib gold project in the Timmins region of Northern Ontario. The Fenn-Gib gold deposit is Mayfair’s flagship asset. An open-pit constrained NI 43-101 resource estimate (February 5, 2021) reported a total Indicated Resource of 70.2M tonnes containing 2.08M ounces at a grade of 0.921 g/t Au and an Inferred Resource of 3.8M tonnes containing 75,000 ounces at a grade of 0.618 g/t Au. The deposit has a strike length of approx. 1.25km with widths ranging up to 300m. The gold mineralized zones remain open at depth and along strike to the east and west.

About Carbonzero

Carbonzero was founded in 2006 and has risen to become a leader in the design and implementation of corporate carbon reduction strategies and solutions. We assist organizations of all sizes by helping them measure, report and reduce their emissions. Our approach, tools and services ensure that our clients can cost-effectively meet their GHG measurement and reduction commitments as part of a corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy.

For further information contact:

Patrick Evans, President and CEO
Email: patrick@mayfairgold.ca
Phone: (480) 747-3032
Web: www.mayfairgold.ca

Qualified Person Statement

Mayfair Gold’s disclosure of technical and scientific information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Howard Bird, P Geo., Vice President Exploration for the Company, who serves as a Qualified Person under the definition of National Instrument 43-101.

Forward Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking statements") that relate to Mayfair’s current expectations and views of future events. Any statements that express, or involve discussions as to, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, through the use of words or phrases such as "will likely result", "are expected to", "expects", "will continue", "is anticipated", "anticipates", "believes", "estimated", "intends", "plans", "forecast", "projection", "strategy", "objective" and "outlook") are not historical facts and may be forward-looking statements and may involve estimates, assumptions and uncertainties which could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those expressed in such forward-looking statements. No assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking statements included in this news release should not be unduly relied upon. These statements speak only as of the date of this news release.

Forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond Mayfair’s control, which could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those that are disclosed in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the impact and progression of the COVID-19 pandemic and other factors. Mayfair undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by law. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for Mayfair to predict all of them, or assess the impact of each such factor or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement. Any forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.