TaeKwang Industrial Co., Ltd and TransWood Inc. Become Signatories to International Cyanide Management Code

The International Cyanide Management Institute (ICMI) announced today that it had accepted applications from TaeKwang Industrial Co., Ltd and TransWood Inc. making them signatories to the International Cyanide Management Code for the Manufacture, Transport and Use of Cyanide in the Production of Gold (Code). The Code is a voluntary industry program for companies involved in the production of gold using cyanide and companies manufacturing and transporting this cyanide. TaeKwang Industrial Co., Ltd is a manufacturer of cyanide headquartered in South Korea, and TransWood is a transporter of cyanide operating in the United States.

These companies join 22 other companies as signatories to the Code. By becoming signatories, TaeKwang Industrial Co., Ltd and TransWood Inc. commit to follow the Code’s Principles and implement its Production and Transport Practices, and to have verification audits of their individual operations conducted by independent third-party auditors within three years of their initial application, and every three years thereafter. Operations will be certified if found in compliance with the Code, and will be de-certified if ICMI determines that they no longer comply with the Code.

The Code was developed under the aegis of the United Nations Environment Programme and the International Council on Metals and the Environment (ICME) by a multi-stakeholder Steering Committee. The Code is intended to complement an operation’s existing obligation to comply with the applicable law and regulations of the political jurisdictions in which the operation is located.

ICMI has been established to administer the Code, promote its adoption, evaluate its implementation, and manage the certification process. A detailed list of the operations covered by signatory companies’ applications, along with the full text of the Code and its implementing and administrative documents, are available at www.cyanidecode.org.

Date:
Thursday, June 22, 2006