Simon and Tayna along BC Works employees and community partners gather to celebrate gáiḡas, an aluminium totem pole that reflects shared history, collaboration, and the ongoing relationship between Haisla Nation and BC Works.
Looking back on 2025, I am immensely proud of how our team at BC Works continued to demonstrate resilience in a year defined by significant challenges. As we navigated the headwinds of a shifting global economic landscape and faced a third consecutive year of drought conditions affecting the Nechako Reservoir, our commitment to safety, operational integrity, and responsible production never wavered.
Despite these pressures, our people came together with the determination and collaboration that define BC Works. Thanks to the focus and hard work of our employees and contractor partners, we achieved our metal production targets—an accomplishment that speaks volumes about the ingenuity and dedication of our team. We successfully advanced and completed several major capital projects essential to the long‑term sustainability and competitiveness of our operations. And perhaps most importantly, we ratified a new Collective Labour Agreement, bringing 4 years of certainty and stability for our business, our workforce, and their families. These investments strengthen our foundation for the future, ensuring the reliability of our ongoing contriubtions to the economy in our community, the region, and the province.
Our resilience this year extended well beyond our operations. We remained steadfast in our commitment to the communities across our operating footprint. Through meaningful partnerships, ongoing dialogue, and targeted community investments, we continued to support local organizations, contribute to regional development, and work together toward shared goals. These relationships are at the heart of who we are, and they remain essential to our long-term success.
Looking to the future, we are confident that the strength, adaptability, and spirit demonstrated by our teams in 2025 will carry us into the future with purpose. We will continue to innovate, invest, and build on our strong foundation—always guided by our values and our responsibility to the people and communities who make our work possible.
Simon Pascoe
General Manager, BC Works
Joining BC Works partway through 2025 has given me a meaningful introduction to the breadth and depth of our relationships across the region. From Kitimat to the Nechako Watershed, our engagement with communities and Indigenous partners continues to be guided by Rio Tinto’s global Communities and Social Performance Standard, which emphasizes transparency, collaboration, and long-term positive outcomes.
For the past 2 years, BC Works has worked with the Local Voices tool to gather data-driven insights into community trust and acceptance. Through structured surveys and ongoing feedback, Local Voices helps ensure our actions reflect community priorities and strengthen our social performance. This year we are pleased to include the Local Voices reporting tool as part of our CSP Report.
A few years ago, Rio Tinto announced its Investing for Impact strategy, changing the way we invest socially. BC Works continues to bring local context to this global approach by directing support to the priorities that matter most to our communities. This focus on locally informed, long-term social value mirrors the company’s wider commitment to strengthening community well-being through sustained partnerships and meaningful investment.
I look forward to building on this foundation in the year ahead—listening deeply, strengthening partnerships, and continuing to deliver positive social outcomes across our footprint.
Tayna Thorpe
Manager, Communities and Social Performance, BC Works