Denis Cooke & Associates: Greenhouse Challenge Independent of North Limited

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" height=80 BGCOLOR="#666699" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="0b900840erlcjm.png"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Arial" ><B>Denis Cooke & Associates Pty Limited</B></FONT><B>     |  </B><B> </B><B> </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Denis Cooke Associates Pty Limited"><B>Home</B></A><B> </B><B>   |   </B><B> </B><A HREF="greenhouse_challenge_plus_verification.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Denis Cooke Associates Greenhouse Chall"><B>Up Level</B></A><B>   |</B></div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" height=400 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B>Greenhouse Challenge Independent Verification</B><B>:</B></div> <div> <I>Independent Verification Report Conducted at NORTH LIMITED</I></div> <div> <I>Independent Verifier - DENIS COOKE, DENIS COOKE & ASSOCIATES PTY LIMITED</I></div> <div> <I>Program Manager - DET NORSKE VERITAS</I></div> <div> <I>Conducted For - AUSTRALIAN GREENHOUSE OFFICE</I></div> <div> <I>Verification Date - 20 MAY 2000</I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Verification Summary</B></I></div> <div> <I>Independent verification of North Limited under the Greenhouse Challenge has been completed.</I></div> <div> <I>Examination of North's Co-operative Agreement and Progress Report did not identify any material discrepancies.</I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Co-operative Agreement:</B></I><I> </I></div> <div> <I>The Greenhouse Challenge Co-operative Agreement between North Limited and the Commonwealth of Australia - August 1997</I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Year of Progress report:</B></I><I> </I></div> <div> <I>Annual Report for Robe River Iron Associates Greenhouse Challenge November 1999 included in North Limited 2nd Annual Progress Report (1998/99) December 1999.</I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Description of activities of the enterprise</B></I></div> <div> <I>North Limited operates copper-gold, gold, iron ore and uranium mines in Australia, a zinc mine in Sweden, an iron ore mine in Canada and has a 25% interest in a large copper-gold mine in Argentina. North also has extensive forestry operations in Australia and has active mineral exploration programs on six continents.</I></div> <div> <I>Major locations in Australia included within North's Co-operative Agreement include Robe River Iron Associates, Energy Resources Australia, Northparkes and North Forest Products.</I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Objective</B></I></div> <div> <I>The verifier has been engaged by the Australian Greenhouse Office ("AGO") to perform certain procedures which were agreed with the AGO and are described below. The purpose of the engagement was to assist the AGO in evaluating the validity of nominated information provided to the AGO by North in the Greenhouse Challenge Co-operative Agreement and the 1999 Progress Report covering the period from 1 January 1998 to 31 December 1998. The responsibility for determining the adequacy of the procedures is that of the AGO.</I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Procedures</B></I></div> <div> <I>Nominated information on the baseline inventory for 1995/96, 1996/97 the emissions inventory for 1998/99 and abatement actions completed in 1997 was made available to the AGO for North Limited and the Robe River site together with information for the reported 1990/91 emissions inventory for the Robe River site. The procedures performed by the verifier were:</I></div> <div> <I>Site visits to </I></div> <div> <I>1.     Robe River Site - mine at Pannawonica and the Cape Lambert facilities. </I></div> <div> <I>2.     North's head office and Energy Consultant's office. </I></div> <div> <I>3.     Inspection of facilities to gain an appreciation of business operations</I></div> <bR> <div> <I>Meetings/discussions with senior staff responsible for Greenhouse Challenge</I></div> <div> <I>Inspection and verification with respect to materiality, completeness, comparability and accuracy of:</I></div> <bR> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">energy data collection systems - from source to data recording </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">energy data recording systems </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">emissions data calculations from energy recording systems </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">emissions inventory summaries </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">production data collection systems </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">production data recording systems </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">greenhouse challenge program management systems </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">greenhouse challenge projects responsibilities </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">greenhouse challenge projects identification </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">greenhouse challenge projects tracking </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">reporting to head office - processes </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">greenhouse policies </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">greenhouse training </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">greenhouse publicity </I></div> <bR> <div> <I>Specifically, the issues verified covered:</I></div> <bR> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Co-operative Agreement between North Limited and the Commonwealth of Australia - August 1997 </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Years of Progress Reports: 1998 and 1999 </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Inventory verification: </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Inventory years: 1990 (Robe River only), 1995/96, 1998/99 </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Inventory completeness: each nominated inventory year </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Inventory items verified: Diesel and gas usage at the Robe River Iron Associates site. </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Actions verified (from the 1998 Progress Report): </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">1.1b Improvements in material handling and </I></div> <div> <I><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700c800000000.png" HEIGHT="13" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">1.1e Purchase of new haulage trucks, </I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Sites verified: </B></I><I>Robe River </I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Method</B></I></div> <div> <I>The engagement was based on a sample of data from the Co-operative Agreement and 1998/99 Progress Report nominated above covering the sites, emissions and abatement projects as set out in the procedures above. As the engagement was based on a sample, there may be other sites, emissions and abatement projects that were not included in the sample where discrepancies may exist.</I></div> <bR> <div> <I> In conducting the engagement, the verifier has considered the requirements of the Independent Verification Implementation Plan and the detailed Verification and Reporting Guidelines approved by the Joint Consultative Committee to Greenhouse Challenge that was based on the Indicative Sampling Protocol and Checklist from the Independent Verification Implementation Plan.</I></div> <div> <I> </I></div> <div> <I><B>Statement of findings</B></I></div> <div> <I>The verifier reports as follows.</I></div> <bR> <div> <I>Group and Site Emissions Inventories have been verified as accurate for the years covered by this independent review, i.e.., the baseline emissions inventory year - 1995/96 and the latest year 1998/99.</I></div> <div> <I> </I></div> <div> <I>The 1990 Emissions for Robe River has been verified as materially accurate. Diesel and gas emissions for Robe River for the years 1990, 1995/96 and 1998/99 have been verified as materially accurate with data tracked from source documents to final inventory. </I></div> <bR> <div> <I>Group and Site Emissions forecasts have been verified as materially accurate and the methodology used has been verified to be appropriate. </I></div> <bR> <div> <I>The claimed savings from two selected Emissions Abatement Actions have been verified as reasonable in terms of project methodology and materially accurate in terms of subsequent assessment. </I></div> <bR> <div> <I>Suitable auditing and document control systems are in place to provide assurance of the Program's implementation and results from action plans. </I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Conclusion</B></I></div> <div> <I>Based on the above findings submitted by the verifier, technical review by the Program Manager and approval by the AGO, the AGO concludes that the Greenhouse Challenge Co-operative Agreement and 1999 Progress Report of North Limited for the reporting period 1 July 1998 to 30 June 1999 has no material discrepancies.</I></div> <div> <I> </I></div> <div> <A HREF="greenhouse_challenge_plus_verification.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Denis Cooke Associates Greenhouse Chall"><I>Back</I></A></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>