This case looks at the Ambatovy mining project in Madagascar, which involves exploring and exploiting a giant nickel and cobalt mine near Moramanga, on Madagascar’s east coast. The project could bring important economic and social development to Madagascar, one of the poorest countries in the world but requires a high level of commitment to environmental protection along with the support of local communities. The company is developing programs to compensate for its ecological footprint and to achieve the goal of “no net loss” of biodiversity. The case gives a history of the project, the main actions taken, and the results delivered by the company while attempting to engage in “sustainable exploration and exploitation” and to be a “responsible” corporate citizen. The company’s perspective of the social, economic, and environmental issues surrounding the project is compared with that of two other stakeholders: the government and local communities.

This case aims to familiarize students with the key economic, social, and environmental issues associated with large-scale mining projects in developing countries.

It has two main teaching objectives:

1. to understand the concept of corporate citizenship from a conventional view (as a set of managerial CSR programs and practices) and its potential application in the mining industry and
2. to challenge this conventional view by examining issues related to mining industry projects from the perspective of different stakeholder groups.

• Corporate social responsibility (the roles of corporations in developing countries);
• The paradox of development and preservation;
• Building collaboration between corporations, governments and local communities.