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Benefits of becoming a supporting company

Benefits for companies

To ensure and improve investor confidence in resource-rich countries, extractive companies need good governance, attractive business climates, level playing fields and clear and stable rules for investment.

International benefits

The EITI conveys credibility and reputational assurance to companies seeking to operate according to international standards. Supporting the EITI enables companies to:

  • Gain respect as an industry leader.
  • Deliver on company values by demonstrating a commitment to transparency and accountability.
  • Improve access to finance by increasing creditworthiness through EITI reporting.
  • Build trust and expand access to governments, industry and civil society via the EITI’s multi-stakeholder approach.
  • Stay ahead of the curve and gain insight into what investors, civil society and other stakeholders expect.
Local benefits

The EITI helps companies build a long-term, sustainable business in EITI implementing countries by:

  • Strengthening social license to operate by demonstrating companies’ economic and social contributions to communities.
  • Reducing investment and corruption risk by giving companies a tool to understand and mitigate political risks and public discontent.
  • Acting as a catalyst in developing local capacity and infrastructure by educating local governments and businesses.
  • Levelling the playing field by ensuring private and state-owned companies operate according to the same reporting requirements.
  • Improving engagement with government and civil society stakeholders through the EITI process and outreach efforts.

Hydro’s purpose is to create a more viable society by developing natural resources into products and solutions in innovative and efficient ways. We support the EITI’s work to increase transparency and disclosure as a vehicle to build trust between governments, companies and civil society, which is a precondition for progress that benefits everyone.

Hilde Merete Aasheim President & CEO, Norsk Hydro ASA

Benefits for financial institutions

Financial institutions supporting the EITI reflect the growing attention that global financial markets place on increasing transparency and improving governance in the extractive sector.

Benefits of supporting the EITI
  • Access and use EITI data that is timely, standardised and in open format 
  • Strengthen expectations for companies, state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and commodity traders 
  • Shape global extractives governance  
  • Demonstrate commitment to anti-corruption, transparency and improvement in corporate and public sector governance 
  • Build trust and expand access to governments, industry and civil society via EITI’s multi-stakeholder approach

How the EITI supports financial institutions

The EITI contributes to a better investment climate, enhancing the prospect for investment returns and reducing risk in lending to extractive companies operating in countries implementing the EITI Standard. Companies supporting the EITI observe the Expectations for EITI supporting companies and provide environmental, social and governance (ESG) disclosures, central to institutions’ investment and lending decisions. 

The EITI increasingly delivers timely, open and standardised data on companies and wider governance in the extractive sector, which better informs institutions’ investing and lending decisions. EITI data covers: 

  • Beneficial ownership: Enabling institutions to know who they are financing and minimising transaction risks.  
  • Contracts: Giving institutions access to the terms entered by governments and companies, to ensure greater stability of investments and reduce revisions of terms.
  • Commodity trading: Providing institutions with data to inform trade finance decisions and to measure trade transparency. 
  • State-owned enterprises: Providing greater clarity on SOE operations, financial management and relations with the government.

How financial institutions support the EITI

Financial and lending institutions play a significant role in shaping governance and transparency practices for the extractive sector by: 

  • Encouraging governments to implement the EITI Standard to improve the investment climate. 
  • Promoting improved corporate management and accountability by urging companies they finance to support the EITI and observe the EITI supporting company expectations. 
  • Promoting the use of EITI data to inform assessments of institutional capacity, governance reforms and anti-corruption efforts in EITI implementing countries.

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