EX-1.01 2 ex1_01.htm EXHIBIT 1.01
Exhibit 1.01
 
CONFLICT MINERALS REPORT OF
NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS CORPORATION
FOR THE REPORTING PERIOD FROM
JANUARY 1 TO DECEMBER 31, 2020


 I.
Introduction
This is the Conflict Minerals1 Report of National Instruments Corporation (“we,” “our,” “us,” “NI,” or the “Company”) prepared for calendar year 2020 in accordance with Rule 13p-1 (“Rule 13p-1”) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Act”), as amended. Numerous terms in this Report are defined in Rule 13p-1 of the Act and SEC Release No. 34-67716 (August 22, 2012) under the Act (the “Adopting Release”). The reader is referred to these sources for the definitions of defined terms contained herein.
In accordance with Rule 13p-1, we undertook efforts to determine the presence and source of the conflict minerals within our products. The Company designed its efforts in conformity with the internationally recognized due diligence framework set forth in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (“OECD”) Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas2 (“OECD Due Diligence Guidance”) and related Supplements.
The statements below are based on the activities performed to date in good faith by the Company and are based on the infrastructure and information available at the time of this filing. Factors that could affect the accuracy of these statements include, but are not limited to, incomplete supplier data or available smelter data, errors or omissions by suppliers or smelters, gaps in supplier or smelter education and knowledge, supplier and smelter unfamiliarity with the protocol, evolving identification of smelters, incomplete information from industry or other third-party sources, all instances of Conflict Minerals necessary to the functionality or manufacturing of NI’s products possibly not yet having been identified, timeliness of data, public information not discovered during a reasonable search, errors in public data, language barriers and translation, oversights or errors in conformant smelter audits, Covered Countries sourced materials being declared secondary materials, companies going out of business in 2020, certification programs being not equally advanced for all industry segments and metals, smuggling of Conflict Minerals from the Covered Countries to countries beyond the covered countries, continuing guidance regarding the SEC final rules, and other issues.

 II.
Overview
Company Profile
National Instruments Corporation (the "Company," "NI," "we," "us" or "our") started over 40 years ago on an idea of connecting engineers through software. Our founders created technology to connect instruments to computers in order to accelerate the testing and measurement of innovative technology, and this was the seed of a philosophy of accelerating innovation that continues to be a driving force of our culture, our business, and our operations today. We strive to enable customers around the world to do their most ambitious work while meeting fast-moving market demands. We provide the integration of modular hardware and open, flexible software systems, to consistently support organizations’ evolving test and measurement needs.NI is headquartered in Austin, Texas, was incorporated under the laws of the State of Texas in May 1976 and was reincorporated in Delaware in June 1994. In March 1995, we completed an initial public offering of our common stock. Our common stock, $0.01 par value, is quoted on the NASDAQ Stock Market under the trading symbol NATI.
We are subject to this rule as we have determined that, during 2020, conflict minerals were likely necessary to the functionality or production of products we manufactured or contracted to manufacture. The Company, as a purchaser of component parts, is many steps removed from the mining of conflict minerals. We do not purchase raw ore or unrefined conflict minerals and we conduct no purchasing activities directly in the DRC or adjoining countries.
Conflict Minerals Policy
The Company developed a policy statement to support the goals expressed by Congress in enacting Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The policy highlights the Company’s commitment to complying with the reporting and due diligence obligations required by the SEC rule and our expectations from our suppliers. The policy as well as our supplier code of conduct and terms and conditions include language highlighting our expectation for suppliers to source responsibly. The policy resides on our corporate website (http://ni.com/conflictminerals).
Reasonable Country of Origin Inquiry Information
We have conducted a good faith reasonable country of origin inquiry (“RCOI”) to determine whether the necessary conflict minerals originated in the DRC or an adjoining country or came from recycled or scrap sources.
The Company’s RCOI process included reviewing the products manufactured or contracted to be manufactured during the Reporting Period to identify products that should be deemed in-scope as described by the Adopting Release and conducting an inquiry of our direct suppliers of the in-scope products using the Responsible Minerals Initiative’s (“RMI”) Conflict Minerals Reporting Template (“CMRT”). Based on the results of our RCOI which indicated sourcing from the DRC or an adjoining country, we exercised due diligence on the source and chain of custody of the conflict minerals in accordance with the OECD Due Diligence Guidance. Our due diligence efforts are discussed further in this Conflict Minerals Report.
Due Diligence Program Design
The Company designed its conflict minerals program to conform, in all material respects, with the five-step framework of the OECD Due Diligence Guidance, the Supplement on Tin, Tantalum, and Tungsten, and the Supplement on Gold, specifically as they relate to our position in the minerals supply chain as a “downstream” company:
Step 1: Establish strong company management systems
Step 2: Identify and assess risks in the supply chain
Step 3: Design and implement a strategy to respond to identified risks
Step 4: Carry out independent third-party audit of smelter/refiner's due diligence practices
Step 5: Report annually on supply chain due diligence

 III.
Due Diligence Measures Performed by The Company
The following describes the measures taken to reasonably determine the country of origin and to exercise due diligence in the mineral supply chain in conformance with the OECD Due Diligence Guidance.
Step 1: Establish strong company management systems
a.
Conflict minerals team – The Company established a conflict minerals team that includes individuals from the relevant business units and departments, including trade compliance, procurement, sales, and legal. The team was structured to include the involvement from those in upper management roles, including the Senior VP of Manufacturing, Director of Trade Compliance, and Global Supply Chain Operations Manager, to ensure that critical information, including the Company’s conflict minerals policy, reached relevant employees and suppliers.
b.
Conflict minerals policy – The Company adopted and published a policy establishing the expectations of our suppliers. The policy resides on our corporate website (http://ni.com/conflictminerals). The Company’s expectation for the responsible sourcing of minerals is also incorporated into the Company’s terms and conditions with suppliers.
c.
Supplier engagement – The Company communicated its conflict minerals policy and provided educational materials to our in-scope suppliers. Suppliers were informed when the request for information was initiated on the conflict minerals disclosure requirements as well as recommendations for developing, implementing, and documenting a conflict minerals compliance program. NI also communicated its conflict minerals position statement to its suppliers through the NI Supplier Handbook, available online at ni.com/en-us/about-ni/suppliers.html, which is designed to inform potential and existing suppliers about the Company. Finally, NI requires that its suppliers abide by the NI Supplier Code of Conduct and and the labor, health and safety, environmental, and ethics standards of the most current version of the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) Code of Conduct.
d.
Company level grievance mechanism – As recommended by the OECD Due Diligence Guidance, the Company has a grievance mechanism in place as a risk-awareness system for conflict minerals issues. NI maintains an ethics hotline pursuant to which stakeholders, internal and external, may confidentially report concerns involving conflict minerals, either electronically or by phone.
e.
Records management – The Company will maintain records relating to our conflict minerals program in accordance with the recommended record retention guidelines of five years.
Step 2: Identify and assess risks in the supply chain
We performed the following steps as part of our risk assessment process:
a.
Identified products in scope – Our conflict minerals team conducted a detailed review of the products manufactured or contracted to be manufactured during the Reporting Period to identify products that should be deemed in-scope as described by the Adopting Release. As most NI hardware products contain at least one of the Conflict Minerals this disclosure includes information on a company level basis that includes general information for all NI products.
b.
Conducted RCOI – The Company utilized the most recent version of the industry-developed CMRT to query our suppliers for conflict minerals information. We requested this information from the Tier 1 suppliers who provide materials and components for NI products. We evaluated the responses from the templates submitted by our suppliers to determine our reporting obligation based on this RCOI. See Appendix I for a list of countries of origin identified through the RCOI process.
c.
Completed additional follow-up – The Company contacted direct suppliers multiple times as needed to help ensure compliance with our request for detailed conflict minerals information. We also worked to clarify and validate the accuracy of information provided by our suppliers by responding with standardized feedback questions to address any issues or uncertainty with the template provided when necessary and/or obtaining additional information upon request (product identification, order numbers, or shipping addresses) to help ensure we are receiving conflict minerals information specific to our supply-chain.
d.
Identified smelters or refiners (“SORs”) – The Company compiled a list of SORs in our supply chain using our suppliers’ responses in their CMRTs. The Company reconciled this list to the list of smelter facilities designated by the RMI’s Responsible Minerals Assurance Process (“RMAP”). The RMAP completes independent, third-party audits of smelters and refiners to determine which can be validated as having systems in place that ensure the minerals are responsible sourced according to the OECD Due Diligence Guidance. The Company maintains a database of smelter aliases to reconcile suppliers’ smelters lists to the list of RMI SORs. We have provided that list in this report within section IV – Product Description; Processing Facilities.
Step 3: Design and implement a strategy to respond to identified risks
We performed the following steps as part of our risk management plan:
a.
Reporting results to senior management – The Conflict Minerals team reports the results of our RCOI to upper management which included the team’s plan to respond to risks identified in the due diligence processes.
b.
Designed and implemented a plan – The Company used established risk rating criteria to evaluate suppliers based on the responses provided within their CMRT, as well as, any additional documentation furnished to support those responses and the suppliers’ due diligence processes. The resulting risk ratings were used to develop specific supplier outreach to address the identified risks and to take corrective actions with suppliers found not in compliance with the Company’s conflict minerals policy. For 2020, suppliers who indicated that they had received responses from less than 50% of their in-scope suppliers were deemed as high-risk and encouraged to work with their supply chain to increase the level of transparency.
c.
Identified SORs – As part of the risk mitigation process, the Company reconciled the list of SORs collected from suppliers to the list of smelter facilities validated by the RMI.  The Company maintains a database of smelter aliases to reconcile suppliers’ smelters lists to the list of RMI SORs.
Step 4: Carry out independent third-party audit of smelter/refiner's due diligence practices
The Company is using information provided by independent third-party audit programs, including the RMI, London Bullion Market Association (LBMA), and Responsible Jewelry Council (RJC), to confirm the existence and verify the OECD-conformance status of SORs identified during our due diligence.
For SORs that had not been audited as conformant, the Company sent a communication to encourage participation in the RMAP and requested the SOR to provide the mines and/or locations the SOR sources from to assist in identifying all countries of origin. Additionally, the Company sent communications to all suppliers that reported SORs that had not been audited as conformant to request that these suppliers message the SORs to encourage participation in the RMAP.
The Company is also a member of the RMI {Member Code: NAIN}. As a member, the Company financially supports the development of the RMAP and has relied on the RMI to determine the country of origin of conflict minerals in the Company’s products in addition to the Company’s efforts of reaching out to smelters. The efforts to determine location of origin through the RMI are described in the RMI’s Reasonable Country of Origin Inquiry Data methodology available on their website.
Step 5: Report annually on supply chain due diligence
Accordingly, this Conflict Minerals Report has been filed with the SEC and is available on our website at http://investor.ni.com/


1 The term “conflict mineral” is defined in Section 1502(e)(4) of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act as (A) columbite-tantalite, also known as coltan (the metal ore from which tantalum is extracted); cassiterite (the metal ore from which tin is extracted); gold; wolframite (the metal ore from which tungsten is extracted); or their derivatives; or (B) any other mineral or its derivatives determined by the Secretary of State to be financing conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (“DRC”) or an adjoining country.
2 OECD (2016), OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas: Third Edition, OECD Publishing, Paris. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264252479-en

 IV.
Product Description; Processing Facilities
Product Description – Most NI hardware products and systems contain at least one of the Conflict Minerals and fall into the scope of the law’s requirements; thus, the following description includes information on a company level basis that includes general information for  our hardware products. We offer two primary hardware form factors, PXI and NI C-series, both with a modular input/output ("I/O") approach in addition to industry standard PCI form factors. The NI PXI modular instrument platform, introduced in 1997, is a standard PC architecture in a rugged form factor with expansion slots and instrumentation extensions for timing, triggering and signal sharing. PXI combines mainstream PC software and PCI hardware with advanced instrumentation capabilities. The NI C-series platform, used in our CompactRIO and CompactDAQ products, is a rugged, high-performance I/O and processing platform used in a wide variety of data acquisition applications. The NI PXI and C-series platforms include field programmable gate array ("FPGA") technology, giving customers programmable hardware capability that provides high performance and is user-customizable with NI LabVIEW software. One example of our application-specific systems is our NI Semiconductor Test System ("STS") which combines NI modular instrumentation with NI software for RF and mixed-signal production testing. The STS features fully production-ready test systems that use NI technology in a form factor suitable for a semiconductor production test environment. The STS combines the NI PXI hardware, TestStand test management software, and LabVIEW graphical programming software inside a fully enclosed test head. The compact STS design houses all the key components of a production tester while using a fraction of the floor space, power, and maintenance typically required by traditional automated test equipment.
Processing Facilities – Based on our due diligence process and the information received from our suppliers, the following facilities were identified by the Company’s suppliers as the smelters and refiners of the tin, tantalum, tungsten and/or gold present in and necessary to the functionality of products manufactured by the Company in the calendar year ended December 31, 2020. The information from our suppliers is still evolving and may contain company-level declarations. As such, this smelter list is presented in good faith as the best information we have to date. For 2020 we identified 111 SORs in our supply chain, and all 111 have been audited as conformant with the RMAP. This list may contain smelters that are not in our supply chain and/or there may be other smelters not yet identified in our due diligence process. We will continue to update the list as our information and the relevant third-party data from RMI, LBMA, and RJC improves.
Metal
Standard Smelter Name
Smelter Country
Entity ID
Gold
Allgemeine Gold-und Silberscheideanstalt A.G.
GERMANY
CID000035
Gold
AngloGold Ashanti Corrego do Sitio Mineracao
BRAZIL
CID000058
Gold
Argor-Heraeus S.A.
SWITZERLAND
CID000077
Gold
Asahi Pretec Corp.
JAPAN
CID000082
Gold
Asahi Refining Canada Ltd.
CANADA
CID000924
Gold
Asahi Refining USA Inc.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID000920
Gold
Aurubis AG
GERMANY
CID000113
Gold
Boliden AB
SWEDEN
CID000157
Gold
C. Hafner GmbH + Co. KG
GERMANY
CID000176
Gold
Chimet S.p.A.
ITALY
CID000233
Gold
Dowa
JAPAN
CID000401
Gold
Heimerle + Meule GmbH
GERMANY
CID000694
Gold
Heraeus Metals Hong Kong Ltd.
CHINA
CID000707
Gold
Inner Mongolia Qiankun Gold and Silver Refinery Share Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID000801
Gold
Ishifuku Metal Industry Co., Ltd.
JAPAN
CID000807
Gold
Istanbul Gold Refinery
TURKEY
CID000814
Gold
Jiangxi Copper Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID000855
Gold
JX Nippon Mining & Metals Co., Ltd.
JAPAN
CID000937
Gold
Kennecott Utah Copper LLC
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID000969
Gold
Kojima Chemicals Co., Ltd.
JAPAN
CID000981
Gold
LS-NIKKO Copper Inc.
KOREA, REPUBLIC OF
CID001078
Gold
Matsuda Sangyo Co., Ltd.
JAPAN
CID001119
Gold
Metalor Technologies (Hong Kong) Ltd.
CHINA
CID001149
Gold
Metalor Technologies (Singapore) Pte., Ltd.
SINGAPORE
CID001152
Gold
Metalor Technologies (Suzhou) Ltd.
CHINA
CID001147
Gold
Metalor Technologies S.A.
SWITZERLAND
CID001153
Gold
Metalor USA Refining Corporation
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID001157
Gold
Metalurgica Met-Mex Penoles S.A. De C.V.
MEXICO
CID001161
Gold
Mitsubishi Materials Corporation
JAPAN
CID001188
Gold
Nihon Material Co., Ltd.
JAPAN
CID001259
Gold
PAMP S.A.
SWITZERLAND
CID001352
Gold
Royal Canadian Mint
CANADA
CID001534
Gold
SEMPSA Joyeria Plateria S.A.
SPAIN
CID001585
Gold
Shandong Zhaojin Gold & Silver Refinery Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID001622
Gold
Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd.
JAPAN
CID001798
Gold
Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo K.K.
JAPAN
CID001875
Gold
Umicore S.A. Business Unit Precious Metals Refining
BELGIUM
CID001980
Gold
United Precious Metal Refining, Inc.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID001993
Gold
Valcambi S.A.
SWITZERLAND
CID002003
Gold
Western Australian Mint (T/a The Perth Mint)
AUSTRALIA
CID002030
Tantalum
Asaka Riken Co., Ltd.
JAPAN
CID000092
Tantalum
Changsha South Tantalum Niobium Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID000211
Tantalum
D Block Metals, LLC
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID002504
Tantalum
Exotech Inc.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID000456
Tantalum
F&X Electro-Materials Ltd.
CHINA
CID000460
Tantalum
FIR Metals & Resource Ltd.
CHINA
CID002505
Tantalum
Global Advanced Metals Aizu
JAPAN
CID002558
Tantalum
Global Advanced Metals Boyertown
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID002557
Tantalum
H.C. Starck Hermsdorf GmbH
GERMANY
CID002547
Tantalum
H.C. Starck Inc.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID002548
Tantalum
Hengyang King Xing Lifeng New Materials Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID002492
Tantalum
Jiangxi Tuohong New Raw Material
CHINA
CID002842
Tantalum
JiuJiang JinXin Nonferrous Metals Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID000914
Tantalum
Jiujiang Tanbre Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID000917
Tantalum
Metallurgical Products India Pvt., Ltd.
INDIA
CID001163
Tantalum
Mitsui Mining and Smelting Co., Ltd.
JAPAN
CID001192
Tantalum
Ningxia Orient Tantalum Industry Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID001277
Tantalum
Solikamsk Magnesium Works OAO
RUSSIAN FEDERATION
CID001769
Tantalum
TANIOBIS Co., Ltd.
THAILAND
CID002544
Tantalum
TANIOBIS GmbH
GERMANY
CID002545
Tantalum
TANIOBIS Japan Co., Ltd.
JAPAN
CID002549
Tantalum
TANIOBIS Smelting GmbH & Co. KG
GERMANY
CID002550
Tantalum
Ulba Metallurgical Plant JSC
KAZAKHSTAN
CID001969
Tantalum
XIMEI RESOURCES (GUANGDONG) LIMITED
CHINA
CID000616
Tantalum
Yanling Jincheng Tantalum & Niobium Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID001522
Tin
Alpha
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID000292
Tin
Chifeng Dajingzi Tin Industry Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID003190
Tin
China Tin Group Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID001070
Tin
Dowa
JAPAN
CID000402
Tin
Fenix Metals
POLAND
CID000468
Tin
Gejiu Kai Meng Industry and Trade LLC
CHINA
CID000942
Tin
Gejiu Non-Ferrous Metal Processing Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID000538
Tin
Guangdong Hanhe Non-Ferrous Metal Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID003116
Tin
Jiangxi New Nanshan Technology Ltd.
CHINA
CID001231
Tin
Ma'anshan Weitai Tin Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID003379
Tin
Malaysia Smelting Corporation (MSC)
MALAYSIA
CID001105
Tin
Metallic Resources, Inc.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID001142
Tin
Metallo Belgium N.V.
BELGIUM
CID002773
Tin
Metallo Spain S.L.U.
SPAIN
CID002774
Tin
Mineracao Taboca S.A.
BRAZIL
CID001173
Tin
Minsur
PERU
CID001182
Tin
Mitsubishi Materials Corporation
JAPAN
CID001191
Tin
O.M. Manufacturing (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
THAILAND
CID001314
Tin
O.M. Manufacturing Philippines, Inc.
PHILIPPINES
CID002517
Tin
PT Mitra Stania Prima
INDONESIA
CID001453
Tin
PT Refined Bangka Tin
INDONESIA
CID001460
Tin
PT Timah Tbk Kundur
INDONESIA
CID001477
Tin
PT Timah Tbk Mentok
INDONESIA
CID001482
Tin
Rui Da Hung
TAIWAN, PROVINCE OF CHINA
CID001539
Tin
Thai Nguyen Mining and Metallurgy Co., Ltd.
VIET NAM
CID002834
Tin
Thaisarco
THAILAND
CID001898
Tin
Tin Technology & Refining
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID003325
Tin
White Solder Metalurgia e Mineracao Ltda.
BRAZIL
CID002036
Tin
Yunnan Chengfeng Non-ferrous Metals Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID002158
Tin
Yunnan Tin Company Limited
CHINA
CID002180
Tungsten
A.L.M.T. Corp.
JAPAN
CID000004
Tungsten
Chenzhou Diamond Tungsten Products Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID002513
Tungsten
Chongyi Zhangyuan Tungsten Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID000258
Tungsten
Ganzhou Huaxing Tungsten Products Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID000875
Tungsten
Ganzhou Seadragon W & Mo Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID002494
Tungsten
Global Tungsten & Powders Corp.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID000568
Tungsten
H.C. Starck Tungsten GmbH
GERMANY
CID002541
Tungsten
Hunan Chunchang Nonferrous Metals Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID000769
Tungsten
Japan New Metals Co., Ltd.
JAPAN
CID000825
Tungsten
Jiangwu H.C. Starck Tungsten Products Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID002551
Tungsten
Jiangxi Tonggu Non-ferrous Metallurgical & Chemical Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID002318
Tungsten
Kennametal Huntsville
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID000105
Tungsten
Niagara Refining LLC
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CID002589
Tungsten
TANIOBIS Smelting GmbH & Co. KG
GERMANY
CID002542
Tungsten
Xiamen Tungsten (H.C.) Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID002320
Tungsten
Xiamen Tungsten Co., Ltd.
CHINA
CID002082


V.
Future Due Diligence
We will continue to communicate our expectations and information requirements to our direct suppliers. Over time, we anticipate that the amount of information available globally on the traceability and sourcing of these ores will increase and improve our knowledge. We will continue to make inquiries to our direct suppliers and undertake additional risk assessments when potentially relevant changes in facts or circumstances are identified. If we become aware of a supplier whose due diligence needs improvement, we may continue the trade relationship while that supplier improves its compliance program. We expect our suppliers to take similar measures with their suppliers to ensure alignment throughout the supply chain.
In addition to those above, the Company will undertake the following steps during the next compliance period:
•
Review the conflict minerals policy statement and update if necessary.
•
Continue to collect responses from suppliers using the most recent revision of the CMRT.
•
Engage with suppliers that did not provide a response in 2020 or provided incomplete responses to enhance our data collection for 2021.
•
Monitor and track performance of risk mitigation efforts including the performance of suppliers deemed high-risk.
•
Continue engagement with smelters by sending letters to those that have not been audited as conformant.
•
Continue to send messages to our suppliers to engage with these smelters.
•
Collect from suppliers product-level or user-defined level responses where useful.
•
Compare and validate RCOI results to information collected via independent third-party audit programs, such as the RMI, and through our Company’s own coordinated outreach to smelters.
•
Encourage responsible sourcing from the DRC and adjoining countries.

Websites referenced in this Conflict Minerals Report, and the information contained in them or connected to them, are not intended to be incorporated into this Conflict Minerals Report or our Form SD.

This Conflict Minerals Report contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Any statements contained herein regarding our future financial performance,  operations, due diligence, or other activities (including, without limitation, statements to the effect that we “will,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “continue,” or other variations thereof or comparable terminology or the negative thereof) should be considered forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of important factors including risk factors set forth in our Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on February 23, 2021, our form 10-Q filed with the SEC on May 3, 2021, and other documents filed with the SEC.  Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made. We disclaim any obligation to update information contained in any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
APPENDIX I – Countries of Origin

The potential country of origin information provided in this Appendix is based on the information collected from the Company’s suppliers. It is important to note that this is based, in part, on company level responses and therefore, it is not certain that these countries of origin can be linked to our products.

Mineral Country of Origin
Argentina
Mexico
Australia
Mongolia
Austria
Mozambique
Benin
Myanmar
Bolivia (Plurinational State of)
Namibia
Brazil
Niger
Burundi*
Nigeria
Canada
Peru
China
Portugal
Colombia
Russian Federation
Congo, Democratic Republic of the*
Rwanda*
Ecuador
Sierra Leone
Eritrea
South Africa
Ethiopia
Spain
France
Swaziland
Germany
Taiwan
Ghana
Tanzania*
Guinea
Thailand
Guyana
Uganda*
India
United Kingdom
Indonesia
United States of America
Japan
Uzbekistan
Laos
Viet Nam
Madagascar
Zimbabwe
Malaysia
  
* The DRC or adjoining countries