Responsible Business Report 2021
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RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS REPORT 2021 ENERGIA GROUP www.energiagroup.com CONTENTS Introduction from our CEO 3 Group Overview 5 Report Summary 10 Climate Action 11 Customers 16 Colleagues 23 Community 30 Governance 38 2 Technology and digital innovation will play a key INTRODUCTION role in the energy transition and in managing a sustainable future. It has also played a significant FROM OUR role in our business operations over the past year, a point to which I will shortly return. To assist our CHIEF customers with the transition and the realisation of its inherent benefits, we have continued to EXECUTIVE collaborate with our industry partners and have launched new products this year such as Energia OFFICER Connect360, Power NI Keypad+ and Energia’s new suite of smart meter enabled services. Delivering I am delighted to introduce Energia Group’s innovative and effective solutions for our customers Responsible Business Report for the year ended is core to our strategy, and consistent with our 31 March 2021. vision for the role of a modern utility, I am excited by our plans to substantially expand our offering to Behaving responsibly is core to our values as customers over the coming years. a business. Our business sector finds us at the epicentre of the climate crisis. The biggest challenge Notwithstanding all the great work we have done of our times demands an enthusiastic response. in transitioning our business model to meet the Accordingly, as a business, we have maintained challenges of decarbonisation, inevitably the last and enhanced our commitment to tackling climate year will be defined by the COVID-19 pandemic change and to playing a leading role in the energy and how it has affected every aspect of our lives. transition on the island of Ireland. Ambitious but We responded to the threat from the pandemic by necessary targets have been set for 2030 and prioritising the health and safety of our staff and beyond, and through our Positive Energy programme customers, while at the same time ensuring that we have the ambition to invest up to €3bn to consumers still had access to energy and essential facilitate the achievement of these targets. services. Our staff, as key workers in the provision of essential services, have shown exceptional A number of exciting developments are detailed commitment and resilience throughout the period of within this report, which charts the progress of the pandemic and continue to do so while restrictions our programmes. We remain convinced that our are in force. response must be as robust and comprehensive as it is wholehearted and that, to help Ireland achieve The restrictions introduced to cope with the its objectives, we need to embrace an ambitious pandemic have accentuated our dependence approach but also one that is sufficiently pragmatic on technology and have arguably accelerated to render success attainable. We have taken time to technological change. Like many organisations understand the challenges of climate change and throughout the world, moving large numbers of staff the energy transition, and we have embedded these to remote working has required the implementation learnings in our business. of new technological solutions and approaches. Energia Group Responsible Business Report 2021 3 As well as changing how we go about our day-to- It was particularly pleasing to obtain formal day business and engage with each other, we have recognition of our efforts to be a responsible also transitioned all learning and development business when, in December 2020, we were programmes to online hosting using Zoom and awarded the Business Working Responsibly mark Microsoft Teams, as well as many HR activities such for responsible and sustainable business practices. as the on-boarding of new colleagues. The Mark, developed by Business in the Community Ireland, the leading independently audited standard To guide the Group’s response to COVID-19, we for CSR and Sustainability certification in Ireland. surveyed our staff twice during the year and are very encouraged that the majority of staff feel As we look to the year ahead, we anticipate using connected, trusted to do their job and are confident our workspaces in an increasingly flexible way with that the Group is managing the impact of COVID-19 greater focus on collaboration, innovation and effectively. We will not rest on our laurels and are connectivity while, as part of a pilot, most staff committed to continue to focus on the wellbeing of should have the opportunity to work both from home our staff. and the office. I am particularly proud that, despite the pandemic As with the pandemic, this decade will require and remote working, our staff continued to make unprecedented change in how we go about our lives. positive contributions to local communities across Energia Group has always embraced change and Ireland. Initiatives undertaken during the year were we will relish the changes ahead while remaining as wide-ranging and diverse as ever. committed to our customers and the communities in which we operate. Notable achievements included the launch of a student bursary scheme aimed at students in the locality of the Meenadreen wind farm whose studies are focused on sustainability, Power NI staff Ian Thom volunteering with Age NI to make weekly telephone Chief Executive Officer calls to older persons to help them cope with the challenges of isolation and loneliness during the pandemic and Energia’s support for the Seachtain na Gaeilge festival which moved to an online format to ensure that a number of nationwide events were held during the restrictions. Many other initiatives are outlined later in this Responsible Business Report. Energia Group Responsible Business Report 2021 4 GROUP OVERVIEW Who we are Our Group in numbers Our core values We are a modern, renewables focused, customer- centric utility operating across the island of Ireland. What we do TRUSTWORTHY DYNAMIC RESOURCEFUL COMMUNITY FOCUSED We are a leading integrated Irish energy business 916 309 employees MW with a substantial and growing portfolio of • We are a trusted employer • We are leaders in our field • Our people are clever, • We are committed to renewable generation capacity throughout Ireland and one of the most resourceful and innovative integrating corporate and • Our people are recognised dynamic and resourceful in their approach to finding social responsibility into as well as two CCGT plants at the Huntstown site in Employee Wind generation industry wide for their players in the energy the best solutions for our the way we do business Dublin. We supply electricity and gas to customers numbers assets in operation honesty and integrity industry customers and our business through two retail brands while continually • We are focused on • We are constantly looking • We are developing addressing the issue of developing enhanced and differentiated product for new innovative ideas tech-enabled solutions climate change through offerings. and technological that meet customer needs our investment in advances to make to drive rapid change renewable technologies customers’ lives easier towards a renewable energy future How we are structured 823,900 7.3 Energia Group operates through three businesses: customer sites TWh Renewables; Flexible Generation; and Customer Solutions. Total customer Total electricity sites sales Energia Group Responsible Business Report 2021 5 NEW ACCREDITATIONS KEY ACCREDITATIONS Business Working Responsibly Mark At Energia Group we are very proud - Governance, Workplace, Marketplace, to have achieved the Business Environment and Community. The Working Responsibly mark. The Mark also recognises the ongoing Mark, developed by Business in the work of Energia Group in providing Community Ireland and audited by green energy and committing to the NSAI, is based on ISO 26000. investment in Renewable practices The Mark provides a root to branch and sustainability as well as the review and certification of corporate Community focused work of the social responsibility and sustainability Group. management system across five pillars ISO 45001:2018 Occupational Health & Safety ISO 55001:2014 Asset Management ISO 14001:2015 Environmental Management ISO 55001:2014 Asset Management Over the last 2 years, Energia This is the International Standard for Renewable Generation have been Asset Management and associated life working on achieving ISO 55001:2014 cycle engineering and demonstrates accreditation in respect of Asset best-in-class asset management. ISO 55001 : 2014 Management. Diversity Mark NI - Bronze Diversity Charter Mark Energia Group has been awarded with Gender Diversity, our drive to advance the Bronze Diversity Charter Mark from gender diversity in the workplace. We Diversity Mark NI. The Charter Mark are very keen to build on our success recognises our commitment to Diversity and are fully committed to driving our and Inclusion, initially focusing on Diversity and Inclusion Strategy. Energia Group Responsible Business Report 2021 6 WINNER • Most Sustainable Electricity and Gas Provider • Complaint Handling Team of the Year - Silver • Best Vulnerable Customer Support Team • Responsible Business Champion for 2020 2021 - Ireland (The UK Complaint Handling Awards 2021) (Utilities and Telecoms Awards 2020) (Business in the Community NI) (Corporate Excellence Awards) Energia Customer Solutions Power NI Power NI • Best Dual Fuel Plan • Most Improved Complaint Handling - Bronze • Gradam Margaíochta le Gaeilge (Bonkers National Consumer Awards 2021) (The UK