SUSTAINABILITY
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- SUSTAINABILITY
To realize a Sustainable Society beginning from the Local Community.
We consider the gifts of nature such as water, wind, and heat, which all exist in local regions as the "local commons*."
To create a sustainable society together with the local communities,
we utilize these potentials that are naturally replenished.
*The term "local commons" refers to resources that are the property of the entire society and should be maintained and managed together.
Sustainability Governance
- Board of Directors
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- Sustainability Committee
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- (Secretariat) Sustainability Promotion Group
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- Executive Committee
Sustainability Committee is the body governing the integration of sustainability all throughout GPSS's business activities. The committee is chaired by the Representative Director and CEO of GPSS Holdings Inc., and its members consist of the HD Executive Committee including the Chief Sustainability Officer.
Sustainability Promotion Group acts as the secretariat of the Sustainability Committee, which leads and promotes various sustainability activities to facilitate and coordinate all relevant divisions of GPSS Group. The group is led by the Chief Sustainability Officer.
Sustainability Policy
Based on our vision, GPSS’s mission is to increase local sustainability through sustainable energy projects which utilize local resources, and to help solve the social issue of a stable supply of sustainable energy, hence creating a sustainable society beginning from the local communities. We define “sustainable energy” as energy that can be used continuously without being depleted, because the rate of energy consumption and production are in balance or because the rate of production is faster than the rate of consumption. Through this, we express our intention to work with energy that truly contributes to the “realization of a sustainable society”.
To fulfil our vision, we need to address individual environmental, social, and governance issues through our day-to-day business activities. In addressing these specific sustainability issues, GPSS has formulated our Sustainability Policy, which sets out the material issues based on the following fundamental understanding:
- To manage adverse environmental and ecological impacts (air, water, soil, etc.) of its products/services appropriately to achieve sustainable growth in harmony with the natural environment and future generations.
- To adopt environmentally friendly initiatives such as energy conservation and GHG emission reduction, effective use of resources and reduction of waste, proper management of chemical substances and pollutants, water resource management and water conservation.
- Not to violate fundamental human rights of its stakeholders, including employees, subcontractors, and suppliers and to ensure a healthy, safe, and comfortable working environment.
- To ensure equal opportunities, to respect and value diversity and inclusion.
- To comply with relevant legislations, regulations, and industry standards relating to the prevention of bribery, strengthening corporate governance, cyber security, and protection of information.
- To ensure that any of its stakeholders, especially subcontractors and suppliers respect the same standards.
Materiality
Materiality Process
STEP1Selection ofIssues
We created a comprehensive long list of environmental, social and governance issues important and relevant to GPSS Group. In the identification of issues from a long-term perspective, we have used globally recognised ESG benchmarks such as CDP, and global sustainability reporting standards such as SASB, Sustainalytics, UNEP FI, TCFD and GRI. These sustainability standards also helped us assess how we are contributing to the UN SDGs through our business activities.
STEP2Prioritization ofIssues
After engagement with both internal (employees) and external stakeholders (residents of local communities, etc.), we prioritized our material issues. In the evaluation of materiality, we organized all issues in a matrix chart and evaluated them based on contribution to the realization of a sustainable society (relevance to society) ー which is the goal of our business activities ー, and positive impact on the local community (impact on the local community). The nine selected material issues have the highest impacts from both perspectives.
STEP3Engagement ofManagement
We ensure on-going full integration of the Sustainability Policy and each respective material issue in our corporate strategy through seeking the executives' input at all levels. Through punctual information and frequent dialogues, we also establish a thorough in-house understanding and company-wide adoption of the policy.
STEP4Monitoring andReporting
Once the Sustainability Policy is finalized and KPIs are set. We closely observe the set targets through ongoing data monitoring in collaboration with correspondent divisions. The Sustainability Promotion Group routinely reports performance and progress towards the targets set through both internal and public information disclosure. In addition, GPSS will review the selected nine material issues considering the changes in environment and the demands of society as necessary.
Materiality chosen by GPSS
Based on the Materiality Process, we have selected 9 material issues.
Joint sustainable energy businesses with local communities
Relevance to society
Our purpose (raison d'être) is to realize a sustainable society starting from the local communities. The local community will be able to realize a sustainable society with the profits from the power generation and other sustainable energy projects in which it participates as joint project partners.
Impact on the local community
By utilizing the potential value of resources that are local commons, the local community can realize a sustainable society with the funds derived from monetization of these resources.
KPI
- Number of joint projects with local communities and projects' total potential capacity (MW)
Consideration for the local environment
Relevance to society
The natural environment is a shared resource, which the local communities and residents benefit from and utilize as a local common; it can become a source of added value through our joint partnerships with the community. Therefore, it is essential for our company to apply rigorous standards for the natural surroundings at all times, when developing joint projects with the local communities.
Impact on the local community
The preservation of biodiversity and ecosystems is essential for the survival of local communities. Our company may have an impact on the surrounding natural environment and ecosystems through the development and EPC (installation and construction of power generation and other related facilities, etc.) of sustainable energy plants.
KPI
- Number of initiatives considered to have a positive impact on the local natural environment
- Number of nature-related issues that are considered to have a negative impact on the local natural environment
Initiatives for employees’ well-being
Relevance to society
Our purpose is to realize a sustainable society, and we regard our employees’ sense of job satisfaction and happiness as a prerequisite for business activities. Our unique business model of forming joint partnerships with local communities is supported by our employees, who are deeply committed to local communities and sustainability; this greatly influences the success or failure of our business.
Impact on the local community
Employee initiatives (and the resulting sense of fulfillment and happiness) contribute to better relationships with local communities and residents, based on long-term trust and agreements.
KPI
- Percentage of female employees
- Percentage of foreign employees
- Percentage of employees participating in and satisfaction score with SustainaTalk
- Percentage of new employees participating in sustainability training sessions
Engagement with suppliers
Relevance to society
Our company has business relationships with various technology, product and services suppliers and local companies in the regions where we build power plants. Even though anti-social forces and compliance checks on suppliers are conducted as part of our risk assessment, raising awareness and working together with our suppliers on climate change and sustainability issues is important for our risk prevention.
Impact on the local community
By working with business partners and others who implement best practices, we can expect an indirect positive impact through enhanced sustainability literacy.
KPI
- Percentage of sustainability declarations signed
Improving resilience to climate change and disaster
Relevance to society
The physical effects of climate change and natural disasters can have a significant impact on our assets (e.g., power plants). Therefore, ensuring resilience is essential for achieving a stable and secure sustainable energy supply.
Impact on the local community
Climate change and natural disasters can strike regions with significant destructive power and severely impact the overall sustainability of the region.
KPI
- Number of climate scenario analyses conducted for future projects
- Number of proposals to increase the resilience in local communities based on analysis of the present low resilience to natural disaster.
- Number of geothermal and hydro energy storage projects
Greenhouse gas emissions
Relevance to society
As climate change regulations and changing societal expectations (from consumers, businesses, and governments) require and encourage reductions in GHG emissions, providing a stable production and supply of sustainable energy, that does not emit GHG emissions, represents an important growth opportunity for our company.
Impact on the local community
GHG emissions negatively contribute to climate change and can cause long-term damage not only to local communities, but also to the whole of humanity.
KPI
- Annual CO2 reduction (t-CO2)
Efficient use of energy and resources
Relevance to society
In Japan, where resources are limited, waste and resource management are essential for us to continue our operations in a sustainable manner. Reducing waste will be more cost-effective and we recognize the potential of waste as a resource as well.
Impact on the local community
While managing waste contributes to solving social issues in communities with waste problems, management must be done carefully as waste from our construction, operations, and other activities can have a harmful impact.
KPI
- Annual construction site waste (tones)
- Amount of waste reused as biogas fuel (t) and energy produced (GWh)
Forests
Relevance to society
Sustainable forest management can contribute to solving local resilience issues. At the same time, by monetizing the CO2 absorption from forest resources as credits, including through tokenization, our company is preparing for the national introduction of carbon tax and the establishment of an emission trading system. We believe that increasing the quality and quantity of Japanese trees will facilitate carbon removal from the atmosphere and will also contribute to net zero goals.
Impact on the local community
Our company can contribute to minimize negative impacts on local industries stemming from forests not being properly managed. With more forests that can absorb more carbon, communities will also become healthier.
KPI
- Forest area owned and managed (ha)
Safe and stable supply of sustainable energy
Relevance to society
Our company is fulfilling the mission to create our own sustainable energy sources, including electric power, and to supply them safely and stably to consumers. Therefore, we will focus on achieving an optimal energy mix, including securing baseload power sources that are not subject to fluctuations, effective utilization of thermal energy, and sustainable power-to-fuel conversion and supply (hydrogen and methanation).
Impact on the local community
Indirect impacts on the domestic power grid caused by safer and more stable electricity and sustainable energy are expected. In addition, our company believes that the promotion of local production of sustainable energy for local consumption will contribute to further improving the sustainability of the region.
KPI
- Estimated electricity generation by baseload power projects gained stakeholder agreement this year (GWh)
Sustainability Report
GPSS issued its first Sustainability Report in 2021 as a means for disclosing information to our stakeholders and promoting a greater understanding of how GPSS values sustainability. This report is a focused summary of environmental, social, governance, and other non-financial information in PDF format (Japanese and English).
Please click here to read the Sustainability Report 2022
*Please download the pdf file in order to view the report
External Evaluation
Voluntarily responded to the CDP’s Climate Change Questionnaire
Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) is an international not-for-profit organization that runs the global disclosure system for investors, companies, cities, states, and regions to manage their environmental impacts.
GPSS is currently preparing for the 2023 reporting cycle, which will include disclosing information about greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions data as well as governance, risk and opportunity assessment, and business strategy.
For 2022, GPSS voluntarily responded to CDP's questionnaire in order to improve our climate change response and prepare for the future disclosure in line with the TCFD.
CDP Website
GRESB 5-Star Certification
Mission-driven and investor-led, GRESB is the environmental, social and governance (ESG) benchmark for real assets. We work in collaboration with the industry to provide standardized and validated ESG data to the capital markets. The 2020 real estate benchmark covers more than 1,200 property companies, real estate investment trusts (REITs), funds, and developers. Our coverage for infrastructure includes 540 infrastructure funds and assets. Combined, GRESB represents over USD 5.3 trillion in real asset value. More than 100 institutional investors, with over USD 22 trillion AUM, use GRESB data to monitor their investments, engage with their managers, and make decisions that lead to a more sustainable real asset industry. Learn more at GRESB.com GRESB Website
Highest "Green 1 (F)" Rating Awarded to GPSS
GPSS Holdings Co., Ltd. has been awarded the highest rank of "Green1 (F)" by the Japan Credit Rating Agency, Ltd. (JCR), for establishing the first Green Finance Framework. Specifically based on the JCR Green Finance Evaluation Method, GPSS Holdings' "Greenness Evaluation (Use of Funds)" is set to "g1 (F)" and its "Management / Operation / Transparency Evaluation" is set to "m1 (F)".
As a result, the highest rating was awarded via a comprehensive evaluation.
This framework is a policy that describes the philosophy and procedures of GPSS Holdings' Green Finance (issuing green bonds and borrowing green loans based on this framework). Specifically, GPSS Holdings will raise funds through Green Finance, which is stipulated for use in projects that have a positive effect/ improvement on the environment.
Memberships
GPSS is a premium sponsor of the Japan Sustainable Investment Forum (JSIF). JSIF is actively promoting and developing sustainable investments (SRI and ESG investments, etc.) that are actively carried out in Europe and the United States.JSIF Website
GPSS joined Long Term Infrastructure Investors Association (LTIIA). Their vision is to facilitate and promote private investment in infrastructure which enables long-term, sustainable development of communities, countries and regions.LTIIA Website
The " Foundation Guardian Forest Project Public Interest, Inc." is modeled after the "Guardian Forest" that saved people's lives during the Great Eastern (Kanto) Japan Earthquake, and the Great Hanshin Earthquake, and prepared a regional green infrastructure to coexist with nature. We are engaged in forest-building activities to protect the community and livelihoods from disasters. For more information, please visit the Guardian Forest Project website.Guardian Forest Project website
We are a member of the Renewable Energy Association for Sustainable Power supply or REASP, a business organization that aims to promote renewable energy as a main power source and to ensure the long-term stable supply of affordable clean power. For more information,please visit the REASP website.