Prysmian Group publishes its 2016 Sustainability Report

€1,710 million of economic value generated (+8%)
Emissions of ozone-depleting substances decreased by 6%
Human Rights Policy and whistleblowing programme launched

Strategy redefined according to the UN sustainable development goals
Scorecard setting 16 sustainability targets for 2020 prepared

Milan, 11 April 2017 - Prysmian Group, world leader in the energy and telecom cable systems industry, has published its Sustainability Report for 2016. Among the main results achieved, mention should be made of the increase in economic value generated and distributed, which amounted to €1,710 million, up by 8% from €1,580 million in 2015. 

The development of innovative, sustainable products, whose impact on the market also extends to energy savings and sustainability, continued in all business segments, and particularly through HVDC technology, which allows large amounts of electricity to be transmitted over long distances. Prysmian was the first company in the world to launch 700 kV PPL and 600 kV XLPE HVDC cable systems, which provide up to 15% greater network reliability, and it has extended its P-Laser technology to HVDC by launching the P-Laser 600 kV, which allows for the manufacture of environmentally sustainable and recyclable cables. In addition, it has also launched a 66 Kv cable system, which reduces the cost of offshore wind farms by as much as 15% and has been approved for carbon trust programmes, and Flextube optical cable, consisting of a record number of 2,112 fibres, which reduces the impact of the civil works necessary for installation.

In terms of environmental performance, in 2016 eight European affiliates purchased 100% of the electricity generated from renewable sources, whereas at the Group level the amounts of ozone-depleting substances decreased by 6%. 

In people management, Prysmian has developed a Human Rights Policy that aims to define its commitment to protecting human rights not only within its own organisation, but also throughout the value chain, and it has also launched an international whistleblowing procedure consistent with best practices in ethics and compliance.

Recruiting and training programmes showed excellent participation rates (there were 28,000 candidates for the Graduate Program), accompanied by the intensive training activity of the Prysmian Group Academy, the international management and professional training school that recently celebrated its fifth anniversary and inaugurated its Manufacturing Academy in Turkey.

The “YES” (Your Employee Shares) programme – the stock ownership plan that allows employees to purchase shares at favourable conditions – continued to be successful in 2016, showing a participation rate of approximately 50%, with the objective of reaching 1.5% of total share ownership in the next three years.

In terms of performance in sustainability indices, mention should be made of the six point improvement in the Corporate Sustainability Assessment for the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI), one of the foremost assessments organised at the international level, in which Prysmian Group ranked fourth in its industry due to the many measures taken in environmental, social and governance matters. Its commitment to sustainability was also rewarded by its performance in the CDP Climate Change Report 2016 and inclusion in the STOXX® Global ESG Index and Carbon Clean 200 list.

These initiatives are part of a sustainability strategy based on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) identified by the United Nations. Prysmian has drawn up a Sustainability Policy that sets the priorities of its medium-to-long term strategy, on the basis of the SDGs, the indications of the main Sustainability Indices and the expectations of its stakeholders. The Sustainable Development Goals to which the Group believes it may contribute most significantly are listed in a Sustainability Scorecard that identifies 16 Targets for 2020, subject to constant monitoring and reporting. The sustainability vision, in strategic terms, is also demonstrated by the decision to link sustainability goals to incentive systems for the entire management as of 2017.

The Sustainability Report is available at www.prysmiangroup.com