– The EES 2023 annual report shows solid growth of the company and the effective integration of sustainability criteria and measures into decision-making processes and key operations
– Eco-efficiency measures have helped reduce electricity consumption by 68% since 2002 and water consumption by 41% in 20 years
– The intensity of greenhouse gas emissions has fallen by 88% in 18 years
– Sierra is committed to becoming climate neutral by 2040 – achieving climate neutrality 10 years earlier than the European Union
Sonae Sierra, a multinational and vertically integrated real estate company, avoided 22 million euros in operating costs in 2023 by improving its eco-efficiency. According to the Economic, Environmental and Social Report EES Report 2023, the company has reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions intensity by 88 per cent since 2005, electricity consumption by 68 per cent since 2002 and water consumption by 41 per cent in 20 years. The recycling rate has increased by 255 per cent since 2002 and was 67 per cent in 2023.
The portfoliowide ‘Bright’ programme has contributed to improving energy efficiency and reducing GHG emissions. It was developed in 2012 and modernised to ‘Bright 2.0’ in 2021 based on the best available technologies. By the end of 2023, 150 opportunities for energy savings were identified with the help of the programme. A total of 34.7 million euros was spent on optimisations. The potential for energy savings was 33 per cent. This corresponds to 44.5 GWh and 6.5 million euros (based on 2023 energy prices).
Sustainability has been a distinguishing feature of Sonae Sierra for more than 25 years. Since then, sustainability has defined the company’s positioning and generated growth across all business areas. Elsa Monteiro, Sonae Sierra Sustainability Director says: ‘At Sierra, sustainability is an unwavering commitment. This is reflected in the improvement of our environmental performance, innovative strength and the implementation of ESG principles. The latest EES report confirms our leading role in the property sector and proves the effectiveness of our measures. The trend is continuous: emissions and resource consumption are falling, and at the same time we avoided operating costs totalling 22 million euros in 2023. At Sierra, we not only want to fulfil current standards, but also shape a sustainable future. We want to pass this objective on to others.’
The GRESB rating (Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark) is an example of the company’s commitment. In 2023, the funds managed by Sierra once again received the highest Green Star rating of five stars for sustainability performance and the use of best practices in the area of ESG (environmental, social and governance).
63 per cent of the Sierra portfolio has green building certifications. For other new projects, certifications such as LEED or BREEAM are also being sought to ensure compliance with the most advanced sustainability requirements.
The company has set itself ambitious goals. It has committed to establishing sustainability as a business model throughout the company in all areas of activity. Sierra updated its 2030 targets in 2023. These include the targets approved by Science Based Targets (SBTi), which provide for a 73 per cent reduction in Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Scope 3 emissions, which relate to embodied carbon, are to be reduced by 55 per cent and the remaining Scope 3 emissions by 45 per cent.
