Moving towards sustainable future: MAIRE Group’s sustainability roadmap

By Anna Bashuk, Content Marketeer at Stamicarbon

Sustainability has become a critical aspect of the modern world. Words like decarbonization, net zero, carbon neutrality and energy transition have penetrated the core of the process industry. But why is sustainability so important, and why are we discussing it now? Stamicarbon has interviewed Ilaria Catastini, Head of Sustainability and Corporate Advocacy at MAIRE, to learn more about the Group’s approach to sustainability.

Three critical sustainability challenges

Environmental concerns and the growing world population present new challenges for the planet and society. Thus, there are several reasons why it is important and urgent to act sustainably in the context of the modern world. In the conversation with Ms. Catastini, we discussed three sustainability emergencies: social inequality, climate change and irresponsible use of natural resources. Social inequalities, including poverty and famine, must be addressed to produce resiliency in communities on social and economic levels. To achieve successful economic development, it is essential to do it sustainably, involving all members of society. The second emergency is climate change, its possible impact on territories, cities, production sites and people, and its associated risks. And the third is the overconsumption of limited natural resources. It is necessary to learn how to use resources responsibly and co-exist with the planet without causing harm to the environment.

Why are we discussing sustainability now?

Sustainability discussions arise to address these emergencies and are supported by commitments and governmental legislation. There are a number of regulations requiring companies to act sustainably and report their sustainability, such as the EU taxonomy for sustainable activities, the European Green Deal, the Plan for the Ecological Transition in Italy, and the Inflation Reduction Act in the USA, for example. MAIRE, with headquarters in the EU, follows European legislation on sustainability, which is often stricter than legislation outside the EU. Sustainability also allows individuals and companies to make responsible choices and develop new ways of living and working. “It is an opportunity for everybody because sustainability means quality of life. And it is an opportunity for a company like ours because sustainability means new markets, new technological solutions and new perspectives, and a new way to be a company within the worldwide market,” Ms. Catastini said.

MAIRE’s sustainability strategy

MAIRE’s sustainability strategy aims to accelerate the energy transition, digitalization, open innovation and creating value. It is inspired by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2-5, 7-13, and 15-17 and comprises five clusters with material items subject to assessment with 170 internal and external stakeholders:

• Climate, circular economy and environmental sustainability
• Our people and the value of health & safety and diversity
• Creation of innovation that brings well-being
• Value for territories and communities
• Governance

Each cluster covers specific activities of the Group with KPIs to measure the progress and impact of those initiatives. “According to our strategy, we derived the key priority goals we are moving towards in the next few years. These goals direct our activities, efforts and the targets we have to reach,” Ms. Catastini said. The six key priority goals of the Group are:

• Improve carbon footprint with the highest efforts towards scope 1&2 carbon neutrality within 2030 with initiatives on offices and sites
• Improve the impact as enablers of the energy transition by enlarging the portfolio of solutions for decarbonization, circularity and reduction of environmental impact
• Improve the transformative impact towards a Health, Safety and Environment-oriented, diverse, multicultural, change-factor human capital through flourishing programs and intensive training
• Improve the innovation impact through the enlargement of our basket of patents, proprietary technologies and digital solutions in cooperation with the innovation ecosystem
• Improve the economic and social positive impact and shared value on the communities of the geographies through a sustainable supply chain, in-country value, corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the Group’s Foundation’s activities
• Improve the impact of MAIRE’s transformative strength by sharing the vision of its sustainability strategy within the Group in every business, project, region and supply chain

The map of activities per cluster is shown below.

The five clusters

Environment
On the environmental side, the Group develops new technologies for the energy transition to improve its carbon footprint while also creating a responsible supply chain by helping its customers and suppliers do the same. This is achieved by offering low- and zero-carbon technological solutions to the customers and boosting the ESG classification of the suppliers. MAIRE has committed to achieving carbon neutrality for scope 1 & 2 emissions by 2030 and carbon neutrality for scope 3 emissions by 2050 in its offices and construction sites. To reach these goals, the Group has developed Met Zero Task Force, which works on initiatives to implement a carbon neutrality plan for 2030 and a supply chain engagement plan for the 2050 target. Furthermore, MAIRE is expanding its technology portfolio in decarbonization, circularity and reduced environmental impact.

People
Within the “People” cluster, the Group has implemented its Safethink initiative to maintain the lost time injury rate (0.062 in 2022) and the total recordable injury rate (0.309 in 2022) below the construction sector benchmark. This is achieved through health, safety and environmental training of site workers. Sustainability and diversity are promoted through internal training, networking with associations and collaborating with educational institutions.

Innovation
One of the Group’s key priority targets includes expanding patents, proprietary technologies and digital solutions as part of its innovation program. This target focuses on digital transformation, cybersecurity and R&D, networking and collaborating with educational institutions to define activities and KPIs. Open innovation platforms, as well as cooperation agreements with universities, play an important role in the activities of the Innovation cluster.

Value for territories and communities
This cluster aims to promote a responsible supply chain and enhance the economic development of the communities where the Group operates. “We aim to extend in-country value to new regions and develop CSR projects in our geographies and initiatives through our Foundation,” Ms. Catastini said. “We also promote educational activities to introduce new students to the engineering sector and explain the concept of a humanistic engineer. This is a new profile of an engineer who has to find technical and technological solutions and design with sustainability in mind, its environmental and social aspects.”

Governance
The fifth cluster that unites all focus areas is governance, encompassing business integrity and economic performance initiatives to improve sustainability.

Sustainability as “teamwork”

At the MAIRE Group’s Capital Markets Day earlier this year, Ms. Catastini said that sustainability is “teamwork,” “a journey that involves the Group as a whole,” where each MAIRE company and every employee contributes to realizing the Group’s sustainability goals. In turn, Stamicarbon accelerates the sustainable energy transition in the fertilizer industry with our technologies for reducing emissions, improving energy consumption and producing green ammonia from renewable resources.

Learn more about MAIRE’s sustainability roadmap in the Group’s 2022 Sustainability Report.