Environmental, Social and Governance
What ESG means to usIt is not enough to just invest in the right things like wind and solar farms. The way we invest is equally important
ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) is fully integrated into every part of our business. To us, this means doing the right thing and engaging with a wide range of stakeholders, including our customers, shareholders, employees, the community and the environment.
We’re channelling capital towards sustainable outcomes that tackle climate change, contributing to international efforts to limit the global temperature in this century to below 2 degrees. This core impact objective is clearly aligned to our funds’ investment strategies and we measure our progress against this.
Performance, Planet and People
We manage investments on behalf of a wide range of investors - and our investors can be sure that making a positive impact on people and the planet is fundamental to how we work.
In addition to our overarching Responsible Investment Policy, we put in place a tailored ESG policy for each fund we manage that is reviewed annually. This allows us to meet the bespoke demands for different investors and tailor the ESG and Impact approach.
All of our funds’ ESG Policies are based around our fundamental pillars: Performance, Planet and People. This framework embeds ESG into the investment processes, asset management and reporting. We mitigate ESG risks, as well as measure the positive impact the investments we manage have on society, the environment and investors.
Across our renewable energy assets, we ensure robust governance structures, rigorous due diligence, risk analysis and asset optimisation, all to deliver resilient investment returns. This all means we can maximise the amount of green electrons our portfolio produces.
Our risk mitigation strategy considers environmental, social and governance issues, protecting and enhancing the long-term value of our investments.
We’re always thinking of ways we can enhance biodiversity in the surrounding environment, from wildflower meadows, to wetland creation and local beekeeping projects. We also mitigate any environmental risks associated with the construction and operation of our renewables. Our Biodiversity Mission Statement outlines how we champion biodiversity at our sites.
We look at how our investments impact society, mitigating any risks and promoting a “just transition” to a green energy future.
Whether it’s hiring locally, engaging with employees, local communities and school children, we always think about the positive effect we can have on people through the green energy projects we manage. This also means championing Human Rights and working with suppliers who meet the high standards of our Supplier Code of Conduct.
In a market rife with greenwashing, we know that transparent and standardised ESG reporting is critical
We manage investments on behalf of a wide range of investors - and our investors can be sure that making a positive impact on people and the planet is fundamental to how we work.
For this reason, we embrace sustainable finance regulatory frameworks and report our impact in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with carefully chosen Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
The UN SDGs aim to create a better future for all by helping to end extreme poverty, fighting inequality and injustice, and protecting our planet by 2030. These SDGs have become part of the universal language for reporting on the impact of investments.
We’re proud that our investments contribute directly to the UN SDGs 7, 11 and 13. With investor support, impact initiatives also enable us to contribute to a broader and deeper set of UN SDGs.
- 7Affordable and clean energy
- 11Sustainable cities and communities
- 13Climate action
- 1No poverty
- 3Good health and wellbeing
- 8Decent work and economic growth
- 9Industry, innovation and infrastructure
- 10Reduced inequalities
- 15Life on land
Strengthening our approach through recognised ESG standards
On top of our own processes, we also strengthen, authenticate and measure our progress through the following globally recognised external ESG related standards:
Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures
Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI)
EU Taxonomy Alignment
Taskforce for Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD)
Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR)
Our commitment to ESG matters
In addition to fund-specific ESG Policies, Octopus Energy Generation has policies and processes that support our commitment to ESG matters, including an Equal Opportunities policy, Human Rights and Modern Slavery policy, Whistleblowing policy and Conflicts policy, an Engagement and Stewardship Policy and a Supplier Code of Conduct.