S IMMO significantly improves ESG ratings

In recent months, S IMMO has considerably intensified its sustainability work. This has now also been recognised by international rating agencies. The company has succeeded in clearly positioning itself within the Austrian real estate industry in terms of sustainability.

Sustainability and ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) have become increasingly important for companies in recent years – a trend that is expected to continue in the future. S IMMO is actively embracing this development and has progressively professionalised sustainability management and established it structurally at all corporate levels. Significant measures in the area of sustainability, such as the introduction of a central environmental data management, climate risk management and a digital whistleblower system, have been implemented in recent months. Now the focus is primarily on realising potential savings in energy, water and greenhouse gases, as well as on addressing the needs of employees and tenants alike.

The implementation of these measures is now also reflected in third-party assessments. S IMMO was able to improve its Sustainalytics ESG Risk Rating from 21 to 15 and is now classified as “low risk”. The three-part ISS ESG QualityScore also shows significant improvements compared to the previous year, with a jump from an average of 5.67 to 2.67 in the last rating update on 7 July 2022. In addition, S IMMO was able to boost its MSCI ESG rating from BBB to A already at the end of last year.

Herwig Teufelsdorfer, CIO of S IMMO AG, comments: “ESG and sustainability have to become second nature, it is not enough to just consider them. To this end, S IMMO is fully aware of its responsibility to create sustainable value. We take tangible and foresighted action to contribute to the well-being of our stakeholders and the environment. It is important to maintain this approach going forward – because even if the ESG transformation comes with associated costs, half-heartedness in implementation will cost much more”.