VGP, a European owner, manager and developer of high-quality logistics and semi-industrial real estate, today published its annual report including its Corporate Responsibility report. The report focuses on the steady achievements and goals with regard to VGP’s ESG performance.
The past year at VGP was plotted by significant progress towards a sustainable future. Of the 204.3 MWp of solar on its rooftops in the pipeline, 57 MWp is operational and an additional 75 MWp is under construction which will help to avoid approximately 35,000 tons of CO₂-e per year. Including photovoltaic pipeline projects, VGP´s portfolio is now GHG compliant with a Paris-aligned 1.5°C pathway until 2040. The company’s targets for full scope 1, 2, and 3 have been confirmed by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and the Group obtained external assurance on its direct carbon emissions disclosure.
In addition to sustainable energy, VGP develops connectivity and sustainable mobility with new targets for all VGP parks to be equipped with Electric Vehicle (EV) charging and public transport access. The company transitioned to 100 percent certified Green Power for all VGP offices, introduced steps to reduce embodied emissions within its developments, and improved the eco-efficiency of its existing building portfolio through a refurbishment program.
VGP cares about communities, and philanthropy, hence it contributed €3 million and 650 community support hours to local philanthropic causes. VGP also implemented various biodiversity initiatives within the VGP parks in 2022 and increased the amount of land designated as biotopes within its parks.
The company upgraded the building standard to implement water-saving and retention techniques, with a number of warehouses collecting 105,000 sqm of rainwater on-site. Finally, VGP focused on carbon improvements within its supply chain as well as supply chain ethics, having developed a supplier code of conduct that protects human rights.
Jan Van Geet, CEO of VGP Group, comments “We are very proud to announce our joint achievements in our ESG strategy and our team’s dedication to our ESG initiatives and the positive impact we’ve made on our communities and environment. Our focus on sustainability has been ingrained in every aspect of our operations, and I’m pleased with the progress we’ve made so far. But we’re not stopping here. We’re committed to continuing our efforts and taking on new projects that will make an even greater impact. As we look to the future, we are exploring the possibilities to create a more sustainable world. Together, we will build more than just high-quality logistics and semi-industrial real estate. We will build a legacy of responsible business practices and a brighter future for tomorrow.”
The company aims to address the wide scope of indirect carbon emissions resulting from development activities, tenants’ energy consumption, and employees’ transport and office use.
Apart from fighting climate change, VGP’s ESG strategy also addresses environmental and societal challenges, such as the circular economy and environmentally friendly transport, critical social responsibilities on diversity and inclusion, and employee well-being. The company has an efficient ESG governance structure, covering all countries, and includes ESG-related risks in its risk management framework.
VGP’s ESG strategy rests on five main pillars, addressing challenges and opportunities related to its activities. The company has used two complementary approaches, a materiality analysis, and a risk analysis, to identify and order important ESG issues for the group from an internal as well as an external stakeholder perspective. The ESG strategy builds on the conclusions of the materiality analysis and the analysis of ESG risks. It addresses the main challenges facing semi-industrial and logistics real estate, such as moving towards a low-carbon economy and sustainable mobility, integrating the Group’s business activities within local communities, and empowering teams on sustainability and diversity.
The VGP Group is operating in seventeen European countries. In total, the family-owned company based in Antwerp, Belgium, operates 108 parks in Europe.
In addition to state-of-the-art technology, sustainability and energy efficiency are central parameters for the commercial properties developed by VGP. The company is committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2025 and is also involved in BREEAM/DGNB certifications and green power generation. As a result, 61.2 percent of the portfolio has already been certified and the green power generation capacity of the VGP Renewable Energy division has been increased to 131.6 MWp, with a further 72.7 MWp in the pipeline. The VGP Foundation, established in 2019, has already identified 36 projects that address social concerns, nature conservation and the protection of cultural assets and has received €6.6 million in funding from VGP to date.
