Climate governance is the central element of sustainable development at the ORLEN Group. Our management standards and systems have evolved towards strategic measures reducing the Group’s contribution to climate change and adapting business models to address the physical consequences of climate change for the Company’s assets.
In 2020, ORLEN announced its decarbonisation strategy, including specific commitments to reduce CO2 emissions and achieve climate neutrality. Sustainable development plays an important role in the process of building a multi-utility group and implementing the ORLEN2030 strategy. The new business strategy is a response to the changes in our environment driven by the global climate crisis. It enhances resilience of our business models to climate change and its consequences across the value chain. Over the next decade, we will allocate around PLN 30 billion to sustainability projects, including new business models.
Climate responsibility – climate change risks and opportunities
Climate change poses a significant challenge to the ORLEN Group companies. The global energy transition that is taking place before our eyes is a huge development opportunity for Central Europe. As the largest company in the region, we want to increase our involvement in this process.
ORLEN has addressed those challenges by announcing in September 2020 an intention to achieve net zero carbon footprint by 2050. In furtherance of this goal, by 2030 we will reduce carbon emissions from our existing refinery and petrochemical assets by 20% and cut down carbon emissions per megawatt-hour of electricity by 33%. Our strategy of net zero carbon emissions is based on four pillars: energy efficient production, zero-emission power generation, fuels of the future, and green financing.
Climate change risks and opportunities are described in our Integrated Report:
Our environmental objectives are set out in the Integrated Management System Policy. Our activities are carried out based on the Integrated Management System, which comprises the Quality Management System (ISO 9001: 2015, AQAP 2110), Environmental Management System (ISO 14001:2015), Occupational Health And Safety Management System (ISO 45001), Information Security Management System (ISO/IEC 27001), Energy Management System (ISO 50001) ,Certification System for Biomass and Biofuels ISCC, KZR INiG certification system for the HVO process, Factory Production Control System (ZKP) – for bitumen production, and Food Safety Management System (HACCP) according to Codex Alimentarius.
We hold valid certificates of conformity to ISO 9001: 2015, AQAP 2110, ISO 14001:2015, ISO 45001, ISO/IEC 27001, ISO 50001, ISCC, KZR INiG and ZKP. These systems meet the highest international management standards and support the Company’s day-to-day efforts to ensure professional customer service and maintain top quality, safety, health protection and environmental standards. The key ORLEN Group companies have in place Integrated Management Systems, which include Environmental Management Systems implemented and maintained in accordance with the ISO 14001 standard as their integral part. The companies also follow Integrated Management System/Environmental Management System Policies, providing for an obligation to protect the environment, which includes pollution prevention, and other specific obligations relevant to the operations of the individual companies. These policies also include a requirement to comply with the law and other external and internal requirements.
Long-term impact
Our activities designed to benefit the natural environment are of a long-term nature. A case in point is improvement of the efficiency of the water and wastewater management in our industrial plants. At the ORLEN production plant in Płock, the water abstraction volume was reduced from nearly 50 mcm in the 1980s to 27.7 mcm in 2018, i.e. by almost a half.
The volume of wastewater discharged also went down: from 40 mcm to 14.1 mcm, despite a significant increase in oil throughput. In recent years, the ORLEN Group’s production assets in Poland, the Czech Republic and Lithuania were subject to a number of measures to mitigate the environmental impact of their operations. Examples include CCGT units, which harness one of the most advanced technologies offering high efficiency, low emissions and minimum environmental impacts. The technology is based on natural gas, which is environmentally friendly and less carbon intensive.
Climate and environmental impact indicators
