Abris Capital launches ESG Report 2022
ESG transformation specialist publishes its first ESG Report since becoming a B Corp, setting out new initiatives for 2023 and reporting on progress towards carbon neutrality
1 June 2023, Warsaw – Abris Capital Partners (“Abris”), the ESG transformation specialist private equity investor, has today published its latest annual ESG Report, detailing the firm’s new DEI programme, as well as looking at Abris’ progress towards portfolio-wide carbon neutrality, preparation for EU SFDR regulations and ESG plans for the coming years.
Paweł Gierynski, Managing Partner at Abris Capital, commented:
“Our annual ESG Reports are an important opportunity to reflect on the progress we have made, learn from our experiences and set out new priorities for the coming years. I am enormously grateful to our dedicated ESG team, who – among all their ongoing work – have secured B Corp status for Abris, making us the first Central European private equity firm to receive the most prestigious, globally recognised ESG certification for businesses. However, what makes me truly proud is that the data we collect now shows the tangible, positive impact of our work on the long-term value of our portfolio.”
In 2022, the Abris team accepted the challenge of designing a new flagship ESG initiative around diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). The firm’s approach was to design a practical programme, focusing on transforming diverse intellectual potential into inclusive teams with the ability to perform at the highest level. This journey began by ensuring there was a cultural and emotional readiness among the people expected to lead the process, as well as setting out structures to ensure clear decision-making, governance and operational ownership, and developing practical guidelines.
The firm also reached the halfway point in achieving carbon neutrality across our portfolio – an initiative launched as part of the firm’s Climate Manifesto, which set out a roadmap for reaching carbon neutrality across the portfolio by 2025 and preparing companies for net zero. Since launching the programme, Abris’ portfolio companies have avoided 73,439 Mg CO2e, representing an 29% reduction of emissions per million euros of revenue.
Another key project in 2022 was preparation for EU SFDR regulations. Going forward, Abris will follow the Article 8+ regime, defined as a fund “which promotes, among other characteristics, environmental or social characteristics, or a combination of those characteristics, provided that the companies in which the investments are made follow good governance practices”.
Planning for 2023 and beyond, Abris will publish the third edition of its ESG strategy – ESG Universe 2026 – one central element of which will be the practical application of value creation lessons learned.
In 2022, Abris was also recognised by a number of organisations for its ESG efforts, including Private Equity News, Real Deals, ESG Investing and The Drawdown. Robert Sroka was also named as a member of Invest Europe’s newly formed ESG Committee, which aims to promote responsible investment practices and the consideration of ESG issues throughout the private equity industry.
To download Abris’ ESG Report 2022, click here.