ESG@ECE Group
DESTINATION FUTURE!
The ECE Group’s vision: “We’re making space for the future.” Sustainability is one of our key values and integral to our corporate strategy. We’ve set ourselves a target of net zero by 2045 for the group itself and by 2050 for the properties we manage and develop.
All our business activities are squarely focused on long-term value creation and based on an integrated sustainability strategy. As a family-owned company, we take responsibility for the society in which we operate. That includes taking responsibility for our employees, for the properties we develop and manage, for the cities where we have a presence, and for using resources with the utmost care and efficiency. >
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GREEN BUILDING CERTIFICATES
50 %
OF CURRENT RENTAL AGREEMENTS INCLUDE
A GREEN LEASE
35 %
WOMEN IN SENIOR
LEADERSHIP ROLES
SUSTAINABILITY PROMISE
Building on our many years of expertise, we are a pioneer in all aspects of sustainable urban development. As a family-owned business, we take responsibility for creating a livable world for future generations.
DOUBLE MATERIALITY ANALYSIS
Multistage process to identify key areas for action on sustainability:
Impact
Perspective
Stakeholder perspective
Risk and opportunities perspective
Energy
Resources
Sustainable
mobility
Wellbeing
Employees
Sustainable trends
ECE ACTION AREAS
ECE’S KEY SUSTAINABILITY
TARGETS
Environmental
To cut carbon emissions from shopping centers
and the ECE Campus by 40 percent by 2030
compared with the 2019 baseline.
Social
To develop a social impact strategy.
Governance
To produce codes with voluntary ESG commitments
for all real estate development classes.
A CLEAR COURSE:
NET ZERO
A sustainability team and the Director of Sustainability and Corporate Communications are responsible for the ECE Group’s ESG strategy. They continuously update the strategy based on constantly changing ESG regulations and market-specific requirements. Through industry associations and in dialogue with relevant stakeholders, they monitor social, economic, and political trends and use this information to develop ECE’s strategy. They continuously document progress on ESG indicators and report to the senior management team. In addition, in 2023 ESG committees were set up in the divisions ECE Marketplaces, ECE Work & Live, and ECE Group Services. The sustainability team consults with these committees on strategic approaches to core ESG issues, and together they continuously refine the ESG targets set out in the sustainability strategy. The team also works with the service unit Sustainable Operations & ESG to develop sustainable products and services for shopping center owners >
ECE’S ESG STRUCTURE
SOLUTIONS FOR ALL ASSET CLASSES
Climate-neutral shopping centers – it can be done!
ECE has developed clear strategies and specific, practicable solutions to help shopping center owners meet their climate targets. Because their ESG strategies are highly varied, we don’t offer a single, one-size-fits-all solution, but instead support them with a variety of ESG products, ranging from energy pre-checks to a solar panel strategy to the “ECE map2zero“, our Energy Renovation Roadmap, which centers can use in line with their strategy to achieve net zero by 2045.
Our goal: sustainable project development
ECE Work & Live also always considers individually tailored measures for climate-friendly construction, conversion, and operation of buildings when developing projects for the asset classes residential, logistics, hotels, and offices. Precisely formulated codes, such as the ESG Code for Housing and Logistics, set out clear ESG guidelines and standards. The aim is to go beyond the legal standards and minimize carbon emissions during both development and subsequent operation of the properties. We also have an established expert team who are tasked with continuously updating the codes.
The EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive
The amended Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) is highly relevant to the real estate industry. The directive has been incorporated into the German Energy Performance of Buildings Act (GEG), which was amended ahead of the EPBD’s introduction. First, standards for new buildings were made more stringent. Second, the minimum proportion of renewable energy that must be used for heating new and existing buildings was raised to 65 percent. For existing properties, ECE is looking at whether and when it might be possible to connect centers whose heating systems are still wholly gas-powered to a district heating network, or whether heat pumps would make more sense.
“ESG is essential to our future operations. Within the framework of our sustainability strategy, we have therefore developed demanding standards and concrete solutions
that will help make the properties we manage fit for the future and contribute to meeting European climate targets.”
MARIA HILL, DIRECTOR SUSTAINABILITY & CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS, ECE GROUP SERVICES
HARD AT WORK IN INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS
The sustainability requirements imposed on building operators by legislators, stakeholders, and society in general are rapidly changing. ECE is closely monitoring developments and working with investors, retailers, and on the committees of industry associations such as the German Property Federation (ZIA), German Retail Federation (HDE), Urban Land Institute (ULI), and European Council of Shopping Places (ECSP) – currently chaired by Joanna Fisher, CEO of ECE Marketplaces – to keep ahead of any changes.
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Presentation of the Council of Real Estate
Experts’ 2024 spring report (from left):
ZIA President Dr. Andreas Mattner,
Federal Minister for Housing, Urban
Development, and Building Klara Geywitz,
and Professor Lars P. Feld, Chair of the
Council of Real Estate Experts.
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Developing an industry standard for green leases
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Supporting implementation of European law in individual countries
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Engaging in dialogue with key ESG player
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Developing a precise position
on/ solutions for the expansion of
e-charging infrastructure and solar
panels in the retail sector -
Devising concrete solutions to
problems around connecting to
EV charging networks
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Fully integrating ESG standards
into urban development -
Strengthening urban resilience
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Combining building efficiency
with financial performance
Energy and building technology
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Developing practical solutions for the real estate industry in relation to the amended Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD)
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Constructively supporting the EPBD’s implementation in domestic law
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Formulating a position on more practicable energy certificates in line with minimum energy performance requirements for commercial properties in Germany
Corporate Responsibility
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Supporting practical solutions to help the real estate industry meet the requirements of the Corporate
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Sustainability Reporting Directive
Constructively supporting implementation of a ZIA green lease at national level