At the PGE Group, the approach to sustainable development and social responsibility includes managing the impact on affected communities. For the PGE Group, affected communities are those that may experience direct or indirect effects of our operations. Therefore, recognising and understanding the impact on the social environment is crucial for managing the risks and opportunities associated with business activities.
Until February 2024, the PGE Group followed the General Procedure for the Management of Corporate Community Involvement (CCI) Activities, which defined the rules of cooperation and communication standards between the Group’s companies and the local community. However, it was withdrawn for updating (published in 2014, the procedure needed adjusting to the current internal policies and standards). Fully aware that the interests of the local community are a vital part of PGE Capital Group’s operations, the Group plans to implement a local community relations management policy over the next two years (2025–2026) to centralise the management in this area. This process entails:
- Identification and analysis of the affected communities.
- Involvement of local communities: active participation of their representatives in the policy creation and implementation process, allowing for a better understanding of the needs and expectations of the communities.
- Monitoring and evaluation: checking the effectiveness of the solutions put in place.
The new policy will define the cooperation procedures and the methods for evaluating its results; in addition, a person at the highest level of the PGE Group will be appointed to ensure that engagement with local communities is genuine and that the outcomes of this cooperation influence the Company’s course of action.
Despite the lack of a policy, according to the ESRS definition of managing material impacts, risks and opportunities within affected communities in the PGE Group, relations with local communities have so far been described in, among others, PGE Group Strategy until 2030 and the PGE Capital Group Code of Ethics.
These are guiding documents that lay down the key assumptions for the incorporation of the interests of this stakeholder group into the activities of the PGE Capital Group. Pursuant to the Code of Ethics, the PGE Group strives to be a partner of local communities, which is reflected in the following principles: caring for the development of areas where the Group conducts its business, improving the quality of life of local communities, supporting local products and events, and providing jobs.
The PGE Group cares about having an open dialogue with local communities and taking their needs into account, as well as creating chances based on opportunities resulting from mutual potential and being a good neighbour. In accordance with the Code of Ethics, the PGE Group expects that its following rules will be observed by the Group companies influencing local communities, including:
- Taking actions with consideration of the impact of business activities on local communities,
- Supporting, according to transparent and objective rules, the activity of legal entities and natural persons, including also PGE Group employees and members of their families, as well as local communities in areas such as: culture, science and education, medicine and healthcare, social welfare, ecological activities and protection of the climate and environment as well as sports, including sports for children, young people and people with disabilities.
- One of the pillars of PGE Group’s social commitment are the foundations operating within it. They support the development and involvement of local communities by conducting activity consisting in granting grants and implementing original social programmes in a transparent manner.
- The PGE Group’s employees work for the benefit of local communities, for example, by getting involved in employee voluntary work.
Information on the minimum disclosure requirements relating to the Code of Ethics, not covered by the present section, can be found in section G1 of this Statement.