Use of renewable sources
In 2016, 80% of the electricity used by the Intesa Sanpaolo Group, which is committed to gradually reducing its dependence on fossil fuels, came from renewable sources. In Italy, 97% of the electricity used has a guarantee of origin from renewable sources. On an international level, Intesa Sanpaolo Bank (Slovenia) confirmed it was buying all its electricity in 2016 from a renewable source of hydropower. Intesa Sanpaolo Bank Albania used only renewable electricity from the national grid. Intesa Sanpaolo Bank Romania, Privredna Banka Zagreb and VÚB Banka use renewable sources that account for at least 15% of all energy sources used.
As for the Group's own production of electricity from photovoltaics, the plant at the New Headquarters in Turin helped to generate more than 1,000 MWh, a figure up by around 2% compared to 2015. Sixteen plants are currently operating, four, large-sized plants (> 100 kWp) and twelve small/medium-sized facilities.
In Italy, with state incentives for feed-in tariffs, and savings from phasing out energy purchases, the economic return on the photovoltaic plants at Moncalieri, Settimo Torinese and Sarmeola di Rubano amounted to around 298,000 euro in the last 12 months.
The Group also has a cogeneration plant at the Parma accounting centre which provides thermal energy for the site and meets around 3% of the Group's electricity requirements in Italy, with savings of around 735,000 euro. In compliance with Legislative Decree No. 28/11, the energy produced in Italy by heat pump conditioning systems was considered as renewable. This meant that the contribution in terms of avoided CO2 emissions was around 2,000 tonnes.
Environmental certification
2016 was an important year for certification in Italy and abroad.
The Environmental and Energy Management System is a voluntary scheme, enabling the Intesa Sanpaolo Group in Italy to adopt a method to monitor environmental aspects and energy use which are considered significant, such as waste management, the use of resources and operation of technological plants.
This has led to a number of internal procedures and operating practices that make it possible to manage the direct and indirect impact of banking activities, with a view to continual improvement. The System, certified to UNI EN ISO 14001 and UNI CEI EN ISO 50001, is adopted for over 200 operating sites that represent a best practice nationwide. The scope of certification has been gradually and continually extended and in 2016 included a Representative Office of all Group Banks as well as the New Headquarters in Turin, as the system coordination site: the headquarters feature the latest technological and engineering solutions and the building is one of the most eco-sustainable skyscrapers worldwide as reflected by LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Platinum international certification. During 2016, Intesa Sanpaolo started activities to align its own Environmental Management System with requirements of the new ISO 14001 standard, ahead of deadlines. Systems are audited by an independent body, DNV, which certifies the efficiency of procedures and operating practices adopted, conducting audits at head office and at a suitable number of operating sites.
In view of Hungary's legal requirements on Energy Diagnosis and the need to deal with ever increasing energy costs, CIB Bank (Hungary) also decided to certify its own sites and services to UNI CEI EN ISO 50001 in 2016. The challenging and extensive process resulted in internal regulations for data management being drawn up. Considerable effort went into training bank personnel and identifying analysis and indicator metrics. The results have been more than satisfactory and the certification body, SCS, only reported a few minor criticalities and some areas for improvement, relating above all to increasing awareness among staff and taking action based on energy efficiency logics.
Energy efficiency
At a Group level, activities continued in 2016 to reduce electricity and thermal energy use, in line with the “2013-2016 Environmental Sustainability Action Plan”.
Energy consumption fell by 6.7% in 2016 compared to 2015, with an estimated economic return of over 800,000 euro. This important target was achieved through management optimisation and energy efficiency actions in Italy and abroad, including a greater distribution of web-based metering systems, the replacement of boilers with condensation systems, high-performance heat pumps and refrigerating units, the modernisation of electrical systems and introduction of LED lighting.
Electricity consumption, which accounts for around 70% of all Group consumption, went down by 4.7% overall compared to 2015.
2016 figures confirmed the long-term reduction trend: from 2010 to 2016, electricity consumption went down by 28%, reinforcing the Group's commitment to reducing its own environmental footprint and placing Intesa Sanpaolo among leaders in this sector.
Figures for heating use are based on bills and not on actual consumption for most offices and headquarters. Analysis shows an overall reduction in consumption of approximately 11%, due in part to mild temperatures. Actual heating is appropriately monitored at ISO 50001 certified branches, which have a Building Heating Check-up Procedure in place. This makes it possible to monitor actual meter readings and correctly manage the heating system based on the building's level of thermal insulation, which has generated overall savings of 21% over the last five years, equal to around 45,000 euro.
Lastly, in line with the internal policy on sustainable branches, site renovation or the construction of new branches is based on energy efficiency and improved management criteria. Thanks to actions taken over the last few years, the Group has benefited from tax subsidies in Italy, with an economic return of around 5 million euro from 2014 to 2016, of which 1 million relative to 2016.
Some of the Group's initiatives are listed below:
| Project | Description | Forecast annual savings |
|---|---|---|
| Measurement of electricity consumption (Italy) Investment: 454,000 euro |
Around 227 dataloggers were installed. Managed via the web, they can activate programmes for switching lighting and air conditioning systems on and off | Energy Saving: 1,771,000 kWh Cost Saving: 357,162 euro CO2 Reduction: 575 t |
| Modernisation of conditioning systems (Italy) Investment: 3,490,000 euro |
Activities continued to replace winter and summer conditioning systems | Energy Saving: 1,449,000 kWh Cost Saving: 271,994 euro CO2 Reduction: 471 t |
| Replacement of systems containing gases which are harmful to the environment (Italy) Investment: 5,135,000 euro |
In accordance with regulatory requirements, 223 plants containing R22 gas were replaced with units containing R410A gas | Energy Saving: 633,700 kWh Cost Saving: 127,819 euro CO2 Reduction: 206 t |
| Replacing conventional lamps with energy saving LED lamps (Egypt, Croatia, Bosnia and Ukraine) Investment: 42,819 euro |
Traditional lamps were replaced with new eco-friendly, energy saving LED lamps at various branches and head offices | Energy Saving: 193,657 kWh Cost Saving: 11,981 euro CO2 Reduction: 85 t |
| Streamlining UPS use (Hungary) Investment: 0 euro |
UPS use at CIB Bank head offices in Petrezselyem and Dunaújváros was streamlined, achieving considerable energy savings | Energy Saving: 107,724 kWh Cost Saving: 13.915 euro CO2 Reduction: 30 t |
| Replacing conditioning systems (Croatia and Slovakia) Investment: 450,000 euro |
Efficient conditioning systems were installed at the Privredna Banka Zagreb branches in Stradun and Split 3, and at the head offices of VÚB Banka | Energy Saving: 44,000 kWh Cost Saving: 7,000 euro CO2 Reduction: 9 t |
| Renovation based on energy efficiency criteria (Albania) Investment: 585,000 euro |
The head office of Intesa Sanpaolo Bank Albania and Tirana branch were renovated adopting energy efficiency criteria | Energy Saving: 92,268 kWh Cost Saving: 11,194 euro CO2 Reduction: 0 t (entirely renewable electricity from the national grid) |