MILAN, April 22, 2021 - The Webuild Group has launched a new Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Plan for the period 2021-2023, as its social and environmental performance improves following the acquisition of Astaldi with a greater focus on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations. The plan reinforces the Group’s commitment to protect the environment, promote safety and inclusion among employees, and support technological innovation – goals that have been pursued under Progetto Italia, its industrial operation to consolidate the construction sector in Italy that led to its acquisition of Astaldi in 2020.

“We closed 2020 having exceeded the targets that we had set for ourselves,” said Webuild Chief Executive Pietro Salini. “We also achieved milestones that had posed as difficult challenges for the Group to grow in a sustainable manner during a year of major changes - a historic moment in light of an unprecedented pandemic at the global level. “During this difficult year, the way we work changed forever. We realized how global challenges require coordinated responses among all stakeholders as well as a new ability to invest in innovation and safety systems. We are prode to have been able to meet our goals in terms of emissions, the efficient development of our projects, and inclusion and diversity. We are aware that we keep improving ourselves every day and in every single action that we take. But what pushes us to do even more is, above all, the knowledge that real sustainability comes from being able to provide work to people and knowing that they can safely return home every evening to their families, satisfied in the knowledge that they were able to contribute to making the place where they work better.”

The Group’s ESG Plan for 2021-2023 focuses on three strategic areas: Green, Safety and Inclusion, and Innovation. Webuild will contribute to accelerating the climate transition towards zero emissions, while developing innovative solutions to improve the environmental sustainability of its projects at every stage of their construction and when they finally come into use. It also plans to set the industry benchmark for health and safety, training, inclusion, and production efficiency through a progressive digitalisation of its processes.

The Plan has specific targets to improve performance related to greenhouse gas emissions and accidents at work, increase the number of women in key managerial positions and accelerate investments in innovative projects. In recent years, the Group has been increasing this commitment, leading to it achieving exceptional results in 2020: 89% of the construction backlog is related to projects linked to the advancement of SDGs, while 63% are related to low-carbon projects. Overall, their impact will be significant given how approximately 87 million people worldwide stand to benefit from them.

The Group's commitment has already gained international recognition, leading Webuild to receive an "A" rating from Morgan Stanley Capital International’s (MSCI) ESG Research: an upgrade linked mainly to its stronger governance and its greater focus on the independence and diversity of the Board of Directors. The Group also managed to improve its positioning in the main sustainability ratings of VigeoEiris (Advanced rating), ISS-Oekom (Prime rating) and EcoVadis (Gold rating).