- Mr. Starace is the only member of the UN Global Compact Board to come from the global Power Utility sector, as well as the only member from Italy
Rome, June 20th, 2018 – United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has re-appointed Francesco Starace, Enel Group’s CEO and General Manager, to the Board of the United Nations Global Compact (UN Global Compact) for the next three years (2018-2021). Mr. Starace was appointed for his first three-year mandate in May 2015. Of the new Board’s 21 members, Mr. Starace is the only representative of the global Power Utility sector, as well as the only member from Italy.
“Today as a society we face several very urgent issues and challenges. I am very proud to belong to the Board of the UN Global Compact which, through its vision and reach, not only sets out a clear roadmap for the sustainable development of the planet, but also empowers companies and communities to help address these challenges. As a global community we possess the resources and the know-how to meet all 17 of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, but we have to work collaboratively and quickly to forge the way ahead. I am grateful to the UN Secretary-General for the opportunity to continue to serve in support of this important objective,” said Enel CEO Francesco Starace.
The UN Global Compact is the world's largest corporate sustainability initiative supporting companies to align their strategies and operations with the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact on human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption, and to drive business awareness and action in support of achieving the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Board is the main governance body of the UN Global Compact, providing advice to the Secretary‐General and helping to establish the direction for the Global Compact, endorsing policy and strategy, and monitoring its implementation.
Enel has been a member of the UN Global Compact since 2004 and, since 2011, has been one of the Global Compact LEAD companies, representing the world’s foremost sustainability leaders in the private sector.
Sustainability is the cornerstone of Enel’s business. The Group’s 2018-2020 strategic plan shows the deployment, across the board of the 17 SDGs, of Enel’s sustainable business model throughout the value chain. In particular, in 2017 the plan confirmed and strengthened a specific commitment, originally undertaken in September 2015, to reach the following SDG targets:
· Goal 4 - Inclusive and equitable quality education: 800 thousand beneficiaries by 2020, doubling the previous target of 400 thousand beneficiaries;
· Goal 7 - Access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy: 3 million beneficiaries by 2020, mainly in Africa, Asia and Latin America;
· Goal 8 - Sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth: 3 million beneficiaries by 2020, doubling the previous target achieved in 2017;
· Goal 13 - Climate action: reduction of CO2 emissions by 2020 (< 350 gCO2/kWheq).
Enel’s commitment to sustainability as an integral part of its business strategy and operations contributes to the Group’s inclusion in key global sustainability indices – such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, FTSE4Good, the STOXX Global ESG Leaders indices, the Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index and Euronext Vigeo - and attracts the attention of ESG investors. The sustainable model adopted has resulted in a very positive response from these investors, whose interest in the company is steadily growing. ESG investors increased their stake in Enel’s share capital by 56% in four years, accounting for over 8.6% of said capital as of December 31st, 2017 from 5.5% as of December 31st, 2013, right before Mr. Starace took the helm of the company. This increase reflects the growing importance the financial market gives to non-financial elements, in recognition of the role they play in the creation of long-term sustainable value. Enel has assumed a leadership position with a strategy based on leveraging the business opportunities associated with the trends of urbanisation, the electrification of demand and the resulting deep decarbonisation to seize the opportunities deriving from the global energy transition now under way and to play an active role in such a large global challenge.
Enel is a multinational power company and a leading integrated player in the global power, gas and renewables markets. It is Europe’s largest utility in terms of market capitalisation and figures among Europe’s leading power companies in terms of installed capacity and reported EBITDA. The Group is present in over 30 countries worldwide, producing energy with around 88 GW of managed capacity. Enel distributes electricity and gas through a network of over 2 million kilometres, and with around 72 million business and household customers globally, the Group has the largest customer base among European competitors. Enel’s renewables arm Enel Green Power already manages around 42 GW of wind, solar, geothermal, biomass and hydropower plants in Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia and Australia.