Introduction

Let us get straight to the point: Sustainability has arrived at NPorts. And it's here to stay. This third Sustainability Report of our company showcases developments, insights, and decisions that clearly move our project into the spotlight: We are the ports for a sustainable future on the coast of Niedersachsen.

The multiple crises that have posed an ever-increasing challenge for us as a society during the past years have really put a spotlight on the crucial role that our ports play when it comes to a sustainable development of prosperity and safety, not only in the region, but in the country at large. Our 15 port locations make us an important hub for Germany's energy supply. Our powerful seaports make up the logistical backbone for Europe. This is where we are designing the energy transition and ensuring supply security in a meaningful way for our country.

Aside from the apparent topics like LNG and supply chains, our sustainability strategy has enabled us to take a more comprehensive and holistic look at things for the past six years. And this is what makes us successful in all four fields of action: Climate & Air, Employees & Safety, Nature & Resources, Customers & Region. And it has propelled us forward by a clear margin. The name of our strategy is hafen+ and we are feverishly working on all levels that all of the ports of NPorts epitomize this demonstrable ‘plus’ by being a reliable stakeholder of sustainable development. For people, for the environment, and for economic strength.

Therefore, the reduction of our energy consumption and emissions with the help of new technologies and smart digital solutions is our declared goal, which we are pursuing through numerous efficiency measures. Since
our first energy monitoring in 2014, we have been able to conserve 20% energy. Nowadays, our electricity needs are met at a rate of almost 100% by renewable sources, and the lighting within our ports has been converted at a rate of 39% to Energy-efficient LED systems. By the year 2025, we intend to make that number 100%. In this report, Foreword we will address additional measures and the current state of our efforts to lower the emissions that result from our infrastructure work and the construction measures that go along with it.

It is becoming increasingly clear that time is of the essence in order to meet the Paris climate target. To reach this target, we have decided to proceed with even more ambition and to consistently focus our measures onto our corporate goal: “Climate Neutrality by 2035”. Within this context, we are going to take a closer look at materiality and impact. The realignment our fields of action will result in sustainability being firmly anchored in our corporate strategy and becoming an impact-oriented guiding principle in any of NPorts' areas of activity.

Today, we are brainstorming and engaging in concrete collaborations with others so that we can tackle the challenges that the future has in store for us, and, ideally, we would like to be able to actively control them too. This includes exciting flagship projects, where we can improve our knowledge about climate protection and biodiversity in maritime spaces and develop concrete solutions, often in an international joint effort with other institutes. For allof our ambitious dealings, the central factor remains to be the people, who make up what we are, and who accompany us along our journey. And this is the reason, why we feel an obligation to provide to all of our co-workers at our locations an attractive, safe, and healthy work environment. This will ensure that a great team of motivated, male and female facilitators will have our backs, while we are tackling the great tasks of Germany's Sustainable Transition.

You too are cordially invited to support us along the way!