ESG Introduction
Serinus is an oil and gas exploration, development and production Group whose strategic purpose is to develop and produce hydrocarbon natural resources. These business activities provide the energy essential to many of the processes and materials that support our daily lives but ultimately contribute to many of the environmental issues which are of concern to us today and in the future.
Climate change is an increasingly prominent issue, both globally and for our industry. Thirty percent of our production is natural gas which we view as a transition fuel towards a low-carbon economy. Our gas production is primarily utilised in the generation of electricity and as such displaces coal in that energy mix. In all net-zero carbon scenarios oil and gas will remain essential elements of energy supplies for decades to come, our role in this process is to deliver our operations as cleanly and efficiently as possible.
Whilst extractive industries are essential to our modern way of life we are strongly aware of the wider range of responsibilities that industries such as ours have. In addition to the management and protection of the environment in those countries in which we operate we also have a clear responsibility to the welfare and the safety of our employees, our investors and stakeholders, local communities that may be impacted by our business, host governments and all of our business partners.
The COVID-19 pandemic reminds us that risk management needs to be dynamic and able to adapt to new threats and the Group quickly implemented stringent and effective protocols to protect our workforce from the risk of infection across all of its offices and operations, which included, amongst other measures, testing, on-site care and support, amended shift patterns and alternate working days. Safety of our staff and contractors remains a key concern.
Therefore, a long-term goal of the Group is to be a positive influence in the regions in which we operate through good corporate stewardship of our assets, our people and their communities. It is a key component of the ethos of Serinus that we maintain responsible and sustainable development while adhering to the highest operating standards and financial discipline. We carry out our operations in full compliance with relevant regulations and comply with all safety and environmental requirements and aim to conduct our business in an environmentally responsible manner. The Group has established an Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) Committee, led by the Chief Executive Officer, supported by other key personnel, and overseen by the Board, which reviews the policies and metrics under which we operate and measure ourselves and also evaluates the environmental framework being adopted and recommended, such as that of the Taskforce on Climate-Related Financial Disclosure (“TCFD”), in order to determine how we may best comply with these evolving disclosures.
Whilst the TCFD is currently voluntary for smaller companies, we are applying governance, risk management and strategy processes to manage climate-related financial risks and develop this within our ESG strategy and integrate into the corporate strategy, growth plans, capital allocation, operations and executive management key performance indicators.
The Sustainable Development Goals (“SDGs”) as set out by the United Nations, particularly SDG 13 (Climate Action), are often referenced as reporting criteria for many energy companies. Serinus will continually evaluate at the Board level, through our ESG Committee, how this may be incorporated into our ESG reporting in an appropriate and relevant manner in the future.