GEA Group AG CDP Water Security Questionnaire 2023 Wednesday, 19. July 2023
Welcome to your CDP Water Security Questionnaire 2023
W0. Introduction
W0.1
(W0.1) Give a general description of and introduction to your organization.
GEA is one of the largest suppliers of process technology to the food industry and to a wide range of other industries. The international technology group focuses on machinery, plants, process technology, and components. GEA provides sustainable energy solutions for sophisticated production processes in diverse end-user markets and offers a comprehensive service portfolio. In 2022, GEA generated consolidated revenues of around
EUR 5.2 billion. GEA is one of the largest suppliers of systems and components to the food, beverage, and pharmaceutical industries worldwide. As of December 31, 2022, the group employed 18,236 full-time employees worldwide. GEA is a market and technology leader in its business areas. The company is listed on the German MDAX stock index (G1A, WKN 660 200), the STOXX® Europe 600 Index, as well as the DAX 50 ESG Index, MSCI Global Sustainability Indexes and the Dow Jones Sustainability Europe Index.
GEA plants, processes, components, and services enhance the efficiency and sustainability of production processes around the globe. They contribute significantly to the reduction of CO2 emissions, plastic usage and food waste. In doing so, GEA makes a key contribution toward a sustainable future, in line with the company's purpose: 'Engineering for a better world.'
GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft is home to central management functions of the group. Profit and loss transfer agreements exist with key domestic subsidiaries. In addition, GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft performs central financial and liquidity management. Furthermore, it provides its subsidiaries especially with services from the Global Corporate Center and the Shared Service Center on the basis of service agreements.
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GEA CONFIDENTIAL
GEA Group AG CDP Water Security Questionnaire 2023 Wednesday, 19. July 2023
Since the course of business, the economic position and the opportunities and risks associated with the future development of GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft do not differ from the course of business, the economic position and the opportunities and risks associated with the future development of the group, the management report of GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft has been combined with that of the group in accordance with section 315 (5) of the Handelsgesetzbuch (HGB - German Commercial Code). In contrast to the consolidated IFRS financial statements, the annual financial statements of GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft are based on the HGB, supplemented by the Aktiengesetz (AktG - German Stock Corporation Act). All the financial statements refer to the 2022 financial year (January 1 to December 31, 2022). Since 2016, GEA's Annual Reports have included an annual sustainability report, however, since 2020 GEA has published a separate Sustainability Report. The sustainability report follows the international standards of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).
GEA is a specialist in its respective core technologies and a leader of its sales markets worldwide. GEA consistently promotes an innovation-led culture in an effort to preserve its technological edge. Active risk management, stability through diversification and a focus on the markets of the future are binding principles for all GEA business units. The group's enduring success is founded on a number of major global trends:
- Continuous growth in the global population
- Growing middle class
- Growing demand for high-quality foods and beverages (food safety)
- Increasing demand for production methods that are efficient and conserve valuable resources
- Demand for meat and dairy alternatives (new food)
The group is divided into divisions with up to six business units, the units comprise similar technologies and each command leading positions in the market. Each division is headed by a management team of three members: a divisional CEO, a divisional CSO (Chief Service Officer) and a divisional CFO. The five divisions include: Separation and Flow Technologies, Liquid & Powder Technologies, Food & Healthcare Technologies, Farm Technologies and Heating and Refrigeration Technologies.
- Separation & Flow Technologies is home to all activities concerned with the manufacture of process-related components, notably separators, decanters, valves, pumps and homogenizers.
- Liquid & Powder Technologies is the development of process solutions for the diary, brewing, food and chemical industries. Its technological focus is on liquid processing, concentration, industrial drying, powder processing and handling and emission control.
- Food & Healthcare Technologies includes solutions for food processing and packaging, baking industry, extrusion and milling and process technology for the pharmaceutical industry.
- Farm Technologies includes automatic milking and feeding systems, manure management systems and barn equipment.
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GEA CONFIDENTIAL
GEA Group AG CDP Water Security Questionnaire 2023 Wednesday, 19. July 2023
- Heating & Refrigeration Technologies develops, manufactures and installs industrial heating and cooling solutions for climate-friendly production processes.
W0.2
(W0.2) State the start and end date of the year for which you are reporting data.
Reporting year
Start date | End date |
Januar 1, 2022 | Dezember 31, 2022 |
W0.3
(W0.3) Select the countries/areas in which you operate.
Algeria
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Belarus
Belgium
Brazil
Bulgaria
Canada
Chile
China
China, Macao Special Administrative Region
Colombia
Croatia
Czechia
Denmark
Egypt
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GEA CONFIDENTIAL
GEA Group AG CDP Water Security Questionnaire 2023 Wednesday, 19. July 2023
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hong Kong SAR, China
Hungary
India
Indonesia
Italy
Japan
Latvia
Lithuania
Malaysia
Mexico
Morocco
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
Peru
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Russian Federation
Saudi Arabia
Slovakia
Slovenia
South Africa
Spain
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GEA CONFIDENTIAL
GEA Group AG CDP Water Security Questionnaire 2023 Wednesday, 19. July 2023
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan, China
Turkey
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
United States of America
Viet Nam
W0.4
(W0.4) Select the currency used for all financial information disclosed throughout your response.
EUR
W0.5
(W0.5) Select the option that best describes the reporting boundary for companies, entities, or groups for which water impacts on your business are being reported.
Companies, entities or groups over which operational control is exercised
W0.6
(W0.6) Within this boundary, are there any geographies, facilities, water aspects, or other exclusions from your disclosure?
Yes
W0.6a
(W0.6a) Please report the exclusions.
Exclusion Please explain
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GEA CONFIDENTIAL
GEA Group AG CDP Water Security Questionnaire 2023 Wednesday, 19. July 2023
Offices
Leased office spaces, primarily sales and service offices where water usage is minimal, are excluded since data on water usage is low and largely managed by office landlords, thereby making collection of water withdrawal amounts from those locations not feasible.
The excluded water withdrawal does not represent a significant portion of the total water used as the office spaces only use water for sanitation (handwashing) and kitchen facilities. Therefore, the pollution load discharged to the municipal water system is also not significant.
The exclusion represents less than 5% of GEAs total water withdrawal, therefore the volume of water use associated with the leased office spaces is extremely minimal when compared to the total water withdrawn in 2022. Starting in 2021, GEA has increased its coverage to 95% primary data by including further offices where it is possible to collect data.
W0.7
(W0.7) Does your organization have an ISIN code or another unique identifier (e.g., Ticker, CUSIP, etc.)?
Indicate whether you are able to provide a unique identifier for your organization. | Provide your unique identifier |
Yes, an ISIN code | DE0006602006 |
W1. Current state
W1.1
(W1.1) Rate the importance (current and future) of water quality and water quantity to the success of your business.
Direct use | Indirect use | Please explain | |
importance | importance | ||
rating | rating | ||
Sufficient amounts of | Neutral | Vital | 'Neutral' was selected as the chosen importance rating for direct operations because GEA is |
good quality freshwater | not a water intensive company. In total at GEAs 84 largest facilities, GEAs water withdrawal in | ||
available for use | 2022 was 347,972 cubic meters. The primary use for freshwater sourced from the municipality | ||
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GEA CONFIDENTIAL
GEA Group AG CDP Water Security Questionnaire 2023 Wednesday, 19. July 2023
or ground water is for irrigation/human consumption/use (85%), and the remaining 15% is | |||
used for production, primarily by dairy farming hygiene plant production. Future water | |||
dependency will decrease as GEA implements further projects to recycle/re-use water. | |||
In relation to indirect operations, the primary use of water in GEA's value chain is consumed | |||
by GEAs steel suppliers. 'Vital' was selected because our steel suppliers require a sufficient | |||
water supply both in terms of quantity and quality. A steel plant uses a large quantity of water | |||
for steam generation, cooling, waste transfer and dust control etc. It comes into contact with | |||
the material and equipment and is treated before reuse or discharge. The processes of the | |||
plant cannot take place without the availability of water. | |||
Stainless steel as a raw material accounts for a relatively small proportion of the overall | |||
volume acquired since GEA usually acquires it in the form of processed products or as part of | |||
assembly services. Future water dependency will remain the same in GEAs indirect | |||
operations because steel and other metals will continue to be a primary resource needed to | |||
create GEA's primary products/technologies. | |||
With regards to downstream operations, GEA's core value is 'engineering for a better world'- | |||
this entails sustainable business practices and contributing to the protection of the natural | |||
environment by offering our customers efficient products/ solutions. In general, the | |||
technologies and processes our customers employ are water intensive, which is why water | |||
savings increasingly impact customers' investment decisions. | |||
Sufficient amounts of | Neutral | Important | 'Neutral' was selected as the chosen importance rating for direct operations because, as |
recycled, brackish and/or | previously mentioned, GEA is not a water intensive company but uses recycled water for | ||
produced water available | some processes, primarily irrigation. In 2022, 51,609 cubic meter was reported as used as | ||
for use | industrial/recycled water. This water is process water used to wash metal from machining, | ||
pressure testing, cooling of machines, closed heating systems, as well as irrigation. This | |||
accounts for approximately 15% of our total water that was withdrawn. While GEA is not water | |||
intensive, GEA collects and reports usage data and derives water reduction and recycling | |||
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GEA CONFIDENTIAL
GEA Group AG CDP Water Security Questionnaire 2023 Wednesday, 19. July 2023
programs.
'Important' was selected for GEA's indirect operations because steel suppliers require a sufficient amount of recycled water. Even though the steel industry uses large quantities of water, very little of that water is actually consumed as most is reused or returned to source. For example, sea water is almost exclusively used in cooling operations and the loss during these processes may account for less than 1% of the total due to evaporation. Although the intake is considerable, the water is returned to the sea without any change in quality. To reuse or recycle water, it usually involves cleaning and cooling water flows between each use.
Stainless steel as a raw material accounts for a relatively small proportion of the overall volume acquired since GEA usually acquires this commodity in the form of processed products from the market or as part of assembly services. Future water dependency will remain the same in GEA's indirect operations because steel and other metals will continue to be a primary resource needed to create GEA's primary products and technologies.
An important water treatment customer are water authorities which must recycle/treat/clean water. GEA provides technologies which remove the sludge/oil contamination.
W1.2
(W1.2) Across all your operations, what proportion of the following water aspects are regularly measured and monitored?
% of | Frequency of | Method of measurement | Please explain | |
sites/facilities/operations | measurement | |||
Water withdrawals - | 100% | Monthly | Flow Meters and Invoices | Water withdrawal is measured on a monthly basis at |
total volumes | GEA's production, service, large offices and | |||
administration sites. Methods for measurement include | ||||
water flow meters & invoices. | ||||
84 sites report 100% water aspects which is checked by | ||||
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GEA CONFIDENTIAL
GEA Group AG CDP Water Security Questionnaire 2023 Wednesday, 19. July 2023
4-eyes-principle and audited by KPMG. The final data is | ||||
always taken from invoices and is part of the audit. As | ||||
these invoices are in most cases only provided once a | ||||
year by the providers, we use flow meters to ensure | ||||
data collection during the year. In addition, the collection | ||||
helps us to achieve and monitor target achievement. | ||||
Water withdrawals - | 100% | Monthly | Water invoices or water | Water withdrawal is measured on a monthly basis at |
volumes by source | meter readings | GEA's production, service, large offices and | ||
administration sites. The sources that are measured | ||||
include groundwater or municipal water. Methods for | ||||
measurement include water flow meters & invoices. 84 | ||||
sites report 100% water aspects which is checked by 4- | ||||
eyes-principle and audited by KPMG. The final data is | ||||
always taken from invoices and is part of the audit. As | ||||
these invoices are in most cases only provided once a | ||||
year by the providers, we use flow meters to ensure | ||||
data collection during the year. In addition, the collection | ||||
helps us to achieve and monitor target achievement. | ||||
Ground water is measured using water meters. | ||||
Water withdrawals | Not relevant | Not measured or analyzed: The quality of raw water that | ||
quality | GEA draws from groundwater is not measured or | |||
analyzed because the quality is not important to the | ||||
processes they are used in, as it is used for gardening | ||||
(85%), utility (like washrooms & kitchen), floor cleaning | ||||
purposes, and some industrial processes in which | ||||
quality is not material. | ||||
This aspect is not expected to be relevant in the future | ||||
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GEA CONFIDENTIAL
GEA Group AG CDP Water Security Questionnaire 2023 Wednesday, 19. July 2023
as the uses for the water will remain the same. If quality | ||||
is important, municipal water is used instead. | ||||
Water discharges - total | 100% | Monthly | Water invoices or water | Water discharge or wastewater is measured on a |
volumes | meter readings, | monthly basis at GEA's production, service & | ||
depending on availability | administration sites. Methods for measurement include | |||
and access to the invoices | water invoices or water meter readings, depending on | |||
from the water treatment | availability & access to the invoices from the water | |||
facility | treatment facility. If no meter or invoice is available, the | |||
wastewater amount is calculated using site-specific | ||||
formulas based on water consumption of the site. 84 | ||||
sites report 100% water aspects which is checked by 4- | ||||
eyes-principle and audited by KPMG. The final data is | ||||
always taken from invoices & is part of the audit. As | ||||
these invoices are in most cases only provided once a | ||||
year by the providers, we use flow meters to ensure | ||||
data collection during the year. In addition, the collection | ||||
helps us to achieve & monitor target achievement. | ||||
Every country has a specific calculation when invoices | ||||
are not available, which depends on local legal | ||||
requirements: E.g. in China wastewater is calculated by | ||||
authorities as 90% of total water withdrawal. | ||||
Water discharges - | 100% | Monthly | Water invoices or water | We have the wastewater data available per GEA site |
volumes by destination | meter readings, | and therefore know the volumes per region/destination. | ||
depending on availability | Water discharge or wastewater is measured on a | |||
and access to the invoices | monthly basis at GEA's production, service, large offices | |||
from the water treatment | and administration sites. Methods for measurement | |||
facility. | include water invoices or water meter readings. | |||
84 sites report 100% water aspects which is checked by | ||||
4-eyes-principle and audited by KPMG. The final data is | ||||
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GEA CONFIDENTIAL
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GEA Group AG published this content on 23 May 2024 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 23 May 2024 13:43:03 UTC.