Publication of 2024 ESG Progress Report

We are delighted to have published our 2024 ESG Progress Report, which details the steps we have taken during the year ended March 2024 towards reaching our ESG targets, as set out under the three key pillars from Transforming Dublin Responsibly, our sustainability strategy out to 2030. The pillars are:

• to become a net zero carbon-resilient business by 2030 

• to provide spaces that prioritise the environment, health and wellbeing
 
• to create long-term positive social impact

The Report includes key highlights and other achievements from 2023, such as receiving our second Five-Star GRESB rating for standing assets and maintaining our A- score for our CDP response, placing us in the top 20 responders in Ireland and in the top 26% of responders globally.

We have made further progress towards our 2030 targets in several areas, including achieving a 65% recycling rate across managed office assets, a 62% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 CO2e emissions versus our 2019 baseline, and a 9% reduction in our energy-use-intensity of managed offices since 2022, which contributes to an overall reduction of 47% against our 2019 baseline.

Harcourt Square
In our first year of construction at Harcourt Square we have been able to reduce our embodied carbon emissions by 10% versus the estimated baseline for the same period.  Using lower-carbon cement in the basement slabs and retaining walls was the driver of this reduction.  Carrying out a whole life carbon assessment for the development prior to commencing construction has allowed us take dynamic decisions and make changes to materials based on carbon savings as we progress through the build.

Operational carbon reductions
We have continued to reduce our energy use intensity (“EUI”) across our managed offices year-on-year, with an 8% reduction in 2023 versus 2022 at the whole building level. Our buildings are now well positioned to meet the requirements of the recently updated Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (“EPBD”)

We were excited to enter into our first PPA for a PV solar array on our Central Quay office, reducing common area demand from the grid by 10% and we are currently assessing other buildings for possible further solar installation.

We realise that we need to promote behavioural change amongst our stakeholders to meet our net zero targets.  To allow our occupiers to make more informed decisions around their energy usage we have rolled out online energy and carbon dashboards to all our managed office occupiers.  To move towards more accurate collection of our supply chain emissions, we have completed a series of supplier sustainability bootcamps with our property management contractors, teaching them how to create their own sustainability strategies and to measure their carbon footprints.

Biodiversity

Biodiversity is an area we have been learning a lot about and we have recently completed a baseline biodiversity assessment of our entire portfolio and will soon be releasing a biodiversity strategy that will consider how we make positive nature and ecosystem interventions for new and existing assets, and how we might plan for future regulation in this space. 

Social Impact
We have also made great strides in measuring the social impact of our activities. Using the learnings from our Windmill Quarter, we have created a social impact framework to assist other clusters in creating a positive impact.

As we look ahead, we welcome the increased scrutiny and expectation that new EU legislation is placing on our industry, and we have commenced aligning our ESG strategy, assurance and reporting with the requirements of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (“CSRD”). At the same time, we will continue to benchmark our performance using GRESB and CDP.

We remain committed to setting targets that drive us to make an even more meaningful and lasting difference to people’s lives – within and beyond our buildings.

Click here to Read our 2024 ESG progress report

Click here for our 2023 ESG Data book