Integrated ESG
Report 2021

Social capital

We define social capital as the ability to share, build strong relationships and cooperate with stakeholders.

Given the strategic importance of the Group’s products, the Group plays a particularly important role in the everyday life of local communities. The nature, operational scale and presence of infrastructure for hydrocarbon exploration, production, storage and distribution make the PGNiG Group deeply committed to building partnership relations with local communities and governments, suppliers and contractors, with the ultimate goal of pursing joint objectives. The PGNiG Group creates opportunities for cooperation and builds understanding for mutual relations and interdependencies with individual stakeholder groups.

In their respective areas of operation, the Group companies provide support to events and initiatives important to local communities. In particular, sponsorship and charity activities focus on initiatives building the desired image of the Group and individual Group companies. Support is provided to valuable initiatives which contribute to the development of society, spanning in particular the following areas: patriotism and history, social affairs, science and education, sport and healthy lifestyle, culture and art, ecology and environmental protection.

Key metrics

  • Increasing customer satisfaction by improving service quality and investing in advanced digital communications solutions and tools that meet the needs of various customer groups.
  • Be Like Ignacy – an original programme created by PGNiG and the PGNiG Foundation that promotes science among primary school students and familiarises the youngest generation with Ignacy Łukasiewicz and other outstanding Polish scientists
  • PGNiG Debt of Gratitude (the Foundation, PGNiG OD) – under the project PGNiG OD offers tangible support for veterans who fought for a free Poland by co-financing their gas bills with an amount of up to PLN 900 per year.
  • Scholarship programmes, including We Warm Up to Science (Termika) and We Foster Young Talent (Exalo).
  • PGNiG has supported Polish handball as a strategic sponsor since 2010. It sponsors senior, youth and junior national women’s and men’s teams, and is also a title sponsor of the PGNiG Superliga and the PGNiG Polish Cup. The Company also sponsors beach handball.
  • Support for gas industry museums in Warsaw (by PGNiG), Paczków (by PSG) and the Ignacy Łukasiewicz Oil and Gas Industry Museum in Bóbrka (PGNiG and the PGNiG Foundation)

Performance

  • The number of beneficiaries of the PGNiG Group’s social programmes, including the Foundation’s programmes, is estimated at over 11 million people in 2021. In 2020, the number of beneficiaries of the Group’s support and social projects was estimated at over 20 million. This high number of beneficiaries is due to the extraordinary period of time when the projects were largely devoted to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2019, the number of beneficiaries of the Group’s support and social projects was estimated at over 365 thousand.
  • Almost 500 initiatives and events (with PGNiG alone supporting over 120), compared with over 550 in 2020 (over 500 in 2019 and over 400 in 2018)
  • In 2021, PGNiG’s Debt of Gratitude programme covered more than 1,100 veterans. The project originated in 2016 at the PGNiG Group as a tribute to Warsaw Uprising veterans. In 2018, it was extended to include miners who went on strike at the Wujek coal mine, and in 2020 the application process was made available to veterans of the 1939 Defensive War. The programme won the Złoty BohaterON award in 2019 and the Guardian of Memory award in 2016.
  • The To Be Like Ignacy programme is growing in popularity every year. A record 3,000 or so science clubs entered the 6th edition of the programme, submitting more than 2,200 reports and works.

Our approach to performance management:

  • The PGNiG Group engages with local communities also through its charitable giving initiatives, run mainly by the PGNiG Ignacy Łukasiewicz Foundation
  • We implement strategic long-term community outreach programmes through the Foundation and PGNiG Group companies, and we reach out to those in need – supporting the fight against the pandemic
  • We use social dialogue as a means of communication to help our stakeholders understand what we do
  • Good Neighbour – we strive to identify the needs and expectations of our local communities on a regular basis. Before setting up a new location, we meet with the local authorities to explain the purpose and scope of work associated with the planned project

How does social capital affect other types of capital?

The Group’s main area of impact on its social environment, involving the use of its intellectual capital, are education and scientific research. The Company has partnered with universities and vocational schools to prepare highly qualified human resources for itself (so as to manage the generation gap) and works with partners in large research and academic centres to further drive innovation.

In view of generational changes, a Mentoring Programme was put in place at PGNiG in 2019 to counter potential loss of knowledge held by experienced employees. The initiative aims to facilitate the exchange of professional experience and expert knowledge between long-serving employees and team members having no expertise.

As one of the very first companies in Poland, we tailored our training and recruitment system to bring it in line with the industrial doctorate programme. Over more than a decade PGNiG Termika has partnered with secondary schools under the We Warm Up to Science programme, offering scholarships to top-performing students.

The Group is deeply committed to building partnering relations with its social environment, local governments, suppliers and contractors, with the ultimate goal of pursing joint objectives. Our employees are PGNiG’s informal ambassadors in contacts with third parties. Their direct involvement in local initiatives and membership of work councils or trade unions directly supports further development of our social environment.

Supporting local communities in the fight against the pandemic by providing non-cash and financial assistance to health care facilities and care institutions near the Group’s sites, and ensuring business continuity by fostering employee safety.

As part of its production operations in Poland and abroad, the Company engages in social dialogue with local communities, experts and environmental organisations, as access to hydrocarbon deposits often depends on their acceptance. The PGNiG Group is firmly committed to building strong partnership-based relations with local communities, public authorities, suppliers and contractors in the pursuit of common goals.

The PGNiG Group is firmly committed to building strong partnership-based relations with local communities, public authorities, suppliers and contractors in the pursuit of common goals. Acceptance for our investment plans in Poland hinges, inter alia, on positive relations with our stakeholders.

The Group supports CSR and local initiatives through:

  • Sponsorship activities,
  • Projects implemented through the PGNiG Foundation.

In 2021, the PGNiG Group companies and the PGNiG Foundation provided support to 500 initiatives and events, compared with over 400 in 2018.

The Group’s operations and the location of its production assets have a direct bearing on the living conditions and development of entrepreneurship across all regions of Poland.

  • Many industries rely on gas as one of their key feedstocks, and the access to ‘blue fuel’ stimulates economic growth;
  • The gas sector is one of the country’s major employers. The closeness and continuing expansion of PGNiG’s production assets guarantees financial stability to nearly 25,000 employees and their families;
  • The regional presence of PGNiG’s production assets is also a source of taxes for municipalities and an opportunity to take advantage of CSR and sponsorship projects run by Group companies.
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