ACCIONA launches its "Energy Savings, Casual Attire and Sustainability" Plan

The Company is a pioneer in raising its air conditioning temperature to 23ºC-24ºC during summertime working hours and allowing employees to dress more casually to make them feel more comfortable.

This initiative is part of the Company's Environmental Efficiency Plan 2008-2011, aimed at improving ACCIONA's performance with regard to energy efficiency, water use and generation of waste.

ACCIONA will launch its "Energy savings, Casual Attire and Sustainability" Plan, which will be in force between June 22nd and September 6th. Air conditioning temperature will be raised by one or two degrees Centigrade above the usual levels for summertime (21ºC - 22ºC) and employees will be allowed to come into work dressed more casually so that they feel more comfortable in the workplace.

Air conditioning is set at 23ºC - 24ºC and a more informal dress code is introduced. At the hottest time of the year, employees are encouraged to leave ties, suits and long sleeves at home - unless circumstances require otherwise - helping them to feel more comfortable in the office.

This year, ACCIONA has broadened the scope of this initiative to take in all offices that manage their own maintenance services. The Company has drawn up an implementation and monitoring plan for the "Energy savings, Casual Attire and Sustainability" Plan requiring the involvement of all the heads of Maintenance at the Group's different work centres. Thanks to the Plan, last year ACCIONA achieved an average 8.5% energy saving in air conditioning across its installations, equivalent to 5% of the Company's total electricity consumption.

For example, at ACCIONA's head office in Madrid, the Plan obtained a saving of 55,000 KWh, thus avoiding the emission of 20.6 tonnes of CO2, equivalent to the emissions avoided by 1,720 trees, the electricity consumed by 21 households or walking to work instead of driving 5,370 times.

Apart from achieving energy savings, this initiative helps to raise awareness of sustainability values among staff and to get them involved personally.

The "Energy savings, Casual Attire and Sustainability" Plan, one of ACCIONA's many pioneering initiatives, is part of the Company's Environmental Efficiency Plan, which is aimed at enhancing ACCIONA's overall interaction with the environment on the basis of three principal courses of action:

Energy Efficiency. The first phase of the Plan (2009 - 2010) sets out to achieve a 10% improvement in the Company's energy-efficiency ratio. Apart from the measures envisaged by the "Energy savings, Casual Attire and Sustainability" Plan, this course of action includes other measures such as replacing incandescent and halogen bulbs on the outside of the building with low-consumption bulbs; adjusting outside lighting to real needs, or installing movement detectors in rarely-used access points. The aim is to bring down CO2 emissions.

Efficient use of water. ACCIONA aims to improve the efficiency ratio by 10% over the next two years. The Company has set its sights on fostering the efficient consumption and responsible use of water by raising awareness among staff of the need to save water in everyday situations, such as turning off taps when they are not being used and avoiding leaving taps running when employees wash their hands; reporting leakage; avoiding disposing of waste in the WC (to avoid possible blockages), or using water efficiently when gardening.

Efficiency in waste generation. Efforts are being made to recycle more waste materials, recycle 10% more waste paper, and reduce hazardous waste by 10%. Among other measures, staff are required to dispose selectively of waste materials for recycling (e.g. batteries, toner, etc), and print documents only when it is really necessary. Special training schemes are used to bring employees up-to-date on the different types of waste materials generated in the office.

These measures introduced in ACCIONA work centres join the ones already in place across the entire organisation and, more specifically, in each business area, as part of the Company's overall commitment to sustainability.

As a result of these efforts, in 2008 ACCIONA achieved a 27% reduction in CO2 emissions and once again improved its climate footprint, given that this drop in emissions came on top of the 5.6% of CO2 emissions (equivalent to almost seven million tonnes)avoided by the Company's activities. Moreover, in 2008 ACCIONA managed to either avoid or reuse more than 60% of waste (metal, plastic, rubble and wood), and 80% of its activities obtained certification to ISO 14001 standard.

ACCIONA is one of Spain's leading business corporations, operating in infrastructure, energy, water and services in more than thirty countries. Its claim "Pioneers in Sustainable Development2 reflects the Company´s commitment to contributing to economic growth, social progress and environmental balance. ACCIONA is leader of its sector in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, and posted revenues of €12.67 billion in 2008.