Environmental protection

Protecting the environment is a responsibility we all share. As a company, this is something we are very well aware of and we feel committed to protecting the environment, conserving natural resources and reducing emissions. That’s why we have incorporated environmental protection and energy efficiency measures into our business practices, with some surpassing statutory targets. We have committed to using natural resources responsibly and supporting the use of environmentally friendly technologies in our principles of conduct and RWE’s Code of Conduct. Furthermore, RWE companies appoint environmental officers in management that ensure as part of the environmental management system that environmental protection is implemented responsibly according to operator obligations, is handled in line with our sustainability practices and we pursue the goal of preventing serious adverse effects on the environment and other risks. Strict environmental legislation and permit requirements build the framework for our operational activities in the regions where we are active. Some of our activities surpass the obligations set out in laws and permits.

RWE invests in environmental protection to ensure continuous improvement in areas such as energy, water, biodiversity, emissions as well as wastewater and waste. 

In recent years, we have significantly reduced our emissions by decommissioning power plants and committed ourselves to a sustainable energy world. We will continue on this path and aim to be climate-neutral by 2040. Our milestones are in line with the Paris Agreement and have been confirmed by the internationally recognised Science Based Targets initiative. By 2030, we want to reduce emissions per unit of electricity generated by more than 70% compared to 2022. The earlier phase-out of lignite by 2030 contributes significantly to this goal. And we are working on further drivers of decarbonisation, such as the use of hydrogen in our power plants or green steel.

To control our activities related to the environment, we have set up an environmental management system in affiliate companies that have operating facilities, for example. The environmental management system has 100% coverage. We follow international environmental standard ISO 14001, while factoring in the respective country-specific and statutory requirements. Environmental auditors assess our environmental performance on a regular basis, identify associated risks and opportunities and use these results in order to bring about systematic improvements. Our goal is to have 100% of the environmental management systems been certified either by external  or internal audits.