Boskalis Sustainability Report 2020

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RESPONSIBLE SOURCING

RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS CONDUCT SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020 – BOSKALIS OUR SUPPLY CHAIN Our relationships with our suppliers are fundamental to the success of our business – as well as to the realization of our sustainability ambitions. We set high standards for our suppliers and our expectations of their environmental and social performance are covered in our Supplier Code of Conduct. Each year we perform an Implementation Scan at a selection of our contracted suppliers to monitor compliance with the Supplier Code of Conduct. This year, because of the restrictions imposed by COVID-19, the Implementation Scans could not be carried out on location and were undertaken via online meeting platforms and digital tours. Further, the pandemic had little impact on our sourcing operations; all critical supplies were delivered, with few delays, so our operations could continue according to schedule. Our central procurement office maintains relationships with approximately 1,440 direct suppliers. Of these, 82% are based in the Netherlands, 15% in other European countries and 3% outside Europe. The number of our suppliers varies from year to year based on the profiles of our current projects. In 2020 212 of our suppliers were strategic partners, who together accounted for around 90% of central purchasing volume. OUR SUPPLIER CODE OF CONDUCT Besides selection criteria such as quality, delivery and reliability, our central procurement department requires strategic suppliers to accept and adhere to our Supplier Code of Conduct. Our approach incorporates the principles of the Dutch Expertise Network for Procurement and Supply Management (NEVI) Code of Conduct, which helps procurement professionals deal with the ethical dilemmas they face as part of the procurement process. Our Supplier Code of Conduct sets out our expectations of suppliers’ environmental and social performance. It mirrors our own Boskalis Code of Conduct, and is an integral part of our General Purchasing Terms and Conditions, (available at boskalis.com), and of central procurement contracts. On signing a contract, suppliers commit themselves to the Supplier Code of Conduct. In 2020, 85% of our strategic suppliers (by spend) endorsed the Supplier Code of Conduct. In addition to the Supplier Code of Conduct, we work with our suppliers on a number of collaborative sustainability initiatives, such as: ‚ research, validation and implementation of cleaner engines; ‚ environmentally friendly fuels; ‚ energy savings; ‚ sustainable dismantling of our vessels; ‚ cradle-to-cradle and recycling concepts.

In 2020 we received re-certification for ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and transition to ISO 45001. In addition to positive remarks from the auditors for a ‘structured approach to the pandemic’, ‘a low number of incidents given the activities’ and a ‘demonstrated focus on the future’, our CSR method to evaluate the performance of suppliers was described as being ‘well implemented’. Early 2021, the Supplier Code of Conduct was updated as part of a broader policy review. IMPLEMENTATION SCANS Boskalis commissions a third party to conduct annual Implementation Scans at a selection of our contracted suppliers to verify compliance with our Supplier Code of Conduct. This is in addition to the normal pre-qualification process suppliers must complete. We believe this dialog contributes to an improved sustainability standard of our suppliers. The scans comprise a sustainability questionnaire based on our Supplier Code of Conduct, an audit and a risk assessment result. The reporting format is based on the socially responsible procurement method of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply. If we identify any causes for concern at our suppliers, we use the results of the scan to encourage improvement in sustainability conduct. If there is insufficient progress, this may lead to termination of our relationship with the supplier. In 2020 we decided to include our pre-qualification process in our Way of Working quality management system, making it part of our Project Procurement Plan. As a result, our sustainability questionnaire will become part of the pre-qualification process for our subcontractors, which is expected to increase engagement on sustainability issues. The development of this ‘fixed’ way of pre-qualification is being carried out in close cooperation with the business. 2020 IMPLEMENTATION SCAN RESULTS This year 20 suppliers were reviewed. Of these, 13 were new suppliers and seven were previously reviewed suppliers. Of the recurring visits we found that two suppliers had moderately or significantly improved their risk profile since our earlier scan. Five suppliers showed a slightly lower level of improvement but this was considered to be within acceptable levels. As well as the overall risk assessment for each supplier, we receive a narrative report from our third-party auditors. This covers the steps our suppliers are taking to produce sustainable products or services themselves and how they are tackling the negative impacts in their production processes, such as their use of renewable energy. The reports also indicate how our business partners are ensuring sustainability with their own suppliers. In this way, we gain a more complete sense of risks and opportunities further up our value

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