Wärtsilä’s Sustainability Report has won the first prize in the Corporate Responsibility Reporting 2010 competition, in which the responsibility reporting of different corporations in 2009 is assessed.
The competition is organised by the Confederation of Finnish Industries, the Finnish Business & Society, the Finnish Institute of Authorised Public Accountants, the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, the Association for Environmental Management and the Ministry of Environment. The preliminary assessment was carried out by four large auditing firms representing the Finnish Institute of Authorised Public Accountants, including Deloitte & Touche, Ernst & Young, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers. The competition took place for the 15th time.
In its assessment, the competition committee emphasised the reporting of the risks and opportunities, as well as safety issues, relating to sustainability, developed by Wärtsilä. Furthermore, the committee appreciated the use of examples in the reporting of interest group co-operation and in the reporting of issues relating to climate change.
The preliminary assessment for the competition included a total of 128 companies on the Helsinki Stock Exchange. The reporting of a total of 27 listed companies on their economic, social and environmental responsibility was considered sufficiently extensive.
“For a decade, Wärtsilä has been systematically investing in sustainable operations and reporting on them. Competent personnel from different parts of the Wärtsilä organisation have participated in the development and implementation of the reporting. This award spurs us on to further develop our operations. We are committed to responsible business operations, and we develop our products and operations in accordance with the principles of sustainable development,” says Kari Hietanen, member of Wärtsilä’s board of management.
Wärtsilä will participate in developing the best practices for sustainability reporting and has decided to join the Global Reporting Initiative’s (GRI) global network of organisational stakeholders, which promotes transparency, responsibility and sustainable development.
“Wärtsilä is one of the pioneers in corporate responsibility reporting and we are very pleased to have Wärtsilä joining our GRI network. We are confident that Wärtsilä is actively involved in the development of future reporting guidelines,” says Teresa Fogelberg, director at GRI.
Wärtsilä published its first environmental report in 2001. The report was prepared in accordance with the GRI guidelines. Throughout this time, Marko Vainikka, director of sustainability, has been responsible for the reporting.