ESG

Environment

We are constantly looking for ways to reduce our impact on the Environment. Below are some of the most recent initiatives that we have implemented to reduce emissions across the business.

 

Closure of UK and Mina port offices

We closed UK and Mina port offices as a part of restructuring activities at the end of 2019 which lead to electricity and energy consumption efficiencies.

Shut down of construction activities

GMS shut down all construction facilities at the end of 2018. This has had a major impact on scope 2 emissions, with the eradication of other gas use, and a reduction in electricity consumption.

Decrease in business travel

We have taken conscious measures to reduce business travel as much as possible.  COVID-19 has also impacted business travel significantly and we are looking forward to reporting on the total emissions reductions shortly.

Change in refrigerant

We changed the refrigerant used on vessels for the cooling process to R407 which reduces global warming emissions into the environment by approximately half as compared to the previous refrigerant.

The Group has consulted an independent third-party verifier- Energy and Carbon Management (“ECM”) to report environmental performance on the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions during the year ended 31 December 2019. Their report summarises the organisational and operational boundaries, associated emissions, annual reporting figures and methodologies for GMS, in accordance with the regulatory obligation Part 7 of the Companies Act 2006 (Strategic Report and Directors’ Report) Regulations 2013.

In calculating the GHG emissions, ECM has used the GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard (revised edition) emission factors from the UK Government Conversion Factors for Company Reporting 2019, Version 1.01.

 

The table below shows the data points that are required under the UK Government regulatory requirements.

Global GHG Emissions data for period 1st January 2019 to 31st December 2019

Employee engagement

We aim to conduct our business sustainably without causing harm to people or the environment. The requirements defined in this policy and throughout our Business Management System are mandatory at all levels of the organisation.

We launched our first employee engagement survey at the end of 2019 with an 82% completion rate which is consistent with the global benchmark completion rate of 80% for all companies.

The areas where our employees scored us as needing attention are communicating more often as a Group and between departments and creating opportunities to provide constructive ideas on how to improve our processes. In 2020 we launched our internal ‘Bright Ideas’ campaign, but we know we still have work to do.

 

Diversity

We aim to conduct our business sustainably without causing harm to people or the environment. The requirements defined in this policy and throughout our Business Management System are mandatory at all levels of the organisation.

Our workforce consists of over 400 personnel recruited from more than 30 countries, and the significant experience and skills they bring to GMS helps us to conduct our business from a global perspective.

For cultural and legal reasons, the extent to which we can employ offshore female personnel is limited due to local labour laws which stipulate that women cannot work in an inappropriate environment and hazardous jobs/industries.

 

Succession planning

Given the situation in the Group, as well as the small size of GMS, it is a reality that many posts will be filled by external hires. A basic succession planning process is in place but is rudimentary in nature and has not been the priority of Management in 2019.

 

Ethical practice

The Group operates responsibly in accordance with the formal legal and regulatory disclosure requirements expected of a UK listed Company. Our Code of Conduct sets out the basic rules of the Group and its purpose is to ensure we work safely, ethically, efficiently and within the laws of the countries in which we operate.

All our staff receive Code of Conduct training as part of their induction and our reputation and success is dependent on our staff putting the Code into practice in all our dealings with our stakeholders. GMS also maintains an awareness of human rights issues, which is reflected in our suite of Group policies including our Anti-Corruption and Bribery Policy, Anti- Slavery Policy, Social Responsibility Policy and Whistleblowing Policy.

 

Learning and Development

We ensure all of our people maintain the relevant technical and regulatory training required to fulfil their job roles. As seafarers, all crew maintain their relevant STCW (Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping – a worldwide convention that ensures a lateral standard of training is achieved across all countries in the world) qualifications that licenses them to operate our barges in accordance with International Maritime Organisation requirements.

For barges operating within the offshore Oil & Gas Sector, we also ensure all crew complete additional required training in areas such as, but not limited to, offshore safety and awareness training and emergency response training.