Abengoa's annual Corporate Social Responsibility Report (CSRR) consistently contains reliable information on the most important changes to have occurred over the year in relation to the social, economic and environmental impacts of company business, while also addressing any other aspects that may be relevant to company stakeholders, with an emphasis on progress achieved in 2013 and on challenges and goals for the following years.

Remaining true to its commitment to transparency, for the eleventh consecutive year Abengoa describes in this report the company's performance across the geographical areas where it operates, encompassing the three core activities around which business at Abengoa revolves: engineering and construction, infrastructures under concession, and industrial production.

In preparing this report, the guidelines provided in version 3.1 of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Guide were taken into account, as well as the principles of the AA1000AS Standard, the world's first sustainability assurance norm, with the aim of aiding comprehension, allowing for benchmarking, and providing the utmost transparency to Abengoa stakeholders.

The information contained in this report reflects the reporting quality principles established by the GRI and provides balanced, comparable, accurate, periodic, clear and reliable information.

The CSRR also provides information on Abengoa's progress in its unwavering commitment to the UN Global Compact, the ten principles of which govern all company action, activity and strategy.

Similarly, in defining its Corporate Social Responsibility Management System, Abengoa has relied on the guidelines set down under the international standard ISO 26000:2010 "Guidance on Social Responsibility".

Within the company, these rules and guidance are reflected in a set of internal norms of obligatory compliance for all Abengoa employees, without exception. Are the following:

 

 

Unless stated otherwise, all performance indicators included in this report relate to the activity undertaken in 2013 by all Abengoa companies that have a significant social, environmental or economic impact and whose management is under the effective control of Abengoa. The report also includes information on previous years, insofar as relevant and available, thus enabling readers to form a more comprehensive opinion regarding the company's evolution.

Due to the acquisitions and disinvestments that took place over the year, the consolidation perimeter is not the same as for 2012, with the main difference, with respect to previous years, being that all of the companies that made up the Environmental Services business unit (Befesa)¹, accounting for approximately 8 % of Abengoa's overall sales in 2012, no longer belong to the company. In order to be able to show comparative data, the data relative to the Befesa business unit, were recomputed without taking the entity into account, and are indeicated throughout the report.

 

Note 1: Further information on the sale of Befesa is available in Volume III of Abengoa's Annual Report 2013.