2023 UNIVERSAL REGISTRATION DOCUMENT

Raw material conservation and waste reduction, recycling and reuse

To support the circular economy, VINCI companies strive to reduce their consumption of raw materials and to limit, sort, recycle and reuse an increasing share of the waste produced by their activities (see the actions described in paragraph 3.3, “Optimising resources thanks to the circular economy”, of the “Environmental performance” section, page 246).

The rollout of recycling platforms for materials, especially inert materials, supports the circular economy by allowing for their reuse on worksites of the Group’s companies in a more systematic manner. For example, about ten years ago, VINCI Construction rolled out its Granulat+ programme, which uses innovative treatments and recovery-sorting-recycling facilities to recover the resources needed to produce aggregates.

Given their extensive international operations, VINCI Concessions business lines must find alternatives to landfills for waste treatment. To meet its goal of sending zero waste to landfill, VINCI Airports has built on site sorting centres for its airports in Brazil, the Dominican Republic and Serbia. VINCI Construction and VINCI Energies are also taking measures to promote the reuse of materials and equipment on worksites, in addition to waste sorting and recycling.

Preserving natural environments

Preserving natural environments is a key concern for VINCI companies. From a project’s earliest design stage, they strive to avoid, reduce and offset the impacts of their activities on species and natural environments. VINCI companies comply with a range of local regulations and requirements of varying complexity. Above and beyond their legal obligations, they undertake risk analyses of their projects and implement measures to manage the identified risks (see the actions described in paragraph 3.4, “Preserving natural environments”, of the “Environmental performance” section, page 252).

A mapping of risks has shown that the Group’s activities can cause pollution of various sorts and deteriorate natural environments. Accordingly, the Group takes steps as needed to reduce these impacts, both during the construction phase and during operations.

Entities use various types of equipment to prevent surface water pollution, choosing the best solution for each context. For example, VINCI Autoroutes creates retention ponds on the sites of its infrastructure to allow the settling of suspended solids in run-off and pumped water, but also to contain any accidental pollution and avoid contaminating neighbouring watercourses or sensitive environments. Ninety percent of VINCI motorways in service in France are equipped with either natural water protection systems or engineering structures that address potential problems to prevent accidental pollution in the surrounding natural environment. In addition, whenever water is discharged into a natural environment, this is done only after its quality has been verified through sampling. In all its airports, VINCI Airports systematically installs oil water separators wherever there is a risk of water contamination. Some of VINCI Construction’s quarry sites have implemented innovative systems to filter pumped water and minimise the discharge of any suspended matter. At worksites, temporary retention ponds or settlement tanks are set up as needed to prevent suspended solids from contaminating the natural environment. Worksites are also supplied with spill kits, impermeable areas for refuelling machinery, and other equipment to prevent accidental pollution.

To minimise light and noise pollution generated by the operation of infrastructure, acoustic barriers are regularly placed along motorways, and lighting systems may be adapted to direct light only towards areas requiring illumination for the safety of users. During a project’s construction phase, Group entities use acoustic enclosures or ventilation strategies to diminish the noise produced by their machines. Depending on the context, noise levels may be measured, and sometimes vibrations as well.

At sites under construction and sites in operation, air quality monitoring systems may be implemented. Some airports measure the air quality of surrounding areas on a continuous basis. At worksites, operators first make sure that weather conditions are suitable (low wind speeds) before beginning soil stabilisation work.

Efforts are also made to limit the use of phytosanitary products for road maintenance to the strict minimum. Currently, these products are only used for hard-to-access areas or for fighting invasive plant species. From 2018 to 2023, the use of phytosanitary products (in litres) was reduced by just over 73% in the Concessions business as a whole. As part of the act4nature international initiative (see paragraph 3.4.1, “Preventing pollution and incidents”, of the “Environmental performance” section, page 252), VINCI has made a pledge to cease all use of phytosanitary products by 2030 (unless prevented by contractual or regulatory provisions).