A formal Group purchasing policy was published in 2024 that sets out the essential principles to be applied by employees and purchasing partners: suppliers, service providers and subcontractors (see paragraph 3.2.2, “Management of impacts, risks and opportunities”, of the Sustainability report, page 256). Sourcing innovative solutions to protect the environment, fight climate change and bring about the energy transition is an integral part of the Group’s responsible purchasing strategy. At the end of October 2021, an introductory course on responsible purchasing was made available to all employees as an e-learning module to help them absorb the policy’s content. At 31 December 2024, more than 6,000 employees had completed it. A more advanced course for Group purchasing roles, initially developed in 2021, was updated in 2024 and continues to be delivered across the Group. More details on the Group’s responsible purchasing training are provided in paragraph 3.2.2.1, “Human rights and health and safety issues for purchasing and subcontracting”, of the Sustainability report, page 256.
To ensure an effective responsible purchasing approach, the most relevant social and environmental issues were first identified and analysed for each purchasing category. A risk mapping methodology was thus developed and is now in use throughout the Group. As described in paragraph 3.2.2.1 of the Sustainability report, page 256, this mapping process helped identify the main social and environmental risk factors for some 50 strategic purchasing categories, which can be grouped into 27 broader categories accounting for 75% of expenditure. Types of purchases that were found to be associated with a particularly high degree of CSR risk and criticality for certain divisions include subcontracting for rebar installation, waste collection and treatment services, and cable supplies.
At the end of 2023, VINCI developed a methodology to rank suppliers according to their risk exposure using a set of criteria that are weighted differently depending on their relevance for each purchasing category. These criteria include the supplier’s country of production, the country’s environmental risk level, its human rights risk level as assessed using VINCI’s Global Human Rights Risks Mapping, findings of CSR assessment questionnaires, any certifications obtained, amounts of spending on purchases, contract terms, the proportion of temporary staff and the use of subcontracting. The methodology was applied throughout 2024 for five priority purchasing categories by VINCI Energies in France, VINCI Construction Building France and Civil Engineering France, VINCI Energies International & Systems and VINCI Construction Road France and Networks France. Specific action plans were developed and are being implemented by the relevant business lines and divisions.
Discussions with certain strategic suppliers (for example, for fuel, equipment leasing and concrete) are ongoing, with a view to reducing the Group’s Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions.
VINCI has set up a dedicated online solution enabling whistleblowers to report serious damage to the environment. The system is managed by the Ethics and Vigilance Department. At the same time, the Environment Department monitors major environmental incidents as part of the Group’s annual reporting. A major incident is defined as one that requires the intervention of an external specialist and whose consequences stretch beyond the boundaries of the entity’s sites.
At the local level, the Group’s subsidiaries, divisions and business lines have their own procedures to notify management if an environmental incident occurs so as to promptly implement corrective actions. For example, the environmental managers of construction companies must make a detailed report of any environmental incident. The report is then shared with the top management of the relevant company.
