How Can We Shape the Energy Transition to a Digital And Decarbonized World?
The energy markets have undergone unprecedented changes worldwide, particularly in Europe, largely due to the geopolitical dynamics in recent years and the evolution in the regulatory landscape. Our mission is clear: to deliver reliable and affordable energy for industries and consumers, while advancing decarbonization to meet our goals for the planet and tomorrow's world. One question stands at the forefront of our mission: How can we effectively shape the energy transition toward a digital and decarbonized world?
We face a complex, but fascinating triangle of challenges:
- securing reliable energy provision,
- ensuring affordable energy supply to allow for economic activity in Europe, and
- meeting decarbonization objectives to create an economy which respects environmental needs.
These challenges affect consumers and companies alike, in some cases even threatening their existence. Our response to these challenges is to empower our customers’ success by:
- designing and operating custom-made decarbonized energy solutions,
- financing and owning those assets, and
- continuously provisioning the most adequate and economic fuel.
In order words we have been using all our expertise on regulations, energy markets, and technology operations to solve these complex challenges during a decade and more. Our financial engagement ensures that both customer and GETEC goals are totally aligned.
Securing Sustainable Energy Sources
Our commitment to shape the energy transition to a digital and decarbonized world is more than just a vision—it's our roadmap for action. To meet the challenges of scarcity and rising costs, GETEC is exploring fuel alternatives such as biomass, biomethane, geothermal energy and electricity just to name a few. We also actively engage in mid- to long-term fuel developments such as hydrogen and synthetic fuels by working on concrete customer projects in these domains. We're making significant strides by making our plants hydrogen-ready and securing external supplies through initiatives like the Hydrogen Hub project and the SoutH2 Corridor, a 3,300 km hydrogen pipeline connecting North Africa to key European markets.
As an energy supplier, we cannot rely solely on large infrastructure networks and are also creating our own localized solutions, which we design in partnership with our customers. An example is our recent project with DREWSEN SPEZIALPAPIERE. We are building a new combined heat and power (CHP) plant that will convert internally generated biomass waste, significantly reducing CO2 emissions in Celle, Germany. The plant will utilize 100% renewable fuels: up to 100% cereal straw and up to 60% residual wood. With a thermal firing capacity of approximately 55 MW, the plant will supply 55 t/h of steam for the production of specialty papers, at the same time generating up to 12.5 MW of electricity for the site. The plant’s steam turbine is designed to generate varying levels of electricity depending on the demand, without affecting the supply of process steam. This project represent a major step forward in sustainable production
PIERRE-ALAIN GRAF
CEO of GETEC, on the corporate strategy and growth plans
Pierre-Alain Graf is an international executive with many years of experience as a CEO and board member across various industries. Graf holds a Master of Law from the University of Basel and an MBA from the University of St. Gallen. He has held several leadership positions at prestigious companies, including Senior Vice-President of the Global Security Business at Hitachi ABB Powergrids Ltd., CEO of Swissgrid for over seven years and General Manager of Cisco Systems Switzerland. Graf became CEO of the GETEC Group on March 15, 2023.
"Decarbonization is the centerpice of our vision. It's not an option but a necessity for industries, real estate, and the public sector."
Pierre-Alain Graf
Driving Substantial Growth with a Customer-centric Approach
We cannot implement a sustainable transition on a small scale. We've built a high-performing group of companies focused on operational excellence, talent, and transformation for growth, secured by €3.1 billion in refinancing, which provides us strength and flexibility to seize opportunities for growth and operational enhancement. Our customer-centric approach puts customers and their needs at the center of all business decisions, strategies, and operations. We start from an excellent position having achieved success in a wide range of industries with showcase projects across Europe. Our expansion strategy considers new European markets and targets diverse sectors including paper, chemicals and life sciences, food and dairy, manufacturing, automotive, data centers, hospitals, residential and commercial real estate, and municipal infrastructure.
Recent notable achievements include our district heating project in Rozzano, Italy, where GETEC initiated the modernization and partial renewal of the district heating supply for around 42,000 residents and other connected facilities. One of our most ambitious projects is the development of a European multiclient site approach, based in our client sites in Emmen (Netherlands), Muttenz (Switzerland) and Friedrichsort (Germany). Another recent milestone in our growth plan is the acquisition of the Torviscosa trigeneration plant, an advanced combined heating, cooling, and power facility capable of generating 9.4 MW of electrical power. We recognize that long-term business success comes from creating sustainable value for our customers. Our goal is to build strong and long-lasting relationships, seeking feedback and addressing issues to continuously improve. Our entire organization aligns around delivering value and customer satisfaction.
Becoming a Digital-First Company
GETEC is facing increasing demands to stay at the forefront of innovation while minimizing risks. We must align and harmonize our European business units and their finances, maintain state-of-the-art cybersecurity and Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) procedures, provide real-time data and advanced monitoring and predictive analysis capabilities to customers, as well as meet our reporting obligations. Digitalization is a fundamental enabler of our vision. This is no small task for a company like ours, which has grown dynamically across many countries and often taken over dilapidated infrastructures with the aim of improving them sustainably.
We're implementing cutting-edge digital solutions across our operations. By standardizing IT systems and processes across regions, we ensure consistency, efficiency, and scalability, while reducing complexity, accelerating operations, and empowering our teams to deliver customer value. Of our 29 strategic transformation initiatives, digitalization plays a crucial role in nearly all of them.
Delivering Excellence Through Our People
We can only harness the potential of securing sustainable energy sources, driving substantial growth, and becoming a digital-first company, if we share the same vision and have the resources to implement it. Our success in navigating this complex energy transition relies on our greatest asset—our people. As a company, we have the expert know-how, technology innovation, and streamlined processes to support our customers, but it is our people who are the heartbeat of excellence. Their pioneering spirit and ability to translate strategy into concrete actions make the difference in creating meaningful impact. While the Group provides the strategic framework and core functions, it's our local leaders who drive implementation across markets, regions, and areas of expertise.
Sustainability is an evolutionary journey that begins with us and extends to helping others operate more sustainably. In an increasingly complex market, our unique combination of human capital and customer-centric strategy positions us perfectly to be the European trusted leader in shaping the energy transition. Together, we're not just adapting to market challenges —we're driving the evolution to a digital and decarbonized world.
Customer Challenges
Learning Curve
Risk Mitigation
Political
Environment
Society
Technology
Price Development
Financing
Efficiency
People
Resources
Technical Solutions
Decarbonization
Footprint
ESG Compliance
VisionTo be the European trusted leader in shaping the energy transition to a digital and decarbonized world. |
MissionTo empower our customers' success by delivering reliable, decarbonized energy and infrastructure solutions for totay's indutries and tomorrow's world. |
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PositioningEurope's leading specialist for realiable, decarbonized energy and infrastructure solutions. |
Value PropositionWe provide reliable, decarbonized energy and develop, finance and run critical infrastructure so that ur customers can focus on their core business. |
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Values
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GETEC Foundations
Looking within
Leads to Progress
GETEC considers the double materiality assessment to
be the key to sustainable development.
As part of its sustainability strategy, GETEC has achieved an important milestone. By successfully completing a double materiality assessment, the company satisfies the requirements of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and ensures that sustainability is not only a buzzword but firmly embedded in its corporate strategy.
The groundwork for tomorrow’s success
Given that companies are now being held more responsible than ever before for their impact on the environment and society, the GETEC Group is addressing the challenge of placing its sustainability strategy on a solid footing. The double materiality assessment is the core of this process. It is a method that not only identifies internal and external risks and opportunities but also defines the material topics for sustainability reporting. “To achieve this, GETEC has gone through a challenging process, which has also delivered many findings that can now be used in the company’s sustainable development,” summarizes Liza Steudle, Head of Environment, Social & Governance (ESG) at GETEC.
From status quo to strategic realignment
Every journey starts with the first step. For GETEC, this was the extensive status quo and environmental analysis performed as part of the materiality assessment. It was not simply a case of reviewing existing processes but also of analyzing external factors such as regulatory developments and social trends. This careful preparation was the key to compiling a substantiated and detailed list of potential ESG issues. “We wanted to make sure that we didn’t miss anything and that our analysis was as comprehensive as possible,” explains Liza Steudle.
The power of setting priorities
Having identified a large number of relevant ESG issues, the challenging task of setting priorities began. This demonstrated the strength of GETEC’s approach. The most important issues – both entrepreneurial and social – were identified by way of a detailed assessment of impacts, risks and opportunities (IRO). “It’s a question of identifying the core of what is truly relevant – both for us as a company and for our stakeholders,” says Benjamin Hilpert, ESG Manager at GETEC.
Diverse perspectives thanks to a variety of stakeholders
GETEC recognized at an early stage that stakeholder engagement is crucial to the success of the materiality assessment. For this reason, the representatives of various groups – from employees and customers to investors and NGOs – were involved in the process. The opinions of these groups were obtained in a series of workshops and feedback sessions and then integrated into the assessment. “Management was also involved and concerned itself in detail with the main issues connected with this process,” explains Liza Steudle.
The materiality assessment provides guidance
The conclusion of the materiality assessment is marked by the preparation and validation of a results matrix, which provides an overview to help GETEC identify strategic fields of action for the future. Topics such as climate change, energy consumption and ethical business conduct were identified as the key challenges and opportunities. “The matrix is not only a reporting tool but an effective instrument to help us identify the sustainability issues that are our biggest levers,” explains Pierre-Alain Graf, CEO of GETEC.
Sustainability as a driver of economic growth
The concrete findings of the materiality assessment will have a measurable impact on GETEC’s corporate strategy and its alignment. Areas such as the use of resources, working conditions and ethical business conduct are now at the very top of the agenda. “We don’t see sustainability as an obligation but as an opportunity to make our company fit for the future,” summarizes Graf. Next year’s ESG Report will describe the findings and the resulting measures.
Double Materiality Matrix
Environment
Climate Change
Energy
Pollution
Social
Ow workforce
Working Conditions
Government
Ethic business conduct
