Annual Accounts 2021
Important events during the financial year
Environmental issues
Acquisitions
NIBE has production facilities in 27 countries. Their environmental impact primarily consists of: • Use of raw materials such as metals and plastics
A contract was signed on 7 May to acquire 100% of the shares in the UK company Heat Trace Holdings Ltd, which has sales of approximately GBP 10 million. The company develops, manufactures and markets electric heating cables to a large number of sectors worldwide. The company was consolidated into the NIBE Element business area as from 1 May 2021. The acquisition value is still provisional. At the end of August the company concluded an agreement on the acquisition of 50% of the shares in the British company Go Geothermal Ltd, including an agreement to acquire the remaining shares within a five-year period. The company is a significant distributor of heat pumps in the British market with sales of around GBP 8.3 million. It was consolidated with the NIBE Climate Solution business area r with effect from September 2021. The acquisition value is still provisional.
The pandemic In 2021 we continued to be affected by the pandemic, which had an impact on both demand and operations. After a year with a high level of demand variability, a weak first half and a strong second half, 2021 started with very strong demand, and this continued throughout the year for most product groups. As for operations, the restrictions in certain countries meant that some of the Group’s production plants were idle for parts of the year. All three business areas were also severely affected by a global materials and components shortage and hugely extended delivery times, which had an adverse impact on our own delivery capacity, especially in the last few months of the year, which are historically our strongest months.
Remuneration The Annual General Meeting determines the level of remuneration to the Chairman of the Board and other directors. The Annual General Meeting also determines the guidelines for the remuneration of the Managing Director and other senior executives. Based on these guidelines, the Board of Directors decides on remuneration of the Managing Director. The remuneration of other senior executives is determined by the Managing Director in consultation with the Chairman of the Board. Decisions in this regard are reported to the Board of Directors. See also Note 6 about remuneration for the year and the principles applied in 2021. The Board’s proposal for guidelines for 2022 largely matches the principles approved at the 2021 Annual General Meeting.
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Use of natural resources such as energy and water
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Generation of waste
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Emission of air and water pollutants
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Transportation
NIBE complies with national environmental legislation in all countries in which we have production facilities. Where operations require a permit, results and any failure to comply with permit conditions are reported to the environmental authorities in the country in question and to the Group’s sustainability department. Two cases of non-compliance with environmental conditions were reported in 2021. The Group manages improvements in its environmental performance by setting targets, following key ratios and reporting results according to the GRI standards. Our LCE products have a positive impact on the environment as they help reduce primary energy consumption, increase the use of renewable energy and thus reduce climate impact. Our sustainability work in 2021 was complemented by the implementation of the new EU Taxonomy Regulation, the purpose of which is to show how much of our sales as well as operating costs and investments involve products that can significantly contribute to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement by 2050. For more information about the Taxonomy, see pages 142-143. There is contaminated soil at four of the Group’s production plants in Denmark, the Czech Republic and Sweden. No contingent liabilities were recognised for this as it is deemed extremely unlikely that any of this could entail significant costs if the Group were held liable. In accordance with Chapter 6, Section 11 of the Swedish Annual Accounts Act, we have chosen to prepare the mandatory sustainability report as a separate report from the Annual Report. See page 141 for a description of the scope of the sustainability report.
Staff issues, human rights and anti-corruption measures Our values assume that everyone is of equal value and everyone should have the same opportunities to develop in the company, regardless of gender, ethnicity, age or background. We want all our employees to see NIBE as a secure, fair employer that works to ensure a good working environment, good working conditions, diversity and equal opportunities. Our policies to respect human rights and work to ensure equal opportunities and prevent discrimination also extend to our suppliers, and we evaluate new suppliers against our requirements before they are used. We also evaluate existing suppliers against our requirements for human rights and working conditions.
NIBE INDUSTRIER AB ANNUAL REPORT 2021
