Our commitment to working responsibly embraces global standards and frameworks promoting responsible corporate behaviour and working practices.
The Modern Slavery Act
We have a zero tolerance for modern slavery. In line with the UK Modern Slavery Act (MSA), our statement describes how we address this.
Global standards and frameworks
- We are a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC). We integrate its 10 universally-accepted principles on human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption into our policies and Code of Ethics. See our UNGC Index.
- The requirements of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Performance Standards on Environmental and Social Sustainability and the International Oil and Gas Producers (IOGP) standards and best practice guidance are integrated into our Corporate Responsibility Management System (CRMS).
- We map our contribution to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which guide us in maximising the benefits of our activities in the countries where we work, and minimising our negative impacts.
Environment
- Our CRMS is aligned with the requirements of ISO 14001, the international standard for environmental management systems (EMS), and verified against OSPAR recommendation 2003/5, the EMS requirement for operating in the countries of the 15 endorsing governments, including the UK.
- We do not operate in UN World Heritage sites or IUCN Ia (Strict Nature Reserves) and Ib (Wilderness Areas) category locations.
- In 2021, we maintained a B- rating for our annual carbon disclosure submission to the CDP and scored a B- on our first full CDP water security questionnaire.
People
- Our CRMS is aligned with the requirements of ISO 45001:2018, the international standard for occupational health and safety management systems.
- We operate in accordance with the UK MSA and international labour standards, and our selection procedure for service providers includes our MSA Statement.
Society
- Our CRMS is aligned with the requirements of ISO 26000 guidance on operating in a socially responsible way.
- We support the principles contained within the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).
- In mitigating security risks, our operations, equipment and training meet the requirements of the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights (VPSHR).
Governance
- We report our sustainability information in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards (Core option).
- We continue to assess and improve our reporting against Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), and are committed to complying with a number of recommended disclosures.
- To improve the quality of our reporting, we have assessed and aligned our reporting against the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Oil & Gas – Exploration & Production Sustainable Accounting Standard.
- As a member of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), we apply the EITI global transparency standard and publish what we pay to governments.
- We align our CRMS and sustainability reporting with AccountAbility’s AA1000 Accountability Principles Standard (AA1000), and review our arrangements regarding inclusivity, materiality, responsiveness and impact.
- We use the latest guidance from the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) and International Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation Association (IPIECA), the global oil and gas industry association for environmental and social issues, to ensure effective stakeholder engagement and a focus on material issues.