Our Approach

We believe ESG is not a trade-off, but an increasingly important part of creating sustainable long term value. We believe that now, more than ever, embedding environmental and social responsibility into our operating practices, investment processes and value creation initiatives will help us to capitalise on the opportunities of the next decade and help our portfolio companies keep abreast of the rapidly evolving sustainability agenda. Furthermore, we strongly believe that embedding environmental and social responsibility into our approach makes CVC a stronger business, enables us to attract, retain and motivate higher quality talent and enhances the resilience of our portfolio companies.

Find out more about how our portfolio company Ahlsell is working towards building a more sustainable society in the video below:

ESG is integrated across the investment cycle

CVC has a framework that aims to provide a systemic and repeatable approach to creating value. This framework supports our work with portfolio companies in assessing their priorities and the way they operate, from recognising the importance of customers and employees, through to helping companies to make positive contributions to their community and minimise their impact on the natural environment. Our non-financial reporting programme seeks to measure progress against each of these areas where material for a business.

CVC understands the management of environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters is a key part of ensuring the long-term success of any business

Through our Four Pillar Approach, we work with our companies towards the following objectives:

1. externally assess their ESG action plans, most commonly through EcoVadis,
2. develop and disclose annual ESG key performance indicators (KPIs),
3. publish an annual sustainability report, and
4. set externally validated science-based emissions reductions targets.

By engaging with companies on these four pillars, we can be confident that our companies will be better placed to build best in class ESG programmes and can be more adaptable and resilient during the global low carbon energy transition, even after our period of ownership.

* EcoVadis data for those CVC portfolio companies who had received the results of their EcoVadis assessments by 31 December 2021, representing a total of 70% of the CVC portfolio excluding investments made during Q2 of 2021. The criteria for EcoVadis medal assignment, for scorecards published from 1 January 2020-31 December 2021, are as follows: Platinum – top 1% of EcoVadis rated companies (overall score between 73 and 100); Gold – top 5% of EcoVadis rated companies (overall score between 66 and 72); Silver – top 25% of EcoVadis rated companies (overall score between 54 and 65); Bronze – top 50% of EcoVadis rated companies (overall score between 45 and 53).

There can be no assurance any initiatives or anticipated developments described herein will ultimately be successful. The information contained on this website is solely for informational purposes and should not be relied upon in connection with making any investment decision. It should not be assumed that any ESG initiatives, standards, or metrics described herein will apply to each asset in which CVC invests or that any ESG initiatives, standards, or metrics described herein have applied to each of CVC’s prior investments. ESG is only one of many considerations that CVC takes into account when making investment decisions, and other considerations can be expected in certain circumstances to outweigh ESG considerations. The information provided herein is intended solely to provide an indication of the ESG initiatives and standards that CVC applies when seeking to evaluate and/or improve the ESG characteristics of its investments as part of the larger goal of maximizing financial returns on investments. Any ESG initiatives described herein will be implemented with respect to a portfolio investment solely to the extent CVC determines such initiative is consistent with its broader investment goals. Accordingly, certain investments may exhibit characteristics that are inconsistent with the initiatives, standards, or metrics described herein.

While CVC may consider ESG factors when making an investment decision, CVC does not pursue an ESG-based investment strategy or limit its investments to those that meet specific ESG criteria or standards.