Appendices

Climate goals and progress

2023 TARGET	2023 RESULT	ON TRACK?
Reduce Gasunie’s (gross total) direct emissions in scopes 1 and 2 to 605 kilotonnes or lower.	767 kilotonnes	no
Facilitate carbon reduction at users of our infrastructure by 0.7 megatonnes or more.	0.1 megatonnes	no

2030 TARGET	2023 RESULT	ON TRACK?
Our scope 1 methane emissions (CH4) must be below 70 kilotonnes of CO2e by 2030, which boils down to a 49% reduction compared to the base year of 2020. This target is absolute and, consequently, not subject to how our transmission volumes develop.	122.1 kilotonnes of CO2e	yes
We want to reduce our scope 1 and 2 CO2e emissions by 34% by 2030, compared to the base year of 2020, assuming unchanged gas transmission volumes at both Gasunie in the Netherlands and Germany. For scope 2, we use net emissions, i.e. after offsetting decarbonisation through Guarantees of Origin.	490.2 kilotonnes of CO2e	no
Our scope 3 emissions in kilogrammes of CO2 per euro of product purchased must be 52% down on the 2023 base year by 2030 (2023: 0.42 kilogrammes of CO2e per euro of product purchased).	0.42 kilogrammes of CO2e per euro of product purchased	NYA

2035 TARGET	2023 RESULT	ON TRACK?
Our scope 3 emissions in kilogrammes of CO2 per euro of product purchased must be 66% down on the 2023 base year by 2035 (2023: 0.42 kilogrammes of CO2e per euro of product purchased).	0.42 kilogrammes of CO2e per euro of product purchased	NYA

2045 TARGET	2023 RESULT	ON TRACK?
Gasunie wants to be net-zero across all scopes by 2045. This means that, on balance, i.e. after any decarbonisation, we no longer contribute to global warming. By that year, our absolute emissions (kilotonnes of CO2e) must be 90% lower than in 2020.	1161 kilotonnes	NYA

These goals may be adjusted upward or downward with time

Definitions and scope of application

Gasunie’s greenhouse gas emissions are referred to as ‘CO₂e emissions’ and categorised as per the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. The protocol distinguishes the following three scope classes: (1) scope 1, CO₂e emissions as a direct result of our own business activities (‘out of our own chimney’), (2) scope 2, CO₂e emissions as an indirect result of procured energy (electricity and heat) and (3) all other indirect CO₂e emissions (across the value chain). Gasunie’s specific policy on CO₂e-related emission reduction covers all three scopes.

Structure of the materiality assessment

The materiality assessment was carried out at an early stage of the reporting process in 2023. This assessment comprised three steps. We worked together with an external consultancy firm to carry out our materiality assessment. For more information, see the notes to the materiality assessment in our 2023 annual report.

Emissions and the Executive Board remuneration policy

Gasunie has integrated climate considerations in the variable part of Executive Board members’ remuneration. Executive Board remuneration is for 80 percentage points (%pt) fixed pay plus a bonus, which can, if awarded by the Supervisory Board, add up to a maximum of 20%pt of an Executive Board member’s total pay. Bonuses are awarded based on the following five performance indicators:

Operational excellence (weighting: 4%pt): performance in the area of safety, financial performance, performance in reducing emissions, developing CSR policy, improving ESG scores, switching to emission targets, IT security
Business growth for long-term value creation (weighting: 4%pt): progress made in developing our business development portfolio
Organisational development for long-term value creation (weighting: 4%pt): implementing the strategic HR plan, guaranteeing execution capacity, implementing the diversity agenda, anchoring collaboration between the Dutch and the German organisation
Positioning of gas (natural and other) and Gasunie for long-term value creation (weighting: 4%pt): advising on policy, legislation, and regulation for natural gas and on the energy transition agenda (hydrogen/CCS/green gas/heat) in the Netherlands, Germany, and at EU level.
A fifth target that changes year by year. In 2023, this fifth target related to improving our risk analyses and collaborative practices with third parties. For 2022, it was to revise the governance process and project guidelines.

Two of the total of twelve sub-targets of the ‘Operational excellence’ remuneration component relate to the climate. For the 2023 reporting year, Executive Board members were set the following climate-related performance excellence targets:

Reduce Gasunie’s (gross total) direct emissions in scopes 1 and 2 to 605 kilotonnes or lower.
Actual emissions in 2023: 767 kilotonnes > target not met, see explanation.
Facilitate carbon reduction at users of our infrastructure by 0.1 megatonnes or more.
Reduction realised in 2023: 0.1 megatonnes >target met, see explanation.

In the 2023 annual report, the ‘Operational excellence’ target was not yet subdivided into sub-targets. Our aim for the 2024 annual report is to include these targets in the remuneration section of the ‘Governance’ section.

Explanation of our risks and opportunities

Every year, Gasunie conducts a Corporate Risk Analysis (CRA) to analyse the opportunities and risks associated with Gasunie’s strategy. In 2023, the II3050 scenarios were used as the starting point for the CRA, whereby the focus was not solely on the main risks but also on the societal impact of our activities. The extensive outlooks from II3050 are extremes as to what the future could look like.

What does that mean for Gasunie? Together with a broad cross section of Gasunie experts, we have selected four key risks that affect Gasunie’s general and social performance and assessed how these can impact on our future position. This leads to four different risk scenarios that jointly make up our CRA.

The risk scenarios foster the awareness that the future is uncertain, and these uncertainties are presented through their actual impact on the organisation, which we believe creates a solid basis for discussion because it makes the risks easier to recognise. The developments underlying the scenarios are analysed in conjunction with the strategy on a periodic basis.

In Gasunie’s management control cycle, the CRA trickles down to the various business units, which each perform a Business Risk Analysis (BRA). In the business plan, we include our risk appetite as a guiding principle because it sets the scope for the realisation of the strategy and goals.

We update our risk appetite as our strategy execution progresses. Aligning these two elements is essential for successful strategic planning and execution. Risk appetite remained unchanged in 2024 compared to 2023 and will be updated as soon as Gasunie’s new strategy is ready. We will use the Strategy Proceedings to align our risk appetite with the new strategy.

Notes to the National Transition Pathway

The Netherlands wants to have net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. A major contribution to this will come from the users of Gasunie’s networks. They will achieve this by reducing their consumption of natural gas while increasing their use of green gas, as well as by making use of the new energy networks Gasunie will be installing this decade for the transmission of green hydrogen, heat and captured CO2. In 2023 (as in 2022 and 2021), we calculated the extent of Gasunie’s influence over the coming years on the Dutch ‘transition pathway’, i.e. on the way to full decarbonisation.

In the previous section, we showed the impact of the investments we intend to make through to 2030 on greenhouse gas emissions in the Netherlands. We show what our influence on the transition pathway is and the average emissions reduction rate that the Netherlands must maintain to become net-zero by 2050. Our calculations show that, if we are able to complete all investments planned up to and including 2030 on time and unchanged, the Netherlands can become net-zero sooner than 2050.

The more Gasunie’s sustainability projects are completed on time, the greater the volume of green molecules and captured CO₂ we can start transporting for our customers. This increased sustainability will likely be accompanied by a decrease in the amount of fossil energy we transport. The graphs in the section referred to above show the net emissions (the carbon footprint) of all the energy we transport to and from parties in the Netherlands on behalf of third parties. Reducing these emissions is made possible in part by importers, connected parties and project partners of Gasunie.

We only take into account the gases transmitted through the Gasunie network; we have not taken into account the contribution made by green gas in the networks of the regional network operators, for example. Nor do we include any negative emissions from green gas production. For hydrogen we have only included green hydrogen and imports; to avoid any double counting with CCS projects we have disregarded blue hydrogen.

To determine the contribution that will be made through our investments in green gas and hydrogen, we assume that these will replace natural gas. This assumption results in a somewhat conservative estimate given that, if green gas and hydrogen were to replace oil and/or coal, for example, the emission reduction contribution would be greater still. For CCS projects, the expected transport volumes of captured CO₂ from the Netherlands have been used; we have not included any storage of CO₂ from neighbouring countries in our calculations. Upstream emissions in the value chain are not included.

The emission reduction is determined relative to the situation in base year 2021. We use the Climate and Energy Outlook (C&EO) report published by the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL) as a reference for all external developments (outside Gasunie’s sustainability projects). For the years up to and including 2029, we base our information on the 2022 edition of the C&EO report and for 2030 we use the 2023 edition of the C&EO report. We use a natural gas emission factor of 56.4 GJ/m3.

The emissions shown are net emissions. With net-zero emissions there may still be natural gas consumption, because CO₂ emissions from fossil fuels are being captured (through CCS), for example. The cut in emissions due to lower gas demand comes from the 2022 edition of the C&EO report, which takes into account the decreasing use of natural gas and the increasing use of green gas.

Because Gasunie is also active in Germany, in the table we have also included the emission reduction effect of our proposed investments for the German hydrogen network (Hyperlink). We do not include this effect when calculating our impact on the national transition pathway for the Netherlands, however. We have not calculated or visualised Gasunie’s impact on Germany’s national transition pathway, because the impact we can make in Germany is much smaller than in the Netherlands, where we are the sole natural gas TSO.

Gasunie’s scope 3 footprint by category

Scope 3 category	English category name	Dutch category name	Description	Emissions produced in 2023 rounded to the nearest kilotonne of CO2e
1	Purchased goods and services	Ingekochte goederen en diensten	For Gasunie, this category is the second most dominant one of the scope 3 categories. Until now, we had only recorded emissions associated with the purchase of nitrogen in this category. Where possible, we make arrangements with suppliers for them to decarbonise their energy usage, including through the purchase of GOs, which pushes down emissions for the value chain as a whole. Other goods and services (pipeline materials, engineering and maintenance services, odorant, inspections using helicopters) are also significant contributors to emissions across the value chain. For the most dominant of these goods and services, i.e. pipelines, valves, IT, engineering services, and contracting, we are in talks or will commence talks with suppliers on emission reduction.	141
2	Capital goods	Kapitaalgoederen	This category includes all upstream (cradle-to-gate) emissions from the extraction, production, and transport of capital goods (pipelines, equipment, IT hardware, buildings, facilities, and vehicles) procured by Gasunie. Emissions for capital goods relate to all capital expenditures and can, therefore, not be related to operating expenses that occur on an annual basis. Emissions associated with capital goods are attributed to the year when the expenditures occurred to guarantee consistency with financial reporting.	191
3	Upstream energy	Upstream energy	This category includes emissions related to the extraction, production, and transport of fuels and electricity purchased and consumed by Gasunie in the reporting year and that are not included in scope 1 or scope 2. All upstream emissions and transport and distribution losses of purchased fuel and electricity (wheel-to-tank) are reported in this category. This category also covers emissions caused by losses during the transmission and distribution of electricity and upstream emissions from methane leaks (as part of scope 1).	50
4	Upstream transportation & distribution	Transport & distributie (upstream)	This category encompasses upstream (cradle-to-cradle) emissions from the transport and distribution of products/materials (not being fuels or energy products) purchased or acquired by Gasunie in the reporting year using vehicles and facilities not owned or operated by Gasunie, as well as other transport and distribution services procured by Gasunie during the reporting year (including both incoming and outgoing logistics). Gasunie’s operations may trigger additional efforts by upstream partners, such as by allowing higher pressure at feed-in points. The footprint in this category is marginal and, therefore, need not be reported. This view was confirmed by DNV in their memorandum entitled ‘Bijdrage Tetrahydrothiofeen (THT) gebruik op broeikasgasemissies’ (Contribution of Tetrahydrothiophene use to greenhouse gas emissions). (https://dis/Resultaat/Resultaat/OpenDocumentPopup?strdocumentId=24825768)	0
5	Waste	Afval	This category includes scope 1 and 2 emissions produced by waste management providers, generated during disposal and treatment, which is allocated to the waste collected from Gasunie’s offices and operational sites. Gasunie has signed contracts with companies such as Milgro and Reym for the processing of several forms of waste, under which the waste processing providers have committed to making transparent reporting on their processing part of the service they provide.	5
6	Business travel	Dienst-, vlieg- en treinreizen	This category includes emissions from the transportation of Gasunie employees for business-related activities in vehicles owned or operated by third parties, such as aircraft, trains, buses, and passenger cars. Emissions from business travellers staying in hotels also come under this category.	1
7	Commuting	Woon/werkverkeer	This category includes emissions from the transportation of employees between their homes and their work sites in vehicles not owned or controlled by Gasunie. This includes private cars and public transport. This category covers scope 1 and scope 2 emissions caused by employees and transport providers during the commute to and from work, such as due to fuel and electricity consumption.	1
8	Upstream leased assets	Emissies van ingeleaste activa	Category 8 includes emissions from the operation of assets leased by Gasunie in the reporting year and not already included in Gasunie’s scope 1 or scope 2 inventories. We currently do not have any agreements that fall into this category. Leased assets for the LNG facility operated by EemsEnergyTerminal are reported in scope 1 and 2 because we have operational control over this entity.	0
9	Downstream transportation and distribution	Transport & distributie (downstream)	This category includes emissions from transportation and distribution of sold products in vehicles and facilities not owned or controlled by the reporting company. The transported gas itself is not a Gasunie product and upstream or downstream emissions caused by the treatment or consumption of the transported gas are, according to the definitions of the GHG protocol, not part of Gasunie’s scope 3 emissions. Gasunie does not have any other activities that involve emissions in this context.	0
10	Processing of sold products	Verwerking van verkochte producten	Category 10 includes emissions from processing of sold intermediate products by third parties (e.g. manufacturers) subsequent to sale by the reporting company. Gasunie provides services and does not sell a physical product, see also the explanation for category 9. There are no emissions within the context of this category.	0
11	Use of sold products	Gebruik van verkochte goederen en diensten	This category includes emissions from the use of goods and services sold by the reporting company in the reporting year. Gasunie provides a service that consists in transporting and conditioning gas. The gas itself is not Gasunie’s product and emissions generated by the use of that gas are, as per the requirements of the GHG protocol, not reported as Gasunie’s value chain emissions in this category.	0
12	End-of-life treatment of sold products	Verwerking van verkochte producten aan het einde van hun levensduur	Category 12 includes emissions from the waste disposal and treatment of products sold by the reporting company (in the reporting year) at the end of their life. Although Gasunie provides transmission services and does not produce physical products, Gasunie’s service scope does include adding ‘physical substances’ to the gas that is transported. The substances in question are nitrogen and odorant. The end-of-life treatment of nitrogen does not generate CO2e emissions, but that of odorant does, albeit to a minor degree. Based on advice from DNV, Gasunie has been reporting 1,995 kg of CO2, which is produced by the combustion of odorant, per kilogramme of odorant from 2022. DNV has recorded its advice in the ‘Bijdrage Tetrahydrothiofeen (THT) (odorant) gebruik op broeikasgasemissies’ (Contribution of Tetrahydrothiophene (THT) (odorant) use to greenhouse gas emissions).	1
13	Downstream leased assets	Emissies van uitgeleaste activa	This category includes emissions from the operation of assets that are owned by the reporting company (acting as lessor) and leased to other entities in the reporting year that are not already included in scope 1 or scope 2. Gasunie does not have any agreements that would fall into this category.	0
14	Franchises	Franchises	This category is applicable to franchisors (i.e. companies that grant licenses to other entities to sell or distribute its goods or services in return for payments). Gasunie does not have any agreements that would fall into this category.	0
15	Investments	Investments	This category includes the emissions caused by companies/operations where Gasunie has a financial stake but no direct control. This category covers scope 1 and 2 emissions arising from all of Gasunie’s equity investments based on Gasunie’s stake in the equity of the entity or based on the length of the pipeline (if the entity’s primary activity is gas transmission through a pipeline). If the associate entity does not report on its scope 1 and 2 emissions, Gasunie will make a ‘best-effort’ estimation. For non-gas-transmission assets, emissions are calculated and reported based on estimated values of office emissions per employee per day (kg CO2/m2), even if the required data from the participating interest is not available. DNV provided the calculation methods based on Ecofys’ energy label report. Since the associated emissions are very minor and, consequently, not material in this context, they are not reported.	3
total				393