Vonovia ESG Factbook 2023 - Nachhaltig handeln

Greenhouse Gas Balance

					2023 by Country
Key Figures	Unit	2021	2022	2023	Germany	Austria	Sweden

Greenhouse Gas Balance ¹⁾				ESRS E1–6 & GRI 305–1, 305–2, 305–3, 305–4, 305–5

Emissions Scope 1+2+3

Total portfolio + business operations location-based	t CO₂e	1,395,288	1,839,803	1,742,702	1,593,769	97,680	51,252
of which issues portfolio	t CO₂e	1,300,650	1,678,670	1,637,500	1,518,026	72,026	47,448
of which emissions from business operations	t CO₂e	94,638	161,133	105,202	75,743	25,655	3,805
Total portfolio + business operations market-based	t CO₂e	1,371,551	1,773,162	1,670,346	1,529,323	97,561	43,463
of which issues portfolio	t CO₂e	1,282,895	1,619,226	1,570,723	1,459,039	72,026	39,658
of which emissions from business operations	t CO₂e	88,657	153,936	99,623	70,284	25,535	3,805

Intensities
Emissions portfolio per rental space²⁾	kg CO₂e/m²	36.1	31.5	30.0	31.7	35.6	10.1
Portfolio emissions per € million Rental segment revenue²⁾	t CO₂e/‌ in € million	385	353	327	349	503	91
Total emissions per € million Total segment revenue (location-based)	t CO₂e/‌ in € million	267	331	338	352	351	150
Total issues per € million Total segment revenue (market-based)	t CO₂e/‌ in € million	263	319	324	338	350	127

Emissions Scope 1+2

Total portfolio + business operations	t CO₂e	878,003	909,438	835,122	768,007	38,040	29,075
of which emissions portfolio	t CO₂e	850,106	880,370	808,374	742,003	37,838	28,533
of which emissions from business operations	t CO₂e	27,897	29,068	26,748	26,003	202	542

Scope 1 (Direct Emissions)

Total portfolio + business operations	t CO₂e	468,980	547,110	508,284	488,599	19,199	486

Scope 1 Portfolio

Combustion processes of stationary plants	t CO₂e	448,790	526,253	487,711	468,590	19,121	0
of which heat natural gas (ME)	%	88.6	92.0	93.2	93.9	78.0	–
of which heat fuel oil (ME)	%	9.4	7.0	5.8	5.3	19.7	–
of which heat coal (ME)	%	2.0	1.0	0.9	0.9	0.8	–
of which biomass (ME)	%	0.0	0.0	0.1	0.0	1.5	–

Scope 1 Business Operations

Combustion processes of business operations	t CO₂e	20,190	20,857	20,573	20,010	77	486
of which mobile plants	%	94.5	92.8	94.2	94.2	57.1	100.0
of which stationary plants	%	5.5	7.2	5.8	5.8	42.9	0.0

Scope 2 (Indirect Emissions from Energy Purchases)³⁾

Total portfolio + business operations location-based	t CO₂e	426,778	421,772	393,615	338,395	18,842	36,379
Total portfolio + business operations market-based	t CO₂e	403,041	355,132	321,259	273,948	18,842	28,589

Scope 2 Portfolio

Energy supply location-based⁴⁾	t CO₂e	419,071	413,561	387,440	332,401	18,716	36,322
of which district heating (ME)	%	94.0	86.3	88.0	88.9	79.7	84.1
of which heat electricity (ME)	%	4.0	3.7	3.0	2.4	14.7	2.7
of which electricity (common areas)⁵⁾	%	2.0	10.0	8.9	8.6	5.7	13.2
Energy supply market-based⁴⁾	t CO₂e	401,316	354,117	320,663	273,414	18,716	28,533
of which district heating (ME)	%	93.8	92.9	94.2	96.7	79.7	79.7
of which heat electricity (ME)	%	4.2	4.3	3.7	3.0	14.7	3.4
of which electricity (common areas)⁵⁾	%	2.0	2.8	2.1	0.3	5.7	16.9

Scope 2 Business Operations

Energy supply location-based	t CO₂e	7,707	8,211	6,175	5,993	125	56
of which electricity	%	49.8	70.9	69.5	69.3	61.8	100.0
of which district heating	%	50.2	29.1	30.5	30.7	38.2	0.0
Energy supply market-based ⁶⁾	t CO₂e	1,726	1,015	596	534	5	56
of which electricity	%	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
of which district heating	%	–	–	–	–	–	–

Scope 3 (Other Indirect Emissions)

Total portfolio + business operations	t CO₂e	499,530	870,920	840,804	766,775	59,640	14,388

3.2 Emissions from capital goods⁷⁾	t CO₂e	61,729	125,354	72,361	43,987	25,307	3,067

3.3 Fuel and energy-related emissions (not Scope 1+2)⁸⁾	t CO₂e	109,543	223,795	210,026	192,906	14,500	2,620
Portfolio	t CO₂e	105,240	217,950	204,800	187,838	14,445	2,516
Business operations	t CO₂e	4,304	5,845	5,226	5,068	55	104

3.6 Business trips	t CO₂e	709	866	867	685	91	91

3.13. Downstream leased assets	t CO₂e	327,549	520,906	557,549	529,197	19,742	8,609
Downstream leased assets WEG ⁹⁾	t CO₂e	33,596	26,915	52,275	43,414	8,861	0
Household electricity	t CO₂e	293,953	493,991	505,274	485,784	10,881	8,609

Greenhouse gases included in the calculation: CO₂ equivalents (greenhouse gases regulated in the Kyoto Protocol CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, SF₆, HFC and HFC).
Sources of emission factors: GEMIS 5.0, Defra, Federal Ministry of Environment Germany, Federal Ministry of Environment Austria, Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, and Swedenergy (Swedish non-profit organization).
1)From 2022 incl. Deutsche Wohnen (excl. Care segment and SYNVIA).
2)Excl. emissions from capital goods (Scope 3.2) and household electricity.
3)2021 without separate disclosure of upstream chain in energy supply.
4)Calculation using utility-specific emission factors (market-based) if available in qualified form. Otherwise, use of location-specific emission factors (location-based).
5)For the Germany region, all volumes traded via VESG using 100% green electricity guarantee of origin, cleared via the Federal Environment Agency’s register of guarantees of origin.
6)For locations in the Austria region: 100% green electricity. Calculation using utility-specific emission factors (market-based) if available in qualified form. Otherwise, use of location-specific emission factors (location-based).
7)Of which 100% from emissions caused by new construction/development.
8)Increase in 2022 compared to previous years due to separate reporting of upstream chain for energy supply (Scope 2). Includes fuel- and energy-related emissions of the entire portfolio (incl. WEG share), in each case stationary combustion.
9)Rental units that belong to a residential property owners’ association (WEG) in which Vonovia has an ownership interest of ≤ 50 % in the building (no full operational control). There are no proportional ownership rights in the Sweden region.

Notes on the Greenhouse Gas Emissions

This greenhouse gas balance (GHG balance) was prepared on the basis of the standards of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG Protocol Corporate Standard and Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Standard, the internationally recognized standards for calculating greenhouse gas emissions. The recommendations set out in the guidance issued by the Federal Association of German Housing and Real Estate Enterprise Registered Associations (GdW), “Arbeitshilfe 85 (CO₂ Monitoring)”, and the recommendations published by the Wohnen 2050 housing initiative (IW2050), have also been taken into account. The scope of consolidation relevant to Vonovia’s greenhouse gas balance matches that of the other environmental indicators in this ESG Factbook. GHG emissions were calculated in carbon dioxide equivalents (CO₂e), the standardized unit to measure the relative contributions to the greenhouse effect of the greenhouse gases CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, SF₆, HFCs and PFCs regulated by the Kyoto Protocol.

The calculation of GHG emissions in the portfolio is conducted according to the financial control approach. Emissions produced as a result of portfolio operations over which Vonovia has full control are disclosed under Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions. For the part of the portfolio, in which the company holds a minority interest, the carbon emission figures are reported under Scope 3.

As actual measured values for the relevant reporting year are not available at the required time, we calculate the emissions on the basis of the valid energy certificates of the individual buildings. The energy consumption of those buildings that do not have energy certificates is extrapolated based on the age of the building and corresponding average values based on the rest of the portfolio.

To calculate the emissions from the combustion of fossil fuels and location-based emissions in Scopes 1, 2 and 3.3, the CO₂e factors from version 5.1 of the GEMIS (Global Emission Model for Integrated Systems) database were used. GEMIS is an internationally recognized model for determining energy and material flows with an integrated database. The model calculates life cycles for all processes and scenarios, i.e., it takes into consideration all material steps from primary energy and raw material extraction to effective energy and material provision, and also includes the auxiliary energy and cost of materials to produce energy plants and transport systems.

In order to calculate market-based emissions, the specific emission factors of the energy suppliers were used where this data was available. With regard to the purchase of district heating from combined heat and power (CHP) plants, we use emission factors based on the Carnot allocation method, as this allows for more realistic allocation of emissions to heat or electricity in physical terms. If no specific emission factors were available, the corresponding location-based factor was used. If other emission factors are applied in individual cases, this is indicated accordingly.

Explanatory information on the scopes included in the GHG balance:

Scope 1 – Direct emissions: GHG emissions from stationary combustion for heating and warm water, as well as mobile combustion (vehicles owned by the company).

Scope 2 – Indirect emissions from energy purchases: GHG emissions from the generation of (general) electricity, local and district heating for heating and warm water. When calculating the GHG emissions, we have changed the emission factor for district heating from combined heat and power (CHP) plants from the energy-based allocation method to the Carnot allocation method with effect from the Sustainability Report 2022. Accordingly, the values for 2021 are not directly comparable with those of the subsequent years.

Scope 3 – Indirect emissions in the upstream and downstream value chain (where these are identified as material and can be calculated):

Scope 3.2 Capital goods: GHG emissions from the production of building and other materials used for the new buildings completed in the fiscal year in question. The GHG emissions are calculated using emission factors based on the building construction method as prepared by external experts as part of a comprehensive life cycle assessment for a model home. In previous years, these emissions were reported as Scope 3.1 emissions. Starting in the 2023 fiscal year, we adjusted this in accordance with the GHG Protocol and switched to reporting them as Scope 3.2 emissions.
Scope 3.3 Fuel and energy-related emissions (not Scope 1+2): GHG emissions from the upstream chain of energy sources not reported as Scope 1 or Scope 2 emissions (e.g., for the extraction and transportation of fuels or the production and transportation of electricity and district heating) – both for the wholly owned real estate portfolio and for apartments managed on behalf of third parties (their Scope 1 and 2 emissions are reported as Scope 3.13 emissions).
Scope 3.6 Business travel: GHG emissions from business trips billed to the company. To calculate Scope 3 emissions from business rail travel, we used emission factors taken from Deutsche Bahn and Österreichische Bundesbahnen. Business travel and transport were also reported for Sweden for the first time in 2021. The emission factors from external travel agencies were applied for flights.
Scope 3.13 Downstream leased assets: GHG emissions generated from household electricity used by tenants in their homes for electrical appliances (excluding general electricity or electricity required for heat and warm water). The corresponding electricity consumption is estimated based on a method developed at sector level, since real data is not available to the landlord. The national emission factor for electricity is used to calculate emissions (location-based). In addition, GHG emissions result from the supply of heating and warm water to rental units that belong to a residential property owners’ association (WEG).

Vonovia will expand its GHG balance on an ongoing basis to include further material Scope 3 categories and include them in its reporting in the future.