SSE has an essential purpose at its core – providing people and businesses with the energy they need to thrive and prosper. We have a responsibility to ensure this need is met in a reliable and sustainable way, both now and for the long term. While I am clear that is our mission and purpose, I also want to be sure that we are achieving it.
That is why I am determined that SSE becomes increasingly transparent about its impacts so I know that progress is being made and – more importantly – our stakeholders do too.
Earlier this year SSE asked PwC to undertake a study into the economic impacts our business activities create. I was pleasantly surprised. We found that in 2012/13, the impact of our business on the UK economy was similar to the trade and investment attracted to the UK from hosting the 2012 Olympics.
We also learnt that for every one person we employ directly, our business supports almost five more jobs elsewhere in the UK economy.
For a company that is determined to be transparent about its impacts it is important for us to better understand the economic impact of our activities over a longer period of time.
That’s why we asked PwC to undertake the study again. This analysis has shown that SSE has contributed nearly £9bn to the UK economy in 2013/14 meaning that over the past three years there has been a total contribution to UK GDP of £27bn.
At the same time SSE has been developing its own capacity to measure and report its sustainability impacts, and published within this report is a summary of some of the main economic, environmental and social impacts of one of our most recent capital projects: the Keadby wind farm.
As a responsible company, SSE seeks to maximise the economic benefits from its activities, not just in the countries it operates in, but in local communities too. This analysis from PwC helps us to identify areas where we can enhance our impact.
I have always understood that SSE’s impacts are not simply about the creation of jobs and wealth.
There are many areas where SSE’s business activities generate an impact on both society and the environment. By understanding what our impacts are we can better define how our business can increasingly be a force for good.
Ultimately that’s SSE’s aim: to be responsible in all that we do, so we can make a positive impact on people’s lives whilst doing so.
This new report is simply the next step in our journey to deliver exactly that and can be viewed in full in the 'being responsible' section of this site.