Welcome to our second sustainability report. This Towngas report provides a detailed account of our aspirations, accomplishments and contributions in our efforts towards sustainable development. In so doing, we endeavour to maintain a positive balance between the various aspects of sustainability, while also increasing transparency, in both our business operations and reporting mechanisms.

We make every effort to enhance our operational efficiencies – in addition to increasing the standard of services provided we are committed to maintaining the steady and stable performance of our businesses in Hong Kong and the mainland. In line with our vision to become a leading energy company in Asia, we fully recognise that sustainable development is an important aspect of our reputation and brand.

Given the diversity of our business and the environments in which we operate, the practical application of sustainable initiatives varies considerably from business to business. Our subsidiaries and joint ventures are thus encouraged to focus on the areas of sustainability relevant to their business and to develop formal mechanisms to address these issues.

In recent years, climate change and clean air have become important topics of concern leading to a great deal of public debate. As an active and environmentally responsible player in the energy sector, it has long been our vision to provide clean energy to our customers with the ongoing reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and other air pollutants while providing convenience and efficiency in our modern everyday lives. To this end, we introduced the use of natural gas as additional feedstock in our production processes in 2006, and we also pioneered the recovery of energy from landfill gas in Hong Kong. As a result, Hong Kong now has one of the largest landfill gas utilisation projects in the world. Other clean energy and clean air initiatives include the exploration of natural gas, coalbed methane liquefaction projects as well as the launching of high energy-efficient appliances. These efforts not only reduce the environmental impact, they also benefit our customers.

In addition to our own efforts, we wholeheartedly support government initiatives. We are a signatory to the government’s “Clean Air Charter” for example, openly stating our commitment to strengthen our on-going energy conservation programmes, while also closely monitoring performance and reporting on our achievements in combating climate change.

Over the years, we have continued to enhance every aspect of our safety practices. We constantly strive to improve the safety of our production activities as well as our appliances, often going beyond simple compliance with strict local regulations and leading global standards. Safeguarding our customers and the general community, we conduct rigorous and regular inspections of our gas appliances and infrastructure. We are delighted to be able to report that in the past 26 years, we have managed to achieve a record low accident rate in Hong Kong, and have also established an excellent track record for safety among our joint ventures on the mainland.

We are deeply committed to Hong Kong, where Towngas was born and has flourished. We appreciate the importance of partnerships with our different stakeholders to ensure the health and well-being of the community. In response to government initiatives for example, we work with a number of charity groups, sponsoring and supporting social enterprises, sharing of our expertise to realise their goals and social mission. Assisting the needy, we participate in a variety of charity events. During the reporting year, our volunteer activities benefited over thirty thousand people in terms of both physical and financial support.

In 2007, we were honoured with a number of awards presented by various professional organisations. These include the Environmental Performance Grand Award, Hong Kong Awards for Industries; the Safety Enhancement Programme Award – Gold Award, Hong Kong Occupational Safety and Health Award; Hong Kong’s Top Brand for our Bauhinia brand; as well as First Runner-up in the Highest Service Hour Award, Hong Kong Volunteer Awards. These public recognitions highlight our many contributions to sustainable development in the territory, made possible with the support of our committed and enthusiastic staff as well as our loyal and satisfied customers.

This year, we made substantial progress in achieving our objectives and targets. Aware that maintaining sustainable development will become even more challenging in the years ahead, we will continue nevertheless, to make every effort to find long-term solutions in an environmentally friendly and socially responsible manner. These far-sighted policies will safeguard the healthy development of our businesses as well as the communities in which we operate. Towngas is committed to being an honest, accountable, open and transparent company. To this end, we continue to build trust with the community – this report is part of this process.

Alfred W K Chan
Managing Director