Case study: How Furnas creates economic value for its stakeholders
Furnas Centrais Elétricas S.A. (“Furnas”) is a privately held, mixed-ownership company generating, transmitting and selling electricity to electric utilities, trading companies and free consumers across Brazil. Furnas pursues excellence, efficient resource allocation, discipline in execution, a high-performance culture and value creation for all its stakeholders. Tweet This!
This case study is based on the 2021 Annual Report by Furnas, prepared in accordance with the GRI Standards, that can be found at this link. Through all case studies we aim to demonstrate what CSR/ ESG/ sustainability reporting done responsibly means. Essentially, it means: a) identifying a company’s most important impacts on the environment, economy and society, and b) measuring, managing and changing.
Furnas transforms inputs, through its business activities, into outputs and outcomes, creating value for the business, society and all its stakeholders. In order to create economic value for its stakeholders Furnas took action to:
- create economic value for employees
- create economic value for shareholders
- create economic value for the government
Subscribe for free and read the rest of this case study
Please subscribe to the SustainCase Newsletter to keep up to date with the latest sustainability news and gain access to over 2000 case studies. These case studies demonstrate how companies are dealing responsibly with their most important impacts, building trust with their stakeholders (Identify > Measure > Manage > Change).
With this case study you will see:
- Which are the most important impacts (material issues) Furnas has identified;
- How Furnas proceeded with stakeholder engagement, and
- What actions were taken by Furnas to create economic value for its stakeholders
Already Subscribed? Type your email below and click submit
What are the material issues the company has identified?
In its 2021 Annual Report Furnas identified a range of material issues, such as governance, integrity and ethics, climate change, human rights, people management and development. Among these, creating economic value for its stakeholders stands out as a key material issue for Furnas.
Stakeholder engagement in accordance with the GRI Standards
The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) defines the Principle of Stakeholder Inclusiveness when identifying material issues (or a company’s most important impacts) as follows:
Stakeholders must be consulted in the process s of identifying a company’s most important impacts and their reasonable expectations and interests must be taken into account. This is an important cornerstone for CSR / sustainability reporting done responsibly.
Key stakeholder groups Furnas engages with:
| Stakeholder Group |
| Employees and their families |
| Governments, congress and regulators |
| Partners, sponsors and suppliers |
| Investors, shareholders and market analysts |
| Communities |
| Customers |
| Society |
| Media and opinion makers |
How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues
To identify and prioritise material topics Furnas engaged with its stakeholders through a survey of 1,074 internal and external stakeholders.
What actions were taken by Furnas to create economic value for its stakeholders?
In its 2021 Annual Report Furnas reports that it took the following actions for creating economic value for its stakeholders:
- Creating economic value for employees
- In 2021, Furnas paid R$ 1,218,062 in employee compensation.
- Creating economic value for shareholders
- In 2021, Furnas paid R$ 969,397 in dividends.
- Creating economic value for the government
- In 2021, Furnas paid R$ 3,181,917 in taxes and contributions.
Which GRI Standards and corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been addressed?
The GRI Standard addressed in this case is: Disclosure 201-1 Direct economic value generated and distributed
Disclosure 201-1 Direct economic value generated and distributed corresponds to:
- Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
- Targets: 8.1, 8.2
- Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
- Targets: 9.1, 9.4, 9.5
78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards
SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.
Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.
7 GRI sustainability disclosures get you started
Any size business can start taking sustainability action
GRI, ISEP, CPD Certified Sustainability courses (2-5 days): Live Online or Classroom (venue: London School of Economics)
- Exclusive FBRH template to begin reporting from day one
- Identify your most important impacts on the Environment, Economy and People
- Formulate in group exercises your plan for action. Begin taking solid, focused, all-round sustainability action ASAP.
- Benchmarking methodology to set you on a path of continuous improvement
See upcoming training dates.
References:
This case study is based on published information by Furnas, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original please revert to the following link:
https://www.furnas.com.br/Upload/69-sub-270134180-FURNAS%202021%20-%20Annual%20Report_Final.pdf
Note to Furnas: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.