Case study: How Hydro One creates economic value for its stakeholders
Hydro One Limited is Ontario’s largest electricity transmission and distribution provider, committed to the communities where it lives and works through community investment, sustainability and diversity initiatives. Generating direct economic value for suppliers, employees, governments and all its stakeholders, is a key priority for Hydro One. Tweet This!
This case study is based on the 2022 Sustainability Report by Hydro One, 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.
Abstract
In 2022, the economic value distributed by Hydro One reached $ 8,727 million. In order to create economic value for its stakeholders Hydro One took action to:
- create economic value for employees
- create economic value for suppliers
- create economic value for providers of capital
- create economic value for governments
- create economic value for indigenous businesses
- create economic value for communities
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With this case study you will see:
- Which are the most important impacts (material issues) Hydro One has identified;
- How Hydro One proceeded with stakeholder engagement, and
- What actions were taken by Hydro One to create economic value for its stakeholders
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What are the material issues the company has identified?
In its 2022 Sustainability Report Hydro One identified a range of material issues, such as climate change, indigenous community engagement, energy transition, diversity, equity and inclusion. Among these, creating economic value for its stakeholders stands out as a key material issue for Hydro One.
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 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 Hydro One engages with:
To identify and prioritise material topics Hydro One engaged with its stakeholders through the following channels:
| Stakeholder Group | Method of engagement |
| Employees
| · Quarterly employee calls · Regular hybrid town halls · Annual employee experience survey · Annual DEI symposium · Focus groups · Employee resource groups |
| Customers
| · Information campaigns · Media campaigns · Regular satisfaction surveys and focus groups · Ongoing exchanges with account executives and customer service representatives · Customer education · Contact Centre interactions |
| Communities
| · Dedicated Community Relations team · Flexible engagement opportunities (virtually and in person) |
| Investors
| · Press releases, quarterly reports, quarterly investor and financial media calls, Annual Report · Virtual annual general shareholders’ meeting · Virtual investor events · Directors, including the Board Chair, as appropriate engage virtually with shareholders |
| Regulators & Governments
| · Interaction with all levels of government, IESO and Hydro One’s main regulator, the OEB · Advocacy on behalf of customers · Advocacy on policy related to Hydro One’s corporate priorities |
| Unions
| · Joint committees for key initiatives · Collective bargaining · Regular calls with the three largest unions |
| NGOs & Industry Associations
| · Participation in industry association conferences and events, councils, committees and working groups · Partnerships with industry associations |
What actions were taken by Hydro One to create economic value for its stakeholders?
In its 2022 Sustainability Report Hydro One reports that it took the following actions for creating economic value for its stakeholders:
- Creating economic value for employees
- In 2022, Hydro One paid $ 1,631 million to employees.
- Creating economic value for suppliers
- In 2022, Hydro One paid $ 5,309 million to suppliers.
- Creating economic value for providers of capital
- In 2022, Hydro One paid $ 1,199 million to providers of capital.
- Creating economic value for governments
- In 2022, Hydro One paid $ 488 million to governments.
- Creating economic value for indigenous businesses
- In 2022, Hydro One paid $ 96 million to indigenous businesses.
- Creating economic value for communities
- In 2022, Hydro One spent $ 4 million in community investments.
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
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References:
This case study is based on published information by Hydro One, 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.hydroone.com/Sustainability/Documents/CSR_2022/HydroOne_CSR_2022.pdf
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