Report 2021

Autonom Sustainability Report 2023

Change, the only constant towards green futures, the full message from the Director of Sustainability can be read here.

Message from the company

Autonom Group is a Romanian family-owned company, founded in Piatra Neamț, in 2006. The beginning was modest, but we have grown sustainably, optimistically, step by step. We made responsible decisions for the future and in time, we became the acquirer and manager of the largest fleet in Romania. We have created a unique mobility infrastructure, where we take risks and offer our customers friendly, flexible services with an „extra mile” attitude to contribute to a state of peace of mind and comfort. As our name says, we believe in autonomy.

We have freedom with responsibility, we are committed body and soul to deliver a WOW experience. We believe in development, daily evolution and genuine intrapreneurship, and kindness and smiles are our secrets. At the same time, we are there for those who need us through the Autonom Foundation. We want to make an impact through education, in the growth of the community and the next generations. Autonom is the right setting to accelerate towards a better future!

Love,
Autonom Team

Key areas where the company has a major impact are associated with 8 of the 17 sustainable development objectives:

Chapter 1. Our company
Autonom - the right framework to accelerate towards a better future!

Chapter 2. Sustainability Strategy

In 2021 we published our Sustainability Strategy, aligned with the principles of international best practice in the field and the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda. The reference year chosen as a starting point was 2020, with a longterm horizon of 2030 and an intermediate threshold of 2025. Autonom’s Sustainability Strategy is available in full on our website in the Sustainability section.

Our main target is to reduce the average carbon emissions of the operational fleet by 25% by 2025 and 51% by 2030 especially backed by increasing the share of green cars in the operational fleet.

25%

Reducing the average carbon emissions of the 2025 operational fleet

51%

Reducing the average carbon emissions of the 2030 operational fleet

We allocate a minimum of 2% of net profit each year to support educational projects. We support the development of our colleagues with a minimum of 50 hours of annual training per employee.
We engage all our stakeholders in joint projects, maintain a high level of customer satisfaction (measured by NPS) and increase the number of digitized processes.

2%

of net profit for educational projects

50

training hours per employee

Chapter 3. Environment

Our main focus is to reduce the average carbon emissions of the operational fleet by 25% by 2025 and 51% by 2030, in particular by increasing the share of green cars in the operational fleet.

By the end of 2023, we have reduced emissions by 7.49% compared to the baseline year 2020, reaching a WLTP average of 142.06 gC02/km, slightly behind the roadmap estimated in the strategy. We remain confident that we will catch up in the period ahead.

25%

Reducing the average carbon emissions of the 2025 operational fleet

51%

reducing the average carbon emissions of the 2030 operational fleet

7.49%

reduced emissions compared to 2020

123MW

We have expanded the energy production capacity for the Piatra Neamț headquater, increasing from 50 MWh

Continuing the transition to a low-emission fleet. The first order of 200 Tesla Model 3 and Model Y electric cars, launched in early 2023, was successfully integrated into the fleet and even helped launch the Blue ridesharing service. We continued to develop the infrastructure of electric charging stations in our branches, including a fast-charging station (2x30KWh) at our Calea Floreasca office in Bucharest. Under the contract signed with OMV Petrom, we have so far offset 12,999 tons of CO2 from the fuel supplied by this supplier.

We are focused on responsible consumption and aim to achieve ZERO WASTE consumed in operational activities by 2030. We have national contracts to recycle paper, plastic and metal, glass, tires and WEEE (waste electrical and electronic waste).

Our projects and programs to reduce negative environmental impacts, both by reducing direct and indirect emissions and by encouraging responsible consumption of resources and the transition to a circular economy model, considered by the Sustainability Strategy to be part of the environmental pillar, contribute to the following sustainable development objectives:

Chapter 4. People and community

”Evolve Daily” is our motto. The two core elements that help us keep our vision of continuous evolution, agility and increased resilience are reading and volunteering. Success is defined by the evolution of our colleagues, so investing in people remains the most rewarding and most important factor in the sustainability of our business.

The staff retention rate has increased over the last 3 years from 59.19% in 2021 to 71.56% in 2023.

59.19%

staff retention rate in 2021

71.56%

staff retention rate in 2023

In 2023, our colleagues read 5,908 books, participated in 33,717 training hours and uploaded 1,394 innovation proposals to the internal platform. Over 400 colleagues chose to volunteer and dedicate 3,192 hours to educational projects in their communities.

We supported 30 organizations and projects (culture, environment, sport, education) for a total amount of RON 1,581,303. Our projects and programs in education and community engagement, considered by the Sustainability Strategy to be part of the social pillar, contribute to the following sustainable development goals:

Chapter 5. Sustainable business and governance

Good governance practices and transparency in reporting can set an example for the industry in which we operate. We encourage long term investment, financial stability and integrity in the business environment, and this leads to higher living standards in the communities in which we operate, starting with improving the quality of life for our employees

90%

information is accessible in the internal system

Transparency is a core value in Autonom, as 90% of the information is accessible in the internal system and every management decision is derived from the company’s values.

The agility with which we approach challenges, adaptability and flexibility are key points that characterize us having a culture based on the evolution of our colleagues and “peace of mind for our customers”.

The complementarity of business lines in terms of the flexibility to move assets between the two main categories of services represents a major competitive advantage from a risk management perspective. We focus on a high granularity of the portfolio (average fleet/customer ~ 5 vehicles) while keeping a top 10 customer share of less than 30% of total operational leasing and rent-a-car turnover.

5

average fleet vehicles/customer

30%

a share of top 10 customers less than 30% of total operating lease turnover

Achieving our strategic goals and objectives leads to business growth and development, contributes to the local economy and supports green economic development by providing sustainable mobility solutions to local communities and business segments. We attract sustainable funds that we direct into investments as a constant concern for business development. We attract sustainable funds that we direct towards investments as a constant focus on business development.

The year 2023 was the 17th consecutive year of double digit growth, with revenue increases in all major lines of business, but marked by rampant inflation and significant increases in interest related financing costs.

Chapter 6. Reporting under the EU Taxonomy Regulation

The EU Taxonomy, established by Regulation (EU) 2020/852, is a classification system for economic activities that make a significant contribution to environmental objectives and supports the implementation of the European Green Deal. The main aim of the EU Taxonomy is to redirect capital flows towards sustainable investments, thereby creating transparency in the market and encouraging companies, investors and policy makers to invest in areas that are essential for sustainable development.

For Autonom, from the perspective of our voluntary objectives to contribute to the transition to a sustainable economy, the EU Taxonomy provides a means to assess which of our current and future relevant activities can be classified as environmentally sustainable.

Declaration of conformity
According to the Taxonomy Regulation, an activity classified as eligible and aligned must make a significant contribution to at least one of the EU’s environmental objectives, while ensuring that it does not substantially harm any of the objectives, respects certain minimum social safeguards and complies with the technical selection criteria set.

The six relevant environmental objectives of the EU Taxonomy Regulation are:

1. Climate change mitigation
2. Climate change adaptation
3. Sustainable use and protection of water and marine resources
4. Transition to a circular economy
5. Pollution prevention and control
6. Protecting and restoring biodiversity and ecosystems

We invite you to join us on a journey!

We are pleased to offer you a discount on a trip with Blue.

Experience sustainability by trying out the latest mobility service from the Autonom group – Blue. Download the Blue Romania app, available on the App Store and Google Play.

Scan the QR code and tell us how you felt.

Key results in 2023

Fleet Motorization

Customer Feedback

Books read

We have confidently and ambitiously committed to a sustainability strategy with clear objectives across all three dimensions: business, environmental, and social, with a concrete action plan that has been gradually implemented since 2021.