Cairn Energy PLC
Corporate Responsibility Report 2009
Corporate Responsibility Report 2009
- Policies and principles
- Governance
- Compliance
Policies and principles
Cairn has had specific Group-wide policies for HSE, Security, and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for a number of years. Endorsed by the Board, these policies establish the principles by which the Company conducts its operations.
Our fundamental values and our approach to managing CR in accordance with these policies are described in our 14 Group CR Guiding Principles, outlined below. These Principles, consistent with the UN Global Compact Guiding Principles, are implemented by all directors, officers and employees of the Cairn Group and subsidiary companies and others who work on our behalf, in accordance with our HSE, Security and CSR Policies.
Together, our Group CR Policies and Guiding Principles – both reviewed and updated in 2009 – lie at the heart of all we do in the conduct of our business. They are promoted to staff, partners, suppliers and contractors, to help ensure a sustainable business culture.
Our Group CR Policies and Guiding Principles are available to download from our website.
CR Guiding Principles
BEHAVING RESPONSIBLY IN ALL OUR BUSINESS RELATIONSHIPS
- We respect the rule of law
- We behave honestly, fairly and with integrity
- We seek win/win relationships with all our stakeholders
- We seek to continually improve our CR performance
BEHAVING RESPONSIBLY TOWARDS THE ENVIRONMENT
- We avoid, wherever possible, negative impacts on the environment
- We seek to minimise or mitigate any impact, remediate any damage and, where necessary, offset the impacts
- We seek to ensure 'no net loss' of biodiversity
- We strive to prevent pollution
BEHAVING RESPONSIBLY TO OUR PEOPLE
- We seek to develop the potential of our people
- We foster a working environment that respects personal dignity, is free from discrimination, and provides fair and just rewards
- We seek to provide a healthy, safe and secure working environment
BEHAVING RESPONSIBLY TO SOCIETY
- We seek to make a positive social impact in every area that we work
- We accept our responsibility to respect human rights within our sphere of influence and activities
- We respect the rights and expectations of the people who are affected by our operations
Managing Corporate Responsibility
To support the delivery of the commitments made in these Policies and Guiding Principles, we implement a Group CRMS, which is supported by detailed procedures and guidelines. Applying the Group CRMS to all our business activities is essential in maintaining our 'licence to operate' and building our business reputation.
Our CRMS is consistent with the international environmental management standard ISO 14001, and we have successfully retained certification to this standard at our production sites at the Sangu in Bangladesh, and Ravva and Suvali in India. Cairn India also has a target to have an EMS compliant to ISO 14001 standards in place for the producing fields and pipeline in Rajasthan by 2011.
Group CRMS framework
The Group CRMS provides the mechanisms that:
- allow us to identify, assess and implement measures to mitigate CR risks;
- assess CR requirements through a gated process at key milestones during the project lifecycle;
- guide how we monitor and report our CR performance, conduct reviews and audits and, in the event of accidents or incidents, conduct investigations, identify causes and rectify deficiencies; and
- identify our legal and regulatory requirements and inform any plans needed to ensure compliance.
These procedures are regularly reviewed to ensure they remain consistent with good practice and international standards.
New Human Rights and Biodiversity Guidelines
In 2009, our Human Rights Handbook was updated to accommodate developments in the area of human rights and business and, in particular, the recommendations in the 2008 report to the UN Human Rights Council by the Special Representative. A new Biodiversity Policy, strategy and guidelines were also prepared in 2009 and will be rolled out across the business in 2010.