HVAC systems (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) Optimizing HVAC systems allows us to improve the energy performance of our sites and help reduce the impact of our business on the climate by reducing GHG emissions. From 2021, heating in our own stores is done exclusively by using heat pumps, eliminating heating that uses fossil fuels. Thus, we focus our measures to optimize the consumption related to HVAC systems by replacing natural gas-based heating and hot water production systems with electric heating systems. This measure, in parallel with our efforts to increase the percentage of renewable electricity, will have a positive impact on the direct GHG emissions generated by our activity. As of 2023, all our stores use exclusively electricitybased heating systems, completely abandoning thermal power plants that used to use methane gas or LPG. Thus, we no longer use other energy sources for heating, contributing to a cleaner environment and reducing carbon emissions. The heating of the logistics centers will be done exclusively with gas from 2023, thus giving up the diesel installation used in the Ștefăneștii de Jos Logistics Center. Our concept of offering our employees a sustainable working environment involves the implementation of energy-saving initiatives that contribute to reducing the overall energy consumption of buildings, including logistics centers and office area. We achieve this by avoiding unnecessary heating and cooling of areas that are not used or that are only in transit, thus saving energy and reducing our global carbon emissions. At the same time, we continued the measures started in previous years, including the replacement of the R404a refrigerant with one with a lower GWP (global warming potential), reaching a 100% replacement rate by the end of 2022. To further develop feasible and successful measures for energy efficiency and reducing the climate impact of refrigeration activity, we set ourselves strategic targets and objectives from year to year. Thus, for 2023 we are following the "We are cool with CO₂" strategy, through which we have set ourselves the goal that at least 80% of the newly opened stores will be equipped with refrigeration systems that work with natural CO₂ refrigerants. In 2023 we opened a store using water-loop refrigeration technology and two other stores with Plug-In Propane R290 technology. We are considering the complete replacement of natural refrigerant cooling solutions with GWP 1 or Propane R290, with GWP below 20 for leased spaces, where the location does not allow the installation of the standard solution. The plug-in refrigeration units that will be used in the future in all new and renovated stores will run on propane (R290), a natural refrigerant. To optimize the consumption of refrigerants in the logistics centers, we replaced in 2023 65% of the existing installation in the Ștefăneștii de Jos Logistics Center, which is powered by Freon R449. The new installation will use natural CO₂. SUSTAINABILITY STEP BY STEP CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND BUSINESS SUSTAINABLE ASSORTMENT ENERGY, CLIMATE AND RESOURCES EMPLOYEES AND SOCIETY GRI & SASB INDEX ASSURANCE OF SELECTED NON-FINANCIAL INDICATORS
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