Solaris publishes its Sustainability Report for 2023

Solaris Bus & Coach has published its Sustainability Report for 2023. This cross-sectional account of our recent activities outlines Solaris’ ongoing commitment to the advancement of corporate social responsibility, sustainability and corporate ethics. The Report depicts the processes preparing the manufacturer to attain the ambitious goal of carbon neutrality by 2045.

Solaris’ sustainability endeavours have been recognized with the Silver ESG Leaf award by the Polityka weekly. The prize has been bestowed on the manufacturer for the fourth time. This time the integration of sustainability issues into the Company’s strategy served as the key evaluation criterion.

“Hand in hand with the CAF Group, we have set ourselves an ambitious goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2045, meaning that our efforts are now focused on working towards the fulfilment of this goal. In 2023, we involved teams from different areas of the Company to boost our activities targeted at managing environmental and social aspects while integrating them into the organization’s ongoing operational and decision-making processes,” explains Agata Stańda, Solaris Bus & Coach Management Board Member for Strategy, Transition and ESG.

Among the key aspects outlined in its Sustainability Report, the Company lists the actions necessary to implement the CAF Group’s Strategic Plan 2026, treating sustainability as a major pillar of growth. In 2023, the Solaris Sustainability Committee was established as a decision-making body to share knowledge, discuss and ensure progress towards our ESG goals.

The focal point of the Report is Solaris’ constructive impact on the transition of Europe’s public transport. Zero- and low-emission buses accounted for as much as 82% of all vehicles marketed last year, more than half of which were battery and hydrogen-powered models. In 2023, Solaris once again took the number one position in Europe’s zero-emission city bus market. Moreover, the Company achieved the best performance in hydrogen technology: almost every second hydrogen-powered city bus in Europe was sold by Solaris, demonstrating the Company’s leadership in transitioning urban mobility towards carbon neutrality.

Solaris remains committed to innovation, including by continuously designing new battery solutions. In 2023, a dedicated battery competence centre was established within the Company’s structures, called the Solaris Battery HUB. The centre was established to ensure comprehensive management of battery-related work and pursue the implementation of a closed-loop economy approach in respect of lithium-ion batteries.

The Report also describes the activities taken by Solaris for the benefit of its employees. In 2023, the Company focused predominantly on safety and comfort, implementing a number of process improvements in production coupled with a variety of occupational health and safety initiatives. Also, the Company developed training programs to assist employees in acquiring new skills, identified as indispensable for the ongoing improvement of the competences of its staff.

A new version of the Internal Notification System (for whistleblowers) was also launched in 2023, enabling the reporting of breaches of the law in a secure and confidential manner, not only by Solaris employees, but also to by people employed by subsidiaries and third parties.

The Report contains a compilation of information on the Company, including statistics on responsible management, sustainable manufacturing, products and social responsibility initiatives. To read the Report, click here: Solaris Sustainability Report 2023.