Growth with Responsibility
At AEL, sustainability is embedded across our business strategy and operations to enable responsible growth and long-term value creation. Our ESG approach prioritises environmental stewardship, social responsibility, and strong governance to drive resilience and innovation. A robust ESG oversight and risk management mechanism ensures accountability, effective implementation and consistency across all organisational levels.
Policy Commitment
We have adopted a comprehensive suite of ESG policies aligned with global and national standards and industry best practices that provide a strong foundation for our operational and risk management practices and procedures. The Board and its committees approve these policies and oversee their implementation. To remain responsive to the evolving regulatory and sustainability expectations, the policies are periodically reviewed and strengthened.
The implementation of policies across AEL's operations is supported by clearly defined management roles, responsibilities and structured governance mechanisms, ensuring consistent execution and accountability.
At AEL, our sustainability journey has moved decisively from ambition to action, seamlessly integrating Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles into our operations. We reinforced our commitment to creating a net-positive impact, aspiring to transform our ESG practices from compliance to leadership.
A foundational highlight of our ESG integration is the enterprise-wide implementation of an ESG digital platform. This unified system ensures robust data tracking, unparalleled transparency, and firm accountability across our portfolio. While we have achieved significant progress, we remain committed to building a resilient, future-ready enterprise that decouples growth from its environmental footprint, enriches communities, and operates with unwavering integrity to create lasting value for all stakeholders.
Chief Sustainability Officer, AEL
ESG Risk Management and Oversight
AEL follows a robust ESG governance structure that ensures effective oversight, accountability, and escalation of sustainability matters from the site level to the Board. This framework enables consistent implementation of ESG policies across diverse businesses while maintaining strong strategic and fiduciary oversight at the highest level.
Board of Directors
The Board of Directors (BoD) is responsible for the strategic supervision and management of the company, ensuring sustainable success in the long term. The BoD approves related policies and oversees the management and control of risks, including those pertaining to ESG dimensions, the establishment of strategic guidelines, the assessment of efficiency and adequacy of internal control systems, their periodic review, and ensuring proper implementation.
Corporate Responsibility Committee
We have established a Board-level ESG committee, known as the Corporate Responsibility Committee (CRC), composed entirely of independent directors. The CRC is responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of critical policies and monitoring key ESG-related issues, including climate action, energy efficiency, human rights, gender diversity, safety, and cybersecurity.
It oversees the assessment of the material impact of these issues on our business, reviews proposed mitigation strategies, monitors target setting, and guides our overall ESG strategy, processes, and performance. The CRC also provides assurance to the Board regarding the progress made by AEL and its businesses towards the company's ESG goals and targets.
Other ESG-related Board Committees
The Board of Directors is further supported by several other Board committees, such as the Corporate Social Responsibility Committee (CSRC), Stakeholder Relationship Committee (SRC), and the Risk Management Committee (RMC), which monitor the organisation's ESG strategy and performance, including compliance with applicable regulations and standards.
Read more about our Board committees and their role/responsibilities
AEL ESG Committee
At the executive management level, AEL has established an internal ESG committee, chaired by the Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) and comprising sustainability leads from various business units. This committee drives the effective execution of the ESG strategy and monitors its performance.
It plays a crucial role in aligning business activities with the company's ESG goals and ambitions, driving initiatives to minimize environmental impact, and achieving continuous improvement in our operations. The committee is also responsible for the effective implementation of ESG policies and procedures, as well as assessing and managing ESG-related risks and opportunities, including those related to climate change.
AEL Corporate ESG Function
The corporate ESG function, led by the Chief Sustainability Officer, is responsible for developing the Company's ESG agenda and supporting business ESG teams in its implementation.
This function also undertakes and oversees initiatives related to business sustainability at the AEL level. Additionally, they monitor company-level ESG performance and are responsible for preparing AEL's ESG disclosures.
Business Sustainability Teams
Guided by AEL's corporate ESG function, the business-wide teams are responsible for the implementation and execution of the sustainability projects as well as tracking and monitoring of performance at the business level.
They are further supported by site-wise sustainability SPOCs/teams who lead the sustainability agenda at the site-level.
Our Performance in FY 2025-26
At AEL, we have set ambitious goals and targets across our various businesses, including our commitment toward Net Zero transition. We pursue continuous improvement in our ESG performance through periodic reviews of our strategies, targets, and initiatives, ensuring relevance with evolving expectations.
| Target | Performance in FY 2025-26 |
Status |
|---|---|---|
| 45% reduction in Emission intensity* by 2030 | 57% | Achieved |
| 30% reduction in Energy Consumption intensity* by 2030 | 43% | Achieved |
| 50% of electricity consumed from Renewable Energy sources by 2030 | 19% | On track |
| 50% reduction in Water Consumption intensity* by 2030 | 75% | Achieved |
| 95% of waste diverted away from landfill by 2030 | 91% | On track |
*Reduction in intensity on a revenue basis (in ₹), against the base year of FY 2021-22
| Target | Performance in FY 2025-26 |
Status |
|---|---|---|
| 50% of the Board of Directors to be Independent and Non-executive | 50% | Achieved |
| 20% of the Board of Directors to be female | 12.5% | - |
| 100% of the Board Committees (Statutory and Non-statutory) to be chaired by Independent Directors | 100% | Achieved |
| Capacity building on ESG for 100% of the Board of Directors | 100% | Achieved |
| Zero breaches on cybersecurity or instances related to violation of data privacy | Zero | Achieved |
Awards and Accolades
AEL was honoured with the Golden Peacock Award for Excellence in ESG by the Institute of Directors (IOD), India. We are proud to stand out as the sole recipient in the Diversified Sector, a recognition that reflects our rigorous ESG integration, robust risk management, and transparent governance frameworks.
AEL was ranked among India's Top 60 Most Sustainable Companies for 2024-25 by BW Businessworld. Securing a position in the top 15 overall and placing first in our sector, this accolade highlights our continuous efforts to drive responsible value creation and deliver a positive environmental impact.
Our business units have also been lauded for their pioneering initiatives and best-in-class practices:
Adani Airports: Our airports are consistently recognised for their commitment to sustainable aviation. Guwahati Airport received the Gold Award at the Apex India Green Leaf Awards for its green initiatives.
Adani New Industries Limited: Leading our green energy transition, ANIL was honoured with the 'Outstanding Contribution to Circular Economy' Award by the Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) for pioneering India's first off-grid Green Hydrogen pilot project.
Adani Natural Resources: Our mining business has been acclaimed for its leadership in sustainable logistics and safety. Adani Natural Resources won the prestigious 'Leadership in Climate Action' Award from the ICC for its groundbreaking hydrogen truck initiative. Additionally, our PEKB mine received the Gold Award for Safety Innovation at the Greentech Workplace SFS Awards 2025.
AdaniConneX: Demonstrating our commitment to climate-resilient infrastructure, AdaniConneX was awarded the SKOCH Silver Award for Climate Resilience. The business also received multiple OHSSAI Global HSE & ESG Excellence Awards for its Hyderabad and Pune data centers, recognising exceptional standards in health, safety, and environment.
Adani Solar received the FE Green Sarathi Award 2025 for "Excellence in Sustainable Manufacturing" and "Sustainable Business of the Year"
Adani Roads, Metro, Rail & Water (RMRW): The RMRW business unit was recognised for its exemplary safety standards, securing the HSE Excellence in Construction, Infrastructure award at the India HSE Summit and Awards 2025. Furthermore, our Kagal Satara Road Project and 62 MLD Desalination Plant both received OHSE Excellence Awards for their outstanding safety culture.