Eutelsat combats sexism
January 27, 2022
By Chris Forrester
Paris-based satellite operator Eutelsat has signed up to the StOpE initiative to combat sexism in the workplace.
Eutelsat is aiming at raising awareness among all employees to encourage them to act against sexist behaviour in the workplace. This move further supports the gender equality policies of the group. Last year, the company reported that women accounted for almost half of all new recruitments. They account for 30 per cent of the workforce at management level and the C-suite, and since January 1st the company is being run by a woman (the well-regarded Eva Berneke, an engineer and formerly CEO at Danish IT and software business KMD).
The news prompted a useful note from investment bank Exane/BNPP, which said that in a recent report the bank had identified Eutelsat as a leader in Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) amongst the satellite community.
The bank explains why satellites are collectively good candidates for ESG. “Despite all the fumes trailing a space rocket, launching a satellite emits less CO2 than one single transatlantic flight on a Boeing 747. Satellites receive their power from the sun and create no carbon emissions during their whole operating lifetime. Space debris is rare in GEO and MEO orbits and is a non-issue for our coverage universe,” says Exane/BNPP.
“Satellites help bridge the digital divide. They offer broadband internet access to underserved populations. They improve community relations by providing TV broadcasting infrastructure especially for public channels (around half of all TV channels broadcast on satellites) and by providing connectivity to schools and hospitals. They provide communications when terrestrial infrastructure fails in disaster areas. Video distribution remains the bulk of revenues (c60 percent), but the future of the industry lies in connecting the unconnected (c40 percent), whether consumers, corporations or governmental institutions,” the report adds.
“Although corporate governance may favour sovereign interests over institutional shareholders, Eutelsat and SES overall have a solid ESG profile. We believe that Eutelsat has a stronger ESG profile than SES. It has a strong focus on using satellite technology to provide consumers and SMEs access to broadband internet in white spaces in Europe and across Africa. While SES does not directly target consumer internet, it plays a critical role in improving community relations by expanding the reach of local telecommunications networks. We believe Eutelsat also has a more shareholder friendly corporate governance structure, in particular when it comes to integrating ESG in CEO pay,” states the report.
“Within our Satellite operators coverage,” says the bank. “we believe that Eutelsat has a stronger ESG profile than SES. Eutelsat has a strong focus on using satellite technology to provide consumers and SMEs access to broadband internet in white spaces in Europe and across Africa. While SES does not directly target consumer internet, it plays a critical role in improving community relations by expanding the reach of local telecommunication networks. We believe Eutelsat also has a more shareholder friendly corporate governance structure, in particular when it comes to integrating ESG in CEO pay.”