CHAPTER SIX:

Our Future ESG Initiatives

“We are making sure we have an organization structured to grow with the ambition of our people and meet the needs of our customers. We are working hard to ensure we create the right processes and procedures. This will give our employees more ownership and our customers multiple channels of business.”

Bob Kenyon, Chief Operating Officer

Through the initial exercise executed with DNV (Colonial Group - ESG Assessment), 23 ESG issues were identified as most relevant to Colonial operations and were categorized under five main impact areas: 

  • Employees
  • Product/Safety
  • Governance & Ethics
  • Environment
  • Social

Our leadership team took all of these into consideration and set the following goals for Colonial's future:

Investing in Our Employees

Committed to taking care of our employees, we continually invest in the Colonial Family and have set people-focused goals for the company’s future. Some of our priority projects for fiscal year 2024 include the following:

  • New Headquarters: Moving into our new corporate headquarters facility with an employee gym/fitness area, walking path, health and wellness clinic, collaboration spaces, and more
  • FuelUp Learning: Developing and implementing FuelUp Learning, the company’s new and improved online learning platform
  • SOAR program: Developing and launching SOAR, our Management Essentials program, to provide foundational leadership skills and managerial functions training to all managers (leaders of people) across Colonial Group 
  • Benefits: Improving our performance management process and enhancing our paid leave benefits, including paid maternity/parental leave, paid bereavement leave, and PTO for family leave
  • Employee Appreciation: Rolling out Employee Appreciation Day celebrations and messaging from leadership
  • Remote Work: Rolling out formal remote and hybrid work offering/agreement for certain roles
  • Colonial Champions: Launching Colonial Champions, a peer recognition program that allows members of the Colonial family to honor their coworkers for doing extraordinary work
  • Pay Grades: Reviewing all Account Representative roles for Colonial Chemical Solutions and Colonial Terminals and considering shifting up pay grades
  • Promotions: Promoting three women to director-level roles in October 2023 (first female directors for Colonial Chemical Solutions)
  • Career Paths: Creating several new career paths for Colonial Chemical Solutions:
    • Account Rep to Sales Development Rep
    • Sales Development Rep to Product Manager
    • Account Rep to Account Rep Supervisor
    • Account Rep to Billing Supervisor
    • Operator to Sales Development Rep

Investing in Product & Safety

Upholding and improving safety and environmental regulations translates to protecting our employees and the environment. This has been a Colonial standard for over 100 years, and below are the 2024 initiatives keeping our team safe for the next generation.

  • Quick Access to PPE: Setting up new PPE Vending Machines for Operations to use and access as needed for Colonial Chemical Solutions
  • SDS: Investing in a Safety Data Sheet (SDS) Management System to track, maintain, and update all SDS sheets required for customers
  • Air Sensors: Purchasing portable air sensors that can detect dangerous vapors or gasses in the air when employees are responding to a spill
  • Emergency Preparedness: Procuring SituationHub software and developing the company’s first comprehensive crisis communications plan
  • Improved Employee Communication: Launching Dayforce Emergency Broadcast system

Investing in Governance & Ethics 

Part of growing our Colonial Family is bringing the right people on board. Through new hires and training efforts, we’ve been able to strengthen and expand our staff with these 2024 initiatives: 

  • New Leadership Hire: Welcomed a new Vice President of Information Technology on 4/1/2024
  • Updated Handbook: Executed major overhaul of employee handbook to update policies
  • Equal Employment Opportunity Policies: Reviewed our Equal Employer Opportunity/Anti-Harassment policies in our manager trainings for Colonial Oil, Colonial Terminals, and Colonial Towing employees
  • Cybersecurity Training: IT staff and Executive Leadership participated in cybersecurity tabletop exercises
  • Cybersecurity Assessments: Participated in operational technology (OT) cybersecurity assessments performed by a compliance and security services consultant.

Investing In Our Environment

In January of 2024, Colonial Oil Industries partnered with Neste to offer renewable diesel to customers and businesses in the region, marking a significant stride towards a more sustainable future in the Southeast. Renewable diesel is a lower-carbon alternative to traditional diesel fuel, often produced from renewable raw materials such as used cooking oil and animal fat waste. When compared to fossil diesel, the use of renewable diesel significantly reduces GHG emissions over the fuel’s life cycle, making it a crucial player in the global effort to combat climate change.

 

As companies are searching for a more environmentally-friendly fuel, methanol bunkering continues to be explored. On February 29, 2024, Stena Provident, one of six state-of-the-art methanol-fueled IMOIIMeMAX ships commissioned through the partnership between Proman and Stena Bulk, completed the first ever methanol bunkering at Colonial Terminals' Port of Savannah. The vessel successfully loaded almost 1000 MT of methanol at Colonial Terminals’ Lathrop 2 facility, in a historic first for the port. 

In March, Colonial Terminals received a Mitsui product from Bow Precision. This product is used in making a Sustainable Blending Component (SBC), often called Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). The product will be delivered from Lathrop 1 to Soperton, GA where it will be processed into the SBC at the Freedom Pines Fuels facility. Freedom Pines is the first and only SBC plant of its kind in the world. (SAF is a drop-in fuel and has the potential to cut GHG emissions by 70% over traditional fossil jet fuel. The world’s first transatlantic flight powered entirely by SAF took off from Savannah, GA and landed in London, UK.)

 

Colonial Oil Industries commissioned the construction of new marine barge and tug units that will operate using the latest fuel and emissions technology. The barge is designed with segregated compartments for the efficient loading, transportation, and delivery of renewable fuels including renewable diesel, methanol, and hydrogen.

Colonial Transportation Solutions modernized our fleet by investing over $20 million and adopting the latest fuel efficiency and emissions reduction technology.

Colonial Oil Industries is now burning renewable diesel in our transportation and marine fleet assets reducing GHG emissions by 75%+.

 
A picture of Colonial Group boats.

Colonial Oil Marine is working on acquiring their International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC). To sell renewables to ocean-going vessels, we need a certified sustainable pathway, and ISCC is the most widely accepted methodology. ISCC allows traceability through the value chain from well to wake basis or full life cycle. Colonial will eventually use this mass balance approach to buy ISCC-certified molecules to offer owners who will participate in GHG reductions.

Colonial Energy is beginning to research both renewable/responsibly sourced natural gas (RSG) options such as Landfill Gas (LFG) and the ability to purchase carbon credits.

For over 40 years, Crown Carbon Reduction Technologies has provided comprehensive solutions that improve the efficiency and sustainability of the mining and energy-producing industries. Our technologies enable customers to lower their carbon footprint, meet regulatory standards, achieve their environmental objectives, and improve their bottom line.

Investing In Our Society  

This year, we have invested significant time in improving our Colonial Foundation processes. While the Foundation has been incredibly valuable to the community for many years, the way in which organizations applied for and received support needed updating. By creating an online funding application to streamline the user experience, Colonial can now better address the volume of funding requests received and communicate efficiently and promptly with applicants.

On April 4th, Enmarket held its fifth annual Enmarket Charity Classic benefiting the 200 Club of the Coastal Empire and Make-A-Wish Georgia. With the support of generous sponsors and players, a combined total of $270,000 was raised, officially marking $1 million raised since the event’s inception.

Enmarket is partnering with Bethesda Academy in Savannah by entering a land leasing agreement. The proceeds will provide a sustainable funding source for the school to offer educational programs for generations to come.

In 2024, Colonial Group made a record donation to United Way of the Coastal Empire totaling $651,049. This occurred during UWCE’s traditional fall workplace giving campaign, during which employees can choose to donate to UWCE, usually through payroll deduction.

Additionally, Enmarket executed a round-up campaign at their self-checkout stations at select locations by allowing customers to round up their change to the nearest dollar to support their local United Way organization. A contribution of $28,277 was made to nine United Way organizations across three states.

 

Our Future Outlook

Colonial Group is looking to the future with great anticipation. We plan to expand in our industries, leading with our entrepreneurial spirit while never deserting our family mentality. As we stay tethered to our integrity and service, we firmly believe there are even greater opportunities on the horizon.

A picture of Christian, Robert, and Houstoun Demere.