Stakeholder Relations

We believe that one of the key indicators of the management quality of companies is the ability to demonstrate a participatory management approach. With this perspective, we establish communication based on transparency, accountability, and lasting and mutual trust with all our internal and external stakeholders.

We facilitate the involvement of all our employees in management and create communication channels to increase the mutual exchange of information. We communicate with our employees continuously, periodically, or instantly through many communication channels. These communication channels include an integrated corporate intranet, internal surveys, e-mail and e-bulletins, corporate TV, posters and banners, reputation and satisfaction surveys, training practices, performance management system, interviews, working groups and committees, and complaint and suggestion systems. Employees of the contractor company also have access to many communication channels, particularly the complaint and suggestion systems.

We aim to strengthen our communication with all our stakeholders. We use various channels to create a participatory, timely, transparent, and two-way communication environment with our external stakeholders and employees. Many of the management systems we follow are shaped by stakeholder communication methods.

Furthermore, among our stakeholders with whom we frequently communicate are our customers, shareholders and investors, public institutions and local governments, trade unions, suppliers and contractors, professional organizations and non-governmental organizations, financial institutions, educational institutions, media organizations, and local people.

Collaborations

In addition to contributing to the country's economy, we have social responsibility initiatives that create added value for society. We participate in social projects by cooperating with universities, public institutions, non-governmental organizations, and local administrations. In this way, we not only offer valuable solutions that make a difference in society but also enable our employees to take part in awareness-raising actions and internal communication activities that feed their potential, with the awareness of sustainability and co-production. Through cooperation, we aim to contribute to the sustainability of social and economic life throughout the country, especially in the regions where we operate.

We support shifting the scientific power from our universities to industry. Our R&D and Innovation Center is working to create solid university-industry collaborations with its open innovation model. Our emphasis is on technologies that will increase efficiency and develop costs and competitive advantage, as well as the energy sector. As a result of our energy-intensive and, therefore, emissions-intensive business lines, we place a high priority on technologies that will reduce our carbon footprint. To this end, we are planning and developing international renewable energy projects to produce petrochemical raw materials.

Within our university-industry collaborations, we carry out the “Catalyst Development Project for DME Synthesis from Carbon Dioxide” with İzmir Institute of Technology (İYTE). In this project, we are developing a catalyst and process for converting carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere at Petkim's production plants to dimethyl ether (DME), a valuable product.

We aim to develop a more efficient catalyst and process with high selectivity for the synthesis of raw materials suitable for petrochemical input in the chemical recycling of plastic waste, with the “Development of Raw Materials Suitable for Refinery and Petrochemical Inputs from Waste Polyolefins Project” initiated in cooperation with our R&D and Innovation Center and METU. In the presence of a catalyst, waste polyolefins are transformed into high-value-added products under milder conditions. This is of great importance in reducing the harmful effects of plastic pollution and developing a circular, sustainable economy.

In 2021, we established the SOCAR R&D Gebze Process Systems Center at Gebze Technical University Technopark. Here, we carry out commercialization projects in cooperation with start-ups and universities working in areas such as sustainability, energy transition, waste management, and digital transformation. We transfer the experience of SOCAR R&D to universities and start-ups. By providing the development of domestic and commercial products, we both add value to the economy and have the opportunity to be a catalyst in implementing sustainable technologies.

Responsible Unit

Corporate sustainable development activities require a shared responsibility starting from senior management. We emphasize improving sustainability management as part of our business culture. On behalf of the Board of Directors, we established the Corporate Governance and Sustainability Committee to determine, implement and monitor the performance of our group's strategies in sustainability and corporate social responsibility.

We are aware of our responsibilities to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations. We monitor all our activities' environmental, social, and economic impacts and adopt a practical communication approach based on transparency with all our stakeholders. We periodically conduct ESG assessments with impartial supervisory firms to understand the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) risks in our operating regions, measure how these risks will be managed, and identify improvement areas. We carry out continuous improvement studies with the outputs obtained from the evaluation. In addition to the progress of these studies, local and global developments and legal regulations are followed by the Sustainability Committee. Our committee makes suggestions and recommendations for initiatives that will ensure SOCAR Türkiye has the highest corporate governance standards and for the development of corporate governance.

Structure of Our Committee

Our Sustainability Committee, which operates under the SOCAR Türkiye executive committee, is chaired by our SOCAR Türkiye CEO and co-chaired by the Head of Strategy and Communications and Public Relations President, who directly report to our CEO. The Sustainability Committee also monitors and manages the areas covered by the Corporate Governance and Sustainability Committee, which operates under the SOCAR Türkiye Board of Directors.

We focus on building policies based on the values of our organization. The most comprehensive of these policies are the SOCAR Türkiye Code of Ethics, Anti-Corruption and Trade Sanctions Policy, and SOCAR Türkiye Occupational Health, Safety, and Environment Policy. Our group companies use internationally recognized management system standards to address sustainability issues in their business areas. In addition, the 'SOCAR Aims for Efficiency' (SAFE) OHS Management System, implemented to cover our group companies, creates a healthy, safe, and environmentally friendly working environment in all areas, from offices to high-hazard activity areas.

Along with our activities, products, jobs, and economic values that we create, we adopt to support local and national social development through corporate responsibility projects, donations, and sponsorships we carry out in the social field. Our approach in this direction includes supporting environmental growth, sports, education, and culture and arts.

Sustainability is an integral part of our management approach with the mission of 'operating and developing efficiently and sustainably with experienced, knowledgeable and committed human resources at every level in our entire value chain'.