SAVCA Masterclass in ESG
Presented by Environmental Business Strategies (EBS)
and hosted by Bowman Gilfillan
The South African Venture Capital and Private Equity Association
is proud to host a Masterclass in Environmental, Social and Governance matters,
presented by the specialist consulting firm Environmental Business Strategies.
BEYOND COMPLIANCE:
HOW TO GAIN VALUE FROM ESG IN
THE EQUITY INVESTMENT CYCLE
PRESENTER: James Brice MD of Environmental Business Strategies
DATE:
Monday 28 October 2013
TIME:
Arrival at 08:00; course to end by 13:00
VENUE:
165 West Street, Sandton, Johannesburg (Offices of Bowman Gilfillan)
COST:
R 2 800 for SAVCA members; R 3 000 for non-members
AGENDA:
• An introduction to the history of ESG risk management and its relevance in the investment process
• Introduction to the IFC Performance Standards
• The Role and Structure of Social and Environmental Management Systems (SEMS)
• Sectoral focus points for ESG
To register for this course, please contact the SAVCA office
on [email protected] or 011-268-0041
CFA charter holders who attend this course can log two (2) CE points (on a self-reporting basis).
BACKGROUND | ABOUT THE COURSE | ABOUT THE LECTURER
BACKGROUND
As much as 80% of private equity and venture capital in Africa originates from the
development finance institutions (DFIs). From a DFI perspective, environmental, social and
governance (ESG) considerations typically are as important – if not more so – than the
financials.
For many private equity and venture capital firms, the acronym ESG has come to mean:
• Confusing and vague concepts which are often in conflict with financial returns;
• Different standards applied by the DFIs;
• Open-ended, complicated and long due diligence Environmental and Social Impact
Assessments (ESIAs);
• Consultation with external stakeholders and government, therefore opening
the deal to potential complications;
• Delays to the deal process, and
• Additional diligence costs without any clear returns on this expense.
On the other hand, for some firms it means the following:
• That well-run, forward-looking and balanced businesses will generate sustained,
long-term profits, and that this will be reflected in the valuations of these businesses;
• ESG strategies will play an increasingly important role in keeping businesses in
business during uncertain times and in countries which lack regulatory certainty;
• ESG liabilities are undervalued at acquisition, whereas ESG assets are undervalued
at exit, and
• New exit opportunities become available when strong ESG performance is evident.
In short, we believe that creating shareholder value should not be mutually exclusive
to creating ESG value. We also believe that figuring this out is the challenge of the ESG
advisory industry, not the deal partner. What we endeavour to show in this course is
that ESG offers significant value at acquisition, at exit and during the investment cycle.
ABOUT YOUR
LECTURER
James Brice holds a B.Sc. in Chemical
Engineering (University of Cape Town,
1987 - 1991) and a Masters degree in
Environmental & Civil Engineering
(University of Witwatersrand, 2000 2001). In 2007, he completed his
Program in Management Development
at the Gordon Institute for Business
Science (University of Pretoria).
Previously, he was Technical Director for
a junior mining group in South Africa.
From 2006 - 2009, James was Managing
Executive of Marsh Environmental
Services for Europe, Middle East and
Africa. He has conducted or directed over
50 Environmental Impact Assessment
authorisations, 80 Environmental Legal
Compliance audits, and 200+ site
assessments and Due Diligence studies
(according to IFC and Equator Principles)
for Clients in South Africa, Norway,
Australia, United Kingdom, Holland,
Turkey, India and 14 countries
throughout Africa. As a result, James’
experience spans almost every sector of
business and every global ESG standard.
He has featured regularly in Business
Day, Financial Mail, Summit TV, the JSE
and written several publications on ESG
in the investment sector.
ABOUT THE COURSE
The following topics will be covered:
1. An introduction to the history of ESG risk management and its relevance in the investment process
2. Introduction to the IFC Performance Standards
3. The Role and Structure of SEMS Systems
4. Sectoral focus points (typical risks and opportunities for each sector relevant to the delegates, case studies, lessons
learned): Agriculture, Construction, Mining, Oil & Gas, Manufacturing, Banking and Financial services, Energy (coal, nuclear,
renewable), Retail, Logistics, Manufacturing, Waste and Sanitation, Tourism.
Our lecturing style is interactive and informal, and delegates are invited to participate and debate. There is no such thing as an
absolute truth – we encourage delegates to explore their own understanding of ESG in relation to the context within which their
portfolio companies are operating.
UNIQUE INSIGHTS:
We will be sharing many important lessons from the field, i.e. common mistakes made and opportunities missed:
• The categorisation of an investment (and particularly for financial intermediaries);
• Appropriate levels of study required for different types of pipeline opportunities;
• Applicability of the Performance Standards (PSs);
• Particular definitions within the PSs (such as critical habitats, indigenous peoples and resettlement rights);
• The net impact and cumulative impacts of projects (i.e. avoidance of off-setting);
• Greenfields versus brownfields impacts;
• Land rights in countries where regime changes have occurred in recent history, and
• When is a recommendation a condition precedent or a post-acquisition mitigation measure.
BACK