26132 - Soravia Multi-Country Commercial Development Project

Who We Are
Who We Are

IFC is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in developing countries. By encouraging growth, IFC advances economic development, creates jobs and improves the lives of people.
More About Us
About IFC

Our Leadership

Development Partners
Accountability

Learn more about accountability
Annual Report

Download the Report
What We Do
What We Do

IFC advances economic development and improves the lives of people by encouraging the growth of the private sector in developing countries. We achieve this by investing in impactful projects, mobilizing other investors, and sharing expertise.
What We Do Overview
SOLUTIONS

Our products and services
OUR PRIORITIES

Climate Business

Fragile & Conflict Afflicted Situations

Gender

Mobilizing Private Capital

Sustainability
SECTORS & EXPERTISE

Agribusiness & Forestry

Creative Industries

Education

Financial Institutions

Funds

Health

Infrastructure

Manufacturing

Public-Private Partnerships

Tourism, Retail & Property

Trade & Supply Chain Finance

Venture Capital

Working Upstream
Where We Work
Where We Work

As the largest global development institution focused on the private sector, IFC operates in more than 100 countries around the globe. We apply lessons learned in one region to solve problems in another.
Overview
By Region

Africa

East Asia and Pacific

Europe

Latin America and the Caribbean

Middle East and Central Asia

South Asia
Our Impact
Our Impact

Our impact improves lives. IFC brings a clear set of advantages to the world’s most challenging markets. Including a history of innovation, a global mandate, and a determination to achieve measurable development impact.
Our Impact Overview
PRINCIPLES & MEASUREMENT

Impact Investing at IFC

Measuring and Monitoring (AIMM)

Evaluation

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Owned by 186 member countries and consistently rated AAA/Aaa. IFC aims to achieve our mission of promoting development by providing debt and equity to the private sector, through a range of benchmark and bespoke products.

For Partners

For Investors

Get in Touch

Environmental & Social Review Summary

Project Number

26132

Company Name

SORAVIA INVESTMENT HOLDING GMBH

Date ESRS Disclosed

Dec 28, 2007

Country

Southern Europe Subregion

Region

Europe

Last Updated Date

Jun 3, 2021

Environmental Category

B - Limited

Status

Completed

Previous Events

Approved : Apr 3, 2008
Signed : May 15, 2008
Invested : Jul 3, 2008

Sector

Construction and Real Estate

Industry

Tourism, Retail and Property

Department

Gbl Ind, Manufact, Agribus & Services

Project Description

Soravia Real Estate Development GmbH (SRED) is the recently formed, commercial real estate development arm of the Austria-based Soravia Group (the Group or the sponsor). SRED identifies, evaluates, builds and sells real estate projects in Austria, Slovakia, Estonia, the Russian Federation, Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Macedonia, Montenegro and Ukraine. SRED’s intended buyers are third party real estate investment funds, although, on a selective basis, some properties may be sold, on an arm’s length basis, to Soravia Properties GmbH, the properties company within the Group.

The proposed Project consists of an investment program to be implemented by SRED and comprises a series of commercial real estate development projects (sub-projects) located in Macedonia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria and Ukraine (the Target Markets). SRED’s current pipeline includes 7 planned developments in retail, offices, hotels and mixed-use properties in the Target Markets at an advanced stage (i.e., land has been purchased for each of these sub-projects) and 5 further office developments are at an early stage (i.e., land has been identified but not yet purchased).

Overview of IFC's Scope of Review

IFC’s review included meetings with Soravia in their Vienna headquarters, where SRED’s general approach to project design and management of environmental and social risk was discussed, followed by a visit to sponsor TownTown office development in Vienna. In addition, IFC environmental specialists have desk-reviewed and exchanged information with SRED about its Soravia Business Center development in Skopje, Macedonia, which is currently under construction. Further site-based inspections will be made as sub-projects reach sufficient maturity for such visits to provide meaningful insight into project development.

E & S Project Categorization and Applicable Standard

While all Performance Standards (PS) are applicable to this investment, IFC’s environmental and social due diligence indicates that the Performance Standards listed above will usually be relevant to all of SRED’s developments and hence to IFC’s proposed investment;

- PS1: Social and Environmental Assessment and Management;
- PS2: Labor and Working Conditions;
- PS3: Pollution Prevention; and
- PS4: Community Health, Safety.

The possibility cannot be excluded that issues related to the remaining four Performance Standards, could be encountered, though this is not expected:

- PS5: Land Acquisition and Involuntary Resettlement;
- PS6: Biodiversity and Sustainable Natural Resource Management;
- PS7: Indigenous Peoples; and
- PS8: Cultural Heritage.

Key environmental and social issues associated with this project will be the project design and planning process, including social and environmental assessment and putting in place appropriate permissions. Designs must incorporate life and fire safety measures appropriate to building size, location and expected use. Management of occupational health and safety during construction is important. Once operational, key issues are expected to be the energy efficiency and water use of the buildings since projects are expected to be connected to established utility systems.

The potential adverse environmental and social risks in this real estate development project are few in number and limited in scope, and can be mitigated by appropriate project design. This is therefore an Environment Category B project.

Environmental and Social Mitigation Measures

- Social and Environmental Assessment

SRED does not have a formal internal procedure requiring social or environmental (S&E) assessment. Instead it is committed to comply with all assessment and permitting requirements imposed by the regulatory authorities in the cities in which the developments are made. Such assessment is a necessary precondition to issuance of the necessary construction and ultimately building operating permits. SRED will develop an internal S&E screening methodology to ensure that basic S&E issues and Performance Standard requirements are always considered irrespective of the regulatory environmental applicable to the project. This screening will show, as is required in Soravia’s base in Austria, that the project is in the interests of the municipality in which it is built, and will determine when project impacts are such that more detailed environmental assessment is needed.

- Social and Environmental Management

Soravia has outsourced construction operations in its projects to date to highly reputable contracting companies who have well developed and certified quality and environmental management standards. These companies undertake their own assessment of S&E risk at the tender stage, and their offers include necessary resource to manage environmental risk during construction. Soravia is committed to continue this process, in the target markets. In all developments, SRED has site based staff or independent inspection contractors who make regular visits to confirm that planned measures to manage environmental and safety issues in construction are in fact in place.

- Labor and Working Conditions

SRED has a Corporate Human Resources policy which is designed to ensure compliance with Austrian labor regulation and is compliant with IFC’s Performance Standards. The policy defines rights and responsibilities of the employee and employer, including terms of employment and working conditions, grievance mechanisms, and promotion of non-discrimination and equal opportunity. SRED requires its construction contracting companies to use similar conditions in its projects in the Target Countries.

The contractors develop project–specific plans to ensure safety in construction, and following their internal procedures undertake regular checks to ensure compliance. These checks are supported by regular inspections undertaken by SRED’s staff or agents as described above.

- Discharges to Water

E& S screening will determine the sanitation infrastructure available to the developments. When there is a functioning sewage collection and treatment system, project effluents will be discharged to this system for further treatment. If such infrastructure is absent, or if there is sewage collection but not treatment, then appropriate pre-treatments will be incorporated into project design to ensure that project effluents meet IFC guidelines for discharge to surface water.

- Discharges to Air

These are expected to be limited to emissions from project boilers, if present. These are likely to be small, quite possibly of a size not requiring regular monitoring, and should not have significant discharges. SRED’s TownTown development in Vienna use heat from the local district heating system, while the development in Skopje provides heating through a heat-pump, avoiding direct emissions to air. Non ozone-depleting refrigerants are used in heating and air conditioning systems.

- Energy Efficiency

SRED has found that the target clients of its real-estate holding company are increasingly concerned with energy costs of their buildings. Although SRED is a developer, it does see market advantage in constructing energy efficient buildings. Buildings feature very high standards of thermal insulation; multiple glazed windows are mounted in well-sealing frames, and windows often contain blinds to limit summer cooling loads. Buildings employ uses heavy concrete construction and buildings have heated and cooled ceilings which limit peak heating and air conditioning requirements, and also reduce routine air conditioning need. TownTown is heated by the district heating system which in turn uses otherwise waste heat from an electricity and heat cogeneration station; air conditioning is also provided by district heating and is one of the few thermal loads during summer. The Skopje development uses reverse cycle heat pumps for air conditioning and cooling.

- Community Health, Safety and Security Issues

Buildings are designed to meet local and western European life and fire safety standards, and to this end shopping malls accessible to the public will have smoke and fire detection systems, sprinklers, and hose reels, and building structure including appropriate egress arrangements. SRED will prepare life and fire safety master plans, showing how building design will meet local and West European fire codes as conditions of IFC disbursement to support building construction.

- Land Acquisition and Involuntary Resettlement

The very nature of SRED’s private-sector operations makes it necessary to acquire land on a willing buyer-willing seller basis without expropriation. However, the screening procedure described above will include screening for possible displacement of tenants or illegal occupiers of land. If such situations are identified, SRED will avoid the land in question or it will develop and implement appropriate mitigation compliant with PS5.

- Other Performance Standard Issues

None is expected, in real estate developments in urban locations. However, SRED’s screening procedure will identify such risk, and if identified appropriate mitigation will be developed.

SRED will require all its construction contractors to develop a “chance finds” protocol such that if earthwork should identify items of cultural heritage, construction activity will cease until the cultural heritage has been protected in a manner meeting local requirements and IFC’s PS8.

Stakeholder Engagement

SRED does consult with communities potentially affected by development of its projects, the need for such communication being established during project screening. Community engagement also takes place during the project planning process.

In addition to local planning and consultation requirements, written summaries of project impacts, and how they will be mitigated will be prepared and displayed in writing at project sites for a minimum of 30 days before IFC funds are disbursed to the sub-projects. These summaries will be presented in the local language and will include a company contact who will be available to receive community comments about the project.

For inquiries and comments about the project, contact:

Mr. Martin Ohneberg, Chief Financial Officer
Soravia Group
Hainburger Strasse 15, 1030 Vienna, Austria

Telephone: +43 (1) 716 90-0
Fax: +43 (1) 716 90-20
E-mail: office@soravia.at
Website: www.soravia.at

**Information on IFC's Policy and Performance Standards on Environmental and Social Sustainability can be found at www.ifc.org/sustainability

IFC supports its clients in addressing environmental and social issues arising from their business activities by requiring its real sector clients to set up and administer appropriate grievance mechanisms and/or procedures to address complaints from Affected Communities in relation to environmental and social issues arising from IFC's clients' business activities. Since 2012, IFC's Financial Intermediary clients applying the Performance Standards are required to develop External Communications Mechanisms to receive and review inquiries or complaints from any interested party regarding the E&S risks and impacts of their operations.

For IFC projects that are active or under consideration, individual(s), or their authorized representative(s), who allege they have been or will be adversely affected by E&S risks or impacts arising from IFC's clients' business activities, may submit a complaint to IFC directly for consideration. When receiving an E&S complaint, IFC engages with complainants and works with its clients to find solutions to E&S concerns as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Complaints can be submitted to IFC online at www.ifc.org/escomplaints or by email to EScomplaints@ifc.org.

IFC complaint response is separate from and complementary to IFC’s clients’ project level grievance mechanisms and IFC’s Independent Accountability Mechanism (CAO). Lodging a complaint directly with IFC does not, at any time, restrict access to CAO.

Affected communities have unrestricted access to the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO), the independent accountability mechanism for IFC and MIGA. CAO facilitates the resolution of complaints related to IFC and MIGA projects and sub-projects, undertakes reviews of IFC’s and MIGA’s environmental and social compliance, fosters public accountability for their commitments, and enhances the environmental and social performance of IFC and MIGA.

Independent of IFC and MIGA management and reporting directly to the IFC and MIGA Boards of Executive Directors, CAO helps resolve issues raised about the environmental and social impacts of projects through a neutral, collaborative, problem-solving approach via its Dispute Resolution function. It also reviews IFC’s and MIGA’s compliance with environmental and social policies, assesses related harm, and recommends remedial actions through its Compliance function. Additionally, CAO provides advice to IFC, MIGA, and their Boards to enhance environmental and social sustainability performance and minimize the risk of harm.

Complaints may relate to environmental and social harm regarding any aspect of the planning, implementation, or impact of a project or sub-project, and can be made by any individual, group, community, entity, or other party affected or likely to be affected by the environmental or social impacts of an IFC- or MIGA-financed business activity.

Complaints can be submitted by any of the following methods:

Online form: available at https://www.cao-ombudsman.org/
Mail/Hand Delivery to: 2121 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA
Voice mail: +1 202 458 1973
Email: cao@worldbankgroup.org
SMS, WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal: +1 202 650 2627

CAO receives and addresses complaints in accordance with the CAO Policy, which can be accessed at: https://www.cao-ombudsman.org/policies-guidelines.

This Environmental and Social Review Summary (ESRS) is prepared by IFC to disclose its findings and recommendations related to environmental and social considerations regarding potential investments. Its purpose is to enhance the transparency of IFC's activities. For any project documentation or data included or attached herein, whether prepared by the project sponsor or otherwise, authorization has been given for public release by the project sponsor. IFC considers that this ESRS is of adequate quality for release to the public, but has not necessarily independently verified all of the project information therein.
It is distributed in advance of IFC Board of Directors' consideration and may be periodically updated thereafter. Board dates are estimates only and this document should not be construed as presuming the outcome of the Board Directors’ decision. The following ESRS is disclosed in accordance with IFC's Access to Information Policy (AIP).

The map is for illustrative purposes and does not imply the expression of any opinion on the part of the World Bank, concerning the legal status of any country or territory or concerning the delimitation of frontiers or boundaries. Country borders or names do not necessarily reflect the World Bank Group's official position. In some cases, available project location information is limited to the country of the project's activities. Locations are approximate.

Projects

Environmental & Social Review Summary

Project Description

Overview of IFC's Scope of Review

E & S Project Categorization and Applicable Standard

Environmental and Social Mitigation Measures

Stakeholder Engagement

Similar Projects

Projects

Environmental & Social Review Summary

Project Description

Overview of IFC's Scope of Review

E & S Project Categorization and Applicable Standard

Identified Applicable Performance Standards

Environmental and Social Categorization and Rationale

Environmental and Social Mitigation Measures

Environmental and Social Mitigation Measures

Stakeholder Engagement

Stakeholder Engagement

Press-Release

Related SII

Similar Projects

Information on E&S Complaints and Grievance Mechanisms

Disclaimer