Acting Responsibly
We are clearly committed to adhering to applicable rules, that means to compliance as an integral part of our corporate culture. We have therefore integrated key protection and regulatory areas that are relevant to our business activities into our Code of Conduct.
This Code of Conduct determines our principles of conduct for a safe working environment ensuring protection of people, protection of our environment, protection of fair competition, protection of assets entrusted to us and protection of data and business secrets. Our compliance management system is organised and developed by our Legal & Compliance department. Compliance with relevant laws and regulations is monitored by bayernets´ Compliance Officer and the management system is regularly audited.
You may reach out to the following contact persons confidentially – also anonymously – if you wish to report information on legal violations, especially economic crimes (e.g. fraud, corruption, breach of trust). You may also report violations of human rights (e.g. discrimination, breaches of occupational health and safety regulations, child or forced labour) or environmental damage.
Our Responsibility as a Network Operator
For a company that operates critical infrastructure and provides essential services, assuming responsibility is unquestionable.
The technical responsibility for ensuring that our transmission system functions reliably is substantial. This is the only situation our team knows: Safety und quality are our highest priority. To safeguard and develop quality, we regularly have our Technical Safety Management (TSM) and our Information Security Management System (ISMS)l tested and evaluated by third parties.
Another aspect of our responsibility as a network operator is guaranteeing non-discriminatory access to our grid. As a regulated company and independent transmission system operator certified by the Federal Network Agency in accordance with Sections 10 – 10e of the Energy Act (EnWG), we provide all grid users with non-discriminatory access to our transport services. Our Equal Treatment Officer monitors the non-discriminatory operation of our network in accordance with our Equal Treatment Programme pursuant to Section 10e of the EnWG and reports to the Federal Network Agency annually.
Safe, reliable and high-performance network operation
A central element for the safe, reliable and high-performance operation of our network in accordance with the regulations of the Energy Act and the High-Pressure Gas Pipeline Ordinance is bayernets’ Technical Safety Management (TSM).
The Director of Technical Operations makes sure and monitors that both structural and process organisation are compliant with legal stipulations, thereby also ensuring a qualified approach to the planning, construction, operation and maintenance of our gas supply systems. This includes safety and environmental requirements. Our Technical Safety Management has been certified by the DVGW and is regularly audited in accordance with gas industry regulations.
A further essential element for the safe and secure operation of our grid is the safeguarding of information security.
In accordance with regulations set out in the IT Security Act, we maintain an Information Security Management System (ISMS) pursuant to the IT Security Catalogue of the Federal Network Agency according to Section 11 (1a) EnWG. The system is based on the requirements of the ISO/IEC standards 27001, 27002 and 27019 and comprises all required IT systems and processes for secure network operation. Implementation was certified by an approved and independent auditing company and is checked in annual review audits. Recertification takes place every three years. The Information Security Officer of bayernets is responsible for continuously monitoring compliance with the regulations on information security.
By using natural gas from our network area, carbon dioxide emissions are reduced by more than 4 million metric tons/year compared with the corresponding heat and electricity generation from oil and coal. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), one tonne of unburned methane released into the atmosphere has 28 times more greenhouse effect than one tonne of carbon dioxide over a 100-year period. About 76 percent of methane emissions in Germany come from agriculture, about 8 percent from waste and wastewater as well as about 10 percent from the energy industry and diffuse emissions from fuels [UBA 2022, as of 3/2023].
The greenhouse effect of the methane emissions from our transmission system amounts to less than 1 % of the above-mentioned reduction of carbon dioxide emissions from gas supply. This was confirmed by a certified service provider who, among other things, measured diffuse emissions. Together with the other transmission system operators, we are continually working on further reducing our methane emissions.
Economic Responsibility
We take care of assets entrusted to us in a responsible way. We do not tolerate corruption and do not allow our business activities to be influenced by conflicts of interest.
As a commercial enterprise, we manage assets on behalf of network customers and the owners of bayernetsand are all required to protect these third-party assets in our daily work as best we can.
Crisis Prevention
As an energy infrastructure operator we are making a significant contribution to the secure and reliable supply of gas in our daily work.
Our task therefore includes being prepared for difficult transmission situations. In this case, it is vital to be goal-oriented and cooperate as efficiently as possible with grid operators, storage facility operators, authorities and other players in the gas industry.
We therefore act in accordance with the guide published by the German Association of Energy and Water (BDEW) ("Leitfaden Krisenvorsorge Gas“). This guide describes, in particular, processes that ensure smooth and coordinated communication between grid operators on all network levels in a supply crisis.