PHOENIX – Pinnacle West Capital Corp. (NYSE: PNW) has been named one of the 100 most sustainable corporations in the world and is the only Arizona business to make the select group. Pinnacle West is the parent company of Arizona Public Service Co. (APS), the state’s largest and longest-serving electric utility.
The Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World list was compiled for Corporate Knights, a Canadian-based social responsibility magazine by Innovest Strategic Value Advisors, an international investment research firm.
"All companies may be created equal, but not all are the same," said Toby A.A. Heaps, editor-in-chief of Corporate Knights Magazine. "The Global 100 sets out in one crisp list the best all-around global companies – trailblazers that are potential allies in helping to create a better world."
Twenty U.S.-based companies were included in the first annual "Global 100," coming second only to the U.K. with 32 companies. In addition to Pinnacle West, some of the other U.S. companies to make the list include UPS, Bank of America, Xerox Corporation, Intel Corporation and Weyerhaeuser Company.
The Top 100 companies emerged from a pool of more than 2,000 firms, representing such large global indices as the S&P 500, MSCI World, FTSE 350 and Eurostoxx. Companies were selected on their ability to manage strategic opportunities in new environmental and social markets.
Companies on The Global 100, said Heaps, are sustainable in the sense that they stand the best chance of being around in 100 years because of their demonstrated performance and strategic ability to manage the triple bottom line – society, environment and economy.
According to Michelle McCulloch, director of client relations at Innovest, how companies perform on environmental, social and strategic governance issues is having a rapidly-growing impact on their competitiveness, profitability and share price performance.
"Environmental and social performance measures are used as leading indicators for management quality and long-term finance performance," McCulloch said, adding that "Pinnacle West’s overall management of both social and environmental issues is superior to its industry peers."
"Their on-going efforts are likely to see increased value as environmental regulations continue to tilt the competitive playing field in the direction of cleaner, more efficient generation assets," she said.
Pinnacle West Chairman Bill Post said being named to The Global 100 list is recognition of the collective character of the Company’s 7,200 employees and their desire to produce safe and reliable energy while keeping the needs of the community and the environment at the forefront of everything they do.
"The strength of a company cannot be measured solely by earnings and stock price," he said. "A truly strong company is one that produces results for its customers and communities while also operating with honesty and integrity. Our internal compass points to a simple philosophy, ‘Do the right thing.’"
About Innovest
Innovest is an international investment research firm specializing in analyzing "non-traditional" drivers of risk and shareholder value, including companies’ performance on environmental, social and strategic governance issues. Innovest has been recognized recently by several independent commentators as the leading firm in the world in this area.
About Corporate Knights
Founded in 2002 and based in Toronto, Canada, Corporate Knights Inc. is an employee-owned media company that publishes the world’s first mass-market magazine with an explicit focus on corporate responsibility. Corporate Knights also publishes the International Herald Tribune special supplement,Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World.
About Pinnacle West
Pinnacle West is a Phoenix-based company with consolidated assets of approximately $10 billion. Through its subsidiaries, the Company generates, sells and delivers electricity and sells energy-related products and services to retail and wholesale customers in the western United States. It also develops residential, commercial, and industrial real estate projects.
Contacts
Media:
Maria Arellano, (602) 250-3155
Alan Bunnell, (602) 250-3376
Innovest Contact:
Michelle McCulloch, (905) 707-0876
Corporate Knights Contact:
Toby A.A. Heaps, (416) 203-4674