Dear Readers,

We are pleased to introduce the 2024 Sustainability Report with a few comments and reflections, marking our continuous journey of structured reporting and open sharing with you on the key contextual, social, environmental, and governance topics we have managed and addressed over the past year.

In many respects, the global geopolitical landscape in 2024 exhibited dynamics similar to the previous year.

The war between Russia and Ukraine continues with no sign of resolution, conflicts in the Middle East have expanded, and acts of piracy in the Red Sea have continued to affect shipping routes—including those for steel products. Natural gas and electricity prices are still under pressure.

According to major statistical indicators, the European industrial production has been in continuous decline since February 2023, and recovery forecasts for many strategic sectors such as automotive, construction, household appliances, and general mechanics appear to be postponed to the second half of 2025.

The economic and social impact of this crisis, the outcomes of political elections in many parts of the world (particularly in Europe and in the USA), the ongoing economic slowdown in China, and the technical and scientific debate on the real potential for replacing non-renewable energy sources have gradually sparked and reinforced new reflections on the methods and on the timelines of the ecological transition.

As a company with deep local roots and a strong awareness of our social role, we see it as both a duty and an opportunity to align our daily work with the protection and enhancement of people—those who work for or interact with Padana Tubi in various ways—and the safeguarding of the environment around us, in all the ways this commitment can be interpreted.

At the same time, we firmly believe that setting unfeasible climate or environmental goals, imposing transition-related costs or regulations that heavily burden European companies or encouraging the use of technologies that are not truly green—or are problematic in other respects—are not the right answers to a valid and pressing need.

Therefore, we hope that Italian and European political institutions will act swiftly with concrete measures to make the ecological transition an opportunity rather than a threat for companies and workers, so that it becomes a stimulus for innovation and the improvement of processes and products, without creating risks of isolation or loss of competitiveness in global markets.

From a strictly business perspective, you will read in these pages that we have renewed and maintained existing organisational certifications such as ISO 9001, ISO 45001, ISO 14001, ISO 14064, and EPD for all product categories, and we have begun the process of obtaining ISO 50001 certification for energy efficiency.

We have delivered training courses for our employees on these topics to spread the values behind formal procedures throughout the organisation. The course organised by our internal health and safety team titled “Safety is a State of Mind,” was particularly appreciated.

It deepened employee involvement, awareness, and dialogue in relation to the workplace safety through the analysis of real-life situations.

In terms of supporting our local community, Padana Tubi continued its longstanding collaboration with Third Sector organisations and responded to emergencies caused by unexpected climate events.

In this context of uncertainty, change, and opportunity, we have successfully worked to maintain our market share, focusing on our long-standing core countries—especially in Europe—and key end-use sectors such as construction, mechanical engineering, and infrastructure.

The decline in sales revenue relates solely to value, not to the volume of products delivered; this confirms the strength of our values in doing business: people first, respect for rules, listening to clients, transparent communication, product and service quality, and a straightforward approach to all stakeholders.

These values guide and reassure us as we look ahead to future growth trajectories and strategies.

We leave you to the reading of these pages, as always open to any comments or suggestions you may wish to share.

                           Alfieri Family