SUMMARY - Rapport annuel 2017

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SUMMARY - Rapport annuel 2017
SUMMARY
OF THE 137TH CORPORATE FINANCIAL YEAR

                       2    Chairman’s Statement
                       4    Editorial
                       6    2017 highlights
                      10    CFE in figures
                      12    Strategy
                      16    Board of Directors
                      18    Social responsibility
                      24    Innovation
                      28    Environmental responsability
                      30    Holding and non-transferred activities
                      34    Operational chart

                     36     Dredging, Environment, Offshore and Infra
                      40    Dredging
                      46    Dredging-Plus
                      54    DEME Concessions

                     56     Contracting
                      62    Construction
                      68    Multitechnics
                      70    Rail Infra & Utility Networks

                     72     Real Estate Development

                                                                                        1
                                                                        Annual report 2017
SUMMARY - Rapport annuel 2017
Ongoing
      successful
    development

CHAIRMAN’S
STATEMENT
Having assumed the chairmanship of CFE in mid-2016, I              The Contracting division made substantial progress.
finished the group’s first full financial year in 2017. Not only   Its figures for 2017 were up to expectations, and we
am I not disappointed, I am actually very satisfied with the       are convinced that this division still holds plenty of
development of each of CFE’s divisions.                            opportunities for growth.
In an economic climate perhaps rather less buoyant than it         When the Ackermans & van Haaren group acquired a
was before - a passing phase, I am sure - DEME managed             majority shareholding in the CFE group in 2013, many
to hold its own remarkably well thanks to the installation         believed that we were only interested in DEME and that the
of offshore wind farms, as well as to the dynamism of the          other activities, Contracting and Real Estate Development,
teams. The substantial investments that we carried out, will       would be neglected. Those people do not know us! The
allow us to remain very competitive in the future.                 recent acquisition of the Van Laere group is proof - if that
                                                                   was still needed - of Ackermans & van Haaren’s attachment
For Real Estate Development, 2017 was an exceptionally
                                                                   to CFE, as it strengthened CFE’s position in Contracting.
positive year. BPI, which took on a new visual identity,
confirms its position as one of the leading property               Our ambition is to keep improving the operational
developers in Belgium, Luxembourg and Poland. The                  excellence of every one of the companies in which we are
investors were not wrong, and responded favourably to calls        active. The work done by the managing directors and
for corporate funding on the financial market.                     their teams was shown to pay off in 2017. I am sure it will
                                                                   continue to pay off in the years to come.

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Annual report 2017
SUMMARY - Rapport annuel 2017
LUC BERTRAND
CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

                                                     3
                                     Annual report 2017
SUMMARY - Rapport annuel 2017
The CFE
                         group:
     riding on the
    crest of a wave!
                     CFE ended 2017 with a net result after tax        The trend observed in 2017 also bears out the
                     of € 180.4 million, which is more than in         logic of our organization: while the results

Editorial            2016. The past year thus clearly confirms the
                     upturn realized by the CFE group.
                                                                       of Dredging remained stable, Contracting
                                                                       and Real Estate Development reported
                                                                       a considerably better performance. The
                     This positive result can be seen across the
                                                                       synergies that we will continue to develop
                     three divisions. Not only DEME reported
                                                                       between the divisions will further consolidate
                     results in line with the particularly excellent
                                                                       our economic model. That will become
                     performance of 2016, the Contracting and
                                                                       evident very soon.
                     Real Estate Development divisions also
                     confirmed the favourable outlook at the           The group should take another step forward
                     beginning of the year. When we also look          in 2018, given the quality of the orders that
                     at the all-time high order book (with in          have been won, in particular by DEME, which
                     particular a more than € 350 million increase     today can rely on the most efficient fleet in
                     compared with the previous year for the           the dredging industry and related services.
                     Contracting division), we see that the CFE        This leap forward will become a reality
                     group is evidently on the right track.            for the Contracting division in particular,
                                                                       which was joined by the Van Laere group in
                                                                       December. The arrival of this new member
                                                                       will substantially strengthen the construction
                                                                       business in Belgium and will enable the

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Annual report 2017
SUMMARY - Rapport annuel 2017
RENAUD BENTÉGEAT                                                      PIET DEJONGHE
             MANAGING DIRECTOR                                                     MANAGING DIRECTOR

extended group to take on the future            We can all be proud of CFE’s performance in
challenges more effectively.                    2017, for it is the exceptional commitment of
                                                the entire workforce of the group that made
After this year’s excellent performance, the
                                                it possible to achieve those results and that
Real Estate Development division is well
                                                is still our greatest asset for the continuation
placed to progressively become a major real
                                                and success of our future development.
estate player in Belgium, Luxembourg and
Poland. To this end, we must in 2018 continue
the current programmes and further
strengthen the development capabilities.
The holding and non-transferred activities,
which remain in CFE SA, underwent
thoroughgoing reorganizations in 2016,
particularly the international and civil
engineering activities. Those reorganizations
permitted in 2017 the continuation and, in
some cases, the completion of contracts
that were concluded several years ago and
of which the results could have constituted a
risk factor for the company.

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                                                                                                       Annual report 2017
SUMMARY - Rapport annuel 2017
2017
  Highlights

01                                              02 03
                                                                                              BPI sold its stakes in the project
DIMCO won, in joint venture, the contract                                                     development companies of the
for the construction of the RijnlandRoute,                                                    ‘Oosteroever’ site in Ostend to the Versluys
the new road link between Katwijk and                                                         Group.
Leiden, which is intended to make the area
more easily accessible, improve traffic flow,                                                 BPI Luxembourg SA, IMMOBEL SA, and
and stimulate economic growth.                                                                BESIX RED SA finally sold the shares of
                                                                                              the company PEF KONS INVESTMENT SA
                                                                                              to AXA IM – Real Assets on behalf of AXA
                                                                                              Belgium.

                                                GeoSea, the marine offshore engineering
                                                subsidiary of the DEME group, will
                                                design, build and install 71 wind turbine
                                                foundations for the Hohe See offshore
                                                wind farm in the German North Sea,
                                                for which GeoSea is the EPCI partner of
                                                Siemens. This partnership enables Siemens
                                                to provide offshore wind turbines including
                                                foundations to EnBW.

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Annual report 2017
SUMMARY - Rapport annuel 2017
04 05 06
CLE began construction work on the          BPC won the first contract for the
modern residence ‘Fuussbann’ in             construction of a building and hotel for
Differdange, with spacious apartments,      the China Belgium Technology Center in
retail outlets, and a supermarket.          the science park of Louvain-la-Neuve,
                                            the first Chinese incubator in Western     DEME officially launched ‘Minerva’ in the
Amart started up a new phase of the         Europe. This first Chinese incubator       port of Zeebrugge. This 3,500 m³ hopper
residential project ‘Les Hauts Prés’ in     complex will become an Intelligence        dredger is the first dual fuel dredger in
Uccle for the property developers BPI and   Valley for Chinese businesses. The works   the world able to run entirely on liquefied
Belgian Land.                               are expected to last eight years. The      natural gas (LNG). This vessel has a Green
                                            China Belgium Technology Center will       Passport and a Clean Design certificate,
                                            eventually comprise five incubators for    and meets the strictest international
                                            high-tech Chinese companies specializing   emission standards.
                                            in biotechnology, nanotechnology, IT and
                                                                                       The boards of directors of Ackermans
                                            telecommunication, optoelectronics, and
                                                                                       & van Haaren and CFE examined the
                                            sustainable development.
                                                                                       possibility of bringing together the
                                                                                       activities of the Van Laere group and of
                                                                                       CFE Contracting under CFE. The Van Laere
                                                                                       group, a leading general contractor in
                                                                                       Belgium, is 100% owned by Ackermans &
                                                                                       van Haaren. The main entities of the Van
                                                                                       Laere group are Algemene Aannemingen
                                                                                       Van Laere NV, Groupe Thiran SA and
                                                                                       Arthur Vandendorpe NV.
                                                                                       CFE Polska signed several contracts for
                                                                                       international customers, such as the
                                                                                       construction of the residential project
                                                                                       Riverview in Gdansk for VASTINT, the real
                                                                                       estate division of the IKEA group, and the
                                                                                       extension of the Platan shopping centre
                                                                                       for ROCKCASTLE.

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                                                                                                                  Annual report 2017
SUMMARY - Rapport annuel 2017
2017
highlights

07 09 10                                   The joint venture Sassevaart will build         GeoSea signed an agreement with Moray
                                           the New Terneuzen Lock. The Belgo-              East for the design, supply, construction
                                           Dutch joint venture Sassevaart consists         and installation of around 100 wind turbine
                                           of construction firms such as Van               foundations and three offshore substation
                                           Laere, and includes two subsidiaries of         platform foundations, and for the
                                           DEME, namely the dredging company               transport and installation of three offshore
                                           Dredging International, and DIMCO,              substation platforms. The agreement is
                                           which specializes in civil and hydraulic        subject to financial close which is expected
                                           engineering structures. The joint venture       in the second half of 2018. Moray Offshore
                                           will design, build and maintain the New         Windfarm East is a joint venture between
                                           Lock for a two-year period. It will be put      EDP Renewables (77%) and ENGIE (23%).
                                           up in the present Terneuzen lock complex,
                                           between Westsluis and Oostsluis. It will
                                           be 427 metres high, 55 metres wide, and
GeoSea signed an agreement with            16 metres deep. Work is due to start at the
DONG Energy and Siemens to acquire         end of 2017 and will take about five years.
full ownership of A2SEA. A2SEA will        The first ship is expected to pass through it
continue to operate from Denmark for the   in 2022. The New Lock will improve access
maintenance and installation of offshore   to the ports of Ghent and Terneuzen, and
wind turbines.                             will facilitate maritime shipping between
                                           the Netherlands, Belgium and France. It
                                           will also give a fresh boost to the economy
                                           of Zeeland Flanders and the Flemish
                                           Region.
                                           CLE began construction work on the
                                           residential project ‘Domaine de l’Europe
                                           - Kiem’ on the Kirchberg plateau in
                                           Luxembourg for the property developer
                                           BPI.

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Annual report 2017
SUMMARY - Rapport annuel 2017
11
GeoSea announced the acquisition
                                             12
                                             CFE Contracting acquired full ownership           After changing its company name into
of a majority shareholding (72.5%) in        of the company Aannemingen Van Laere              BPI Real Estate Belgium for a better
G-tec. This company, based in Milmort        NV for the price of € 18.4 million. This          description of its activity, BPI launched a
in the Liège area (Belgium), specializes     acquisition had been approved beforehand          new website and strengthened its image.
in offshore geotechnical and geological      by the boards of directors of CFE and CFE         This came with a new logo in new colours
exploration, marine geophysical and          Contracting after having been submitted           expressing the dynamism of this company,
environmental surveys, and deep-sea          to the committee of independent                   which is one of the leaders on the Belgian,
marine engineering services. The remaining   directors. The Van Laere group will               Luxembourg and Polish property markets.
shares are held by SRIW (Société Régionale   continue to operate under its own trade           BPI successfully launched the first bond
d’Investissement de Wallonie).               names. Its activities will complement             issue in its history. The private placement
                                             those of the other Belgian construction           was subscribed on the first day up to the
                                             companies of CFE Contracting. The CEO             desired maximum amount of € 30 million.
                                             of the Van Laere group, Manu Coppens,             The bonds have a five-year maturity and
                                             joined the executive committee of CFE             pay an annual coupon rate of 3.75%.
                                             Contracting.
                                                                                               GeoSea signed a partnership agreement
                                             CFE Contracting acquired the company              with CSBC Corporation to develop
                                             SA José Coghe-Werbrouck. This company,            offshore wind energy in Taiwan. The
                                             established in 1966 and headquartered             Taiwan government outlined an ambitious
                                             in Hooglede, has a plant in Péruwelz and          programme to reduce the island’s
                                             specializes in railway works. Its strength lies   dependence on fossil and nuclear energy,
                                             in the skill of its highly qualified workforce    and instead to tap its vast resources of
                                             and in an extensive array of machinery.           offshore wind power. A target of at least
                                             Coghe recently invested in a state-of-the-        3 GW offshore wind power capacity to
                                             art Tracklayer machine to replace railway         be installed in the strait of Taiwan has
                                             switches, enabling it to fit prefabricated        been set for 2025. GeoSea and CSBC will
                                             switches with concrete sleepers in one            together set up a Taiwanese joint venture
                                             whole unit.                                       for the transport and installation of the
                                                                                               necessary foundations and wind turbines
                                                                                               for those wind farms.

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                                                                                                                          Annual report 2017
SUMMARY - Rapport annuel 2017
CFE
       in figures                                     In 2017, CFE
                                                      Contracting
                                                      presented Practice
                                                      Awards for the
                                                      first time.

                                                      The project

3,066 19.6 %
Revenue               Increase of DEME’s revenue by
                                                      « Erasmus
                                                      Gardens » in
                                                      Brussels won
                                                      the « Best
million €                                             Sustainable
                                                      Real Estate
                                                      Project » award
                                                      in Belgium.

 10
 Annual report 2017
8 689 180.4
Employees                           Net income part of the group

                                    million €

                                            4,851
The operating income (EBIT)             ENGEMA             Order book
increased                            Caténaires and

249.4                                     0
by 10% to                           VMA Nizet achieve

                                                           million €
million €                                lost-time
                                     accidents in 2017.

The order book of CFE Contracting

44.6 %
increased by

which is explained by the
incorporation
of the group Van Laere.

                                                                                       11
                                                                        Annual report 2017
Strategy                                                                                           DEME will remain focused,
                                                                                                   will pioneer and innovate,
                                                                                                   and continue to look to
                                                                                                   the future.

A strategy staking on
a winning combination
of collaboration,
operational excellence
and innovation
2017 was a good year, but there is still plenty of room for
improvement. To ensure continued and profitable growth,
the strategy of the CFE group will therefore focus in
2018 more than ever on three important levers: retention
and intensification of synergies and partnerships within the
group, operational excellence, which is essential to achieve
our goals, and innovation, which involves thinking about
tomorrow’s world.

                                                                               Valuable synergies
                                                                               between divisions…
                               This year we have seen growing synergies        Those synergies have proved beneficial
                               and partnerships between subsidiaries of the    in many respects. For instance, the
                               same division as well as between the three      continuation of civil engineering activities,
                               independent divisions of the CFE group,         which were transferred to DEME, created
                               notably between DEME with its dredging and      employment and solid skills within the
                               marine and environmental civil engineering      group as a source of numerous successes
                               activities, BPI with all its real estate        internationally and in the Benelux area.
                               development activities, and CFE Contracting     Collaboration between Real Estate
                               with its construction, multitechnics and rail   Development and Construction resulted
                               activities in the Benelux area, Poland and      in highly effective technical solutions for
                               Tunisia.                                        the benefit of property developer and
                                                                               contractor alike. This collaboration confirms
                                                                               - if that was still necessary - that we have
                                                                               complementary skills for the future within
                                                                               the group.
Artist impression of the
project ‘Entrée en Ville’ at
Differdange, a mixed-used
project of 25,000 m².

12
Annual report 2017
… and between teams of                          make known what each of the entities’
                                                competences are throughout CFE, so that
the same division                               priority is given to internal solutions within
                                                the group.
This collaboration is also essential between    Within the Contracting division, the sharing
different teams of the same division, and       of knowledge and skills is already made
brings added value to each entity. 2017         possible by the creation of three clusters,
proved the relevance of those partnerships,     each covering all the activities of a particular
which will be intensified at all levels in      segment: electricity, HVAC and rail. Very
2018 and in the coming years. How? By           interesting synergies and complementarities
sharing knowledge and experience beyond         are also systematically being investigated         More and more productive
the confines of each entity, working            between the entities of the Construction           synergies within the
together on projects that call for different    segment.                                           HVAC cluster and, more
skills, prioritizing the use of the group’s                                                        generally, within the
own competences, sharing opportunities                                                             Contracting division.
according to the geographical location, or by   Operational excellence:
transferring activities between entities.
                                                essential for profitable
This willingness to work together not only
involves the management of the entities, but    growth
also calls for the deployment of the group’s
communication and human resources               Growth requires a carefully considered
departments to ensure that knowledge            approach. There lies the essence of our
is shared in the best possible way and to       pursuit of operational excellence. The

                                                                                                                           13
                                                                                                            Annual report 2017
Strategy

The potential of new
technologies such as BIM
is really tremendous - AMS
De Boogkeers - Antwerp.

                              construction entities of the group took         ‘Scheldt River’. The delivery marked a major
                              an important step in 2017 with the              milestone in the dredging industry, as these
                              implementation of Lean management. But          are the first dredgers in the world to operate
                              that is just a start. The lean approach now     on LNG.
                              has to be systematically put into practice
                                                                              In addition, the DRIVE programme covers
                              on the building projects, as well as in the
                                                                              a wide range of operational improvements
                              other segments and in the offices, in order
                                                                              during all project phases. The Opportunity
                              to facilitate and simplify the different
                                                                              & Risk Management system was further
                              management processes.
                                                                              refined based on the 2016 insights and
                                                                              lessons learnt. This has resulted in an
                              Innovation: enormous                            improved, and deeply embedded, risk-aware
                                                                              entrepreneurship by all stakeholders in the
                              potential!                                      DEME entities.

The entities active in
special techniques are also
                              Continuous improvement also calls for
                              an innovative approach. The potential of        What will tomorrow’s
particulary attentive to
the sustainable aspect of     new technologies such as BIM, 3D printing,      construction industry
                              robotics and prefab is really tremendous.
HVAC installations.
                              Special emphasis will be on the application     look like?
                              of BIM technology, which will allow us to
                              play a central role in the process of digital   Innovation means thinking about how
                              construction. We are convinced that this        tomorrow’s world will evolve. This reflection
                              approach will not only be conducive to the      is obviously crucial in the area of real estate,
                              CFE group’s growth, but will also hold many     where projects only begin to take concrete
                              benefits for our customers.                     shape for investors four or five years later.
                                                                              More than ever, we will focus in 2018 more
                              As a company with a maritime heritage
                                                                              extensively on what form tomorrow’s homes,
                              of more than 140 years, DEME has always
                                                                              offices and shopping centres will take, as well
                              been a pioneer in innovation and new
                                                                              as on mobility, which is in full development
                              technologies. Last year’s highlights include
                                                                              and affects all infrastructures.
                              the addition of two pioneering dual-fuel
                              hoppers to the dredging fleet, ‘Minerva’ and

14
Annual report 2017
A state-of-the-art
                                                                                                    machine to replace railway
Environment and                                  highly skilled workforce and full access to the
                                                 markets offered by our reference shareholder
                                                                                                    switches.

renewable energies:                              to all its entities.
advanced solutions                               The CFE group also acquired the company
                                                 Coghe, attesting to its ambition to
Global developments are fundamentally            strengthen its activity in the rail segment.
changing our markets. But DEME is not            This acquisition is an investment that is all
standing still. We are continually looking       the more important for the future since
forward and currently we are focusing on a       it will give us the benefit of a substantial
series of initiatives with the goal to develop   increase of top-quality equipment.
breakthrough innovative solutions, tackling      Finally, it should be mentioned the
challenges like the ‘plastic soup’ threatening   acquisition of the Danish offshore wind
our oceans, the storage of energy to balance     company A2SEA and the Belgium-based,
electricity demand and supply, or the Blue       geotechnical and geological offshore site
Cluster, a partnership in Belgium where we       investigation specialist G-tec. This will enable
look to smartly combine sustainability and       DEME to further reinforce its fully integrated
economic growth. For example, DEME is a          services and solutions portfolio.
pioneer in renewable energy developments
                                                 The results of the past year and the               The group Van Laere, a
and coastal protection, two of the initiatives
                                                 increasing order books confirm for us the          leading general contractor
driven by the partners of the Blue Cluster                                                          in Belgium.
platform.                                        appropriateness of the strategic choices
                                                 we made over the past few years. In
                                                 order to offer our group the best possible
New acquisitions                                 opportunities for the future, we will further
                                                 strengthen the synergies and partnerships
                                                 at all levels, with a particular emphasis on
The CFE group not only made financial            operational excellence and innovation.
progress in 2017. It also acquired the three
construction companies of the Van Laere
group, which have an excellent reputation.
A great opportunity for CFE, whose
Contracting division benefited from a new

                                                                                                                             15
                                                                                                              Annual report 2017
Board
 of Directors

                                                     CISKA SERVAIS
                                                     CISKA SERVAIS SPRL, REPRESENTED BY
                                                     CISKA SERVAIS - INDEPENDENT DIRECTOR
                                                     CHAIR OF THE APPOINTMENTS AND
                                                     REMUNERATION COMMITTEE
                                                     MEMBER OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE

                                                                                            JAN SUYKENS   CHRISTIAN LABEYRIE
                                                                                            DIRECTOR      DIRECTOR
                            LUC BERTRAND                                                                  MEMBER OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE
                            CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD
                            OF DIRECTORS
                            MEMBER OF THE APPOINTMENTS AND
                            REMUNERATION COMMITTEE

LEEN GEIRNAERDT
PAS DE MOTS SPRL, REPRESENTED BY LEEN
GEIRNAERDT - INDEPENDENT DIRECTOR
MEMBER OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE

  16
  Annual report 2017
ALAIN BERNARD
                                 JOHN-ERIC BERTRAND                                DIRECTOR
                                 DIRECTOR
                                 CHAIRMAN OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE

                                                               RENAUD BENTÉGEAT
                                                               MANAGING DIRECTOR                         KOEN JANSSEN
                                                                                                         DIRECTOR

PHILIPPE DELUSINNE
INDEPENDENT DIRECTOR                PIET DEJONGHE
MEMBER OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE       MANAGING DIRECTOR
MEMBER OF THE APPOINTMENTS AND
REMUNERATION COMMITTEE

                                                                                                                  17
                                                                                                   Annual report 2017
Social
responsibility

Ever greater safety
                          Safety is more than ever a top priority throughout the CFE group. The first
                          Safety Day held in all entities of the Contracting division at the beginning
                          of 2017 was a success, and a second edition has already taken place at the
                          beginning of 2018. A similar day has existed at DEME for several years already.
                          However, this is just one of the many initiatives that are taken to improve
                          safety at all the entities.

                                                                    The constant efforts being made in the
                                                                    CFE group are paying off: accident figures
The Exxon                                                           reveal a favourable trend in terms of both
                                                                    frequency and seriousness. Several entities
Mobil Safety                                                        achieve a ‘zero accident’ score, such as
Award                                                               ENGEMA Caténaires and VMA NIZET (zero
                                                                    lost-time accidents).
presented to
MBG
                                                                    First Safety Day at CFE
A fine achievement,                                                 Contracting!
since the conditions
of this prize awarded                                               The Safety Day took place on the same day
by Exxon Mobil are                                                  at all the Belgian and international entities
highly stringent (zero                                              of CFE Contracting. Work stopped for a
accidents, daily safety                                             whole day and all employees were specifically
reports, regular safety                                             urged to be aware of the importance of
meetings, etc) and the                                              safety and to change their behaviour to
slightest incident can                                              improve safety. Among the many events
jeopardize any chances                                              that took place on that day were interactive
of winning the prize.                                               workshops on various topics such as falling
MBG won this Safety                                                 from a height or fires on building sites,
Award for the excellent                                             eyewitness accounts of people who became
level of safety that                                                disabled after an accident, guided site
was maintained on                                                   visits, first-aid courses, coaching, stress
the building site of a                                              management, an ergonomics workshop, and
factory for Exxon Mobil                                             many other activities.
in Antwerp.

18
Annual report 2017
Another
                                                                                                      Safety
                                                                                                      Moment Day
                                                                                                      at DEME
                                                                                                      For several years now,
                                                                                                      DEME has organized
                                                                                                      a worldwide Safety
                                                                                                      Moment Day. The
                                                                                                      theme in 2017 was all
                                                                                                      forms of hoisting. All
                                                                                                      hoisting procedures
                                                                                                      were catalogued so
                                                                                                      that every employee
                                                                                                      can find the good
                                                                                                      practices identified for
                                                                                                      each type of hoisting
                                                                                                      equipment.

Numerous training                                    The importance of risk
programmes at all                                    analysis
entities
                                                     Awareness campaigns, training programmes
                                                     and toolbox meetings were also held in
Besides this exceptional safety day, many
                                                     the different clusters and subsidiaries of
other initiatives took place, such as a
                                                     the Contracting division, in Belgium and
substantial increase in the number of health
                                                     internationally, to raise safety awareness
and safety advisers at all CFE entities.
                                                     among the management and to reiterate
The companies also organized numerous                the basic principles of safety management,
technical training programmes specific to            as well as for training in fire prevention and
their line of business. CFE Bâtiment Brabant         first aid in case of accidents.
Wallonie (CFE BBW) continued its training
                                                     Emphasis was on the importance of risk
programme on working at heights to make
                                                     analyses, with an optimization of those
sure that every worker or crane operator
                                                     analyses at CFE BBW and the creation of
working on a building shell is properly trained
                                                     innovative smartphone applications at MBG
and equipped with a personal safety harness.
                                                     and CFE Polska.
Training sessions were also organized on sling
operations, electrical works, scaffolding etc.
at various entities of CFE Contracting, while
the Rail Infra & Utility Networks segment
                                                     Safety apps for
focused on the very specific safety aspects of       smartphone
working on railway sites and the installation
of high-voltage power lines in training              Those apps are used to report and
courses organized by Infrabel.                       communicate details of an incident or a
At DEME, a special Task Force was set up             dangerous situation very quickly, so that
composed of representatives of the marine            preventive safety measures can be taken.
engineering activities, QHSE-S and hoisting          During the first month, some fifty incidents
specialists. This Task Force systematically          or dangerous situations were reported in this
visits all the vessels of the fleet to explain the   way at MBG, compared with just a hundred
new safety procedures and train the crews.           during the whole of 2016!

                                                                                                                               19
                                                                                                                Annual report 2017
Social
responsibility

                         The Karolina safety app developed by CFE        The results of the HIPO analysis also
                         Polska also makes it easy to run audits,        constitute an important tool to help the
                         statistics and reports, and was accoladed       staff of DEME take the necessary measures
CHILD5                   with a Best Practice Award.                     immediately in their area of responsibility,
                                                                         whether on board a vessel, on site, or on a
                         In addition to those various initiatives,
                                                                         project.
The CHILD (Colleagues    unannounced on-site visits and continuous
Help Injuries to         improvements to protective equipment
Leave DEME) safety       (harnesses, cameras on tower cranes, fall
                         protection, etc) help to increase safety
                                                                         A first for DEME: a
programme took
its normal course.       throughout the group.                           worldwide ‘safety pause’
The CHILD 5 safety
awareness sessions,
which address            A new system of high-                           The idea of this safety pause came after
                                                                         a QHSE-S performance score for the first
various topics
such as leadership,
                         potential incident analysis                     quarter below the usual high standards, and
                                                                         a serious incident on one of the dredgers. The
communication,           (HIPO)                                          QHSE-S team decided to act immediately
cooperation and                                                          and called for a safety pause, a course of
commitment, were         In 2017, DEME introduced a system of            action that received the full support of the
attended by more than    high-potential incident analysis (HIPO)         management and shareholders of DEME.
800 staff members in     focusing on incidents that may have serious     Work was interrupted for half a day at every
2017. An awareness       consequences for the company’s quality,         project site, office and vessel to allow DEME
campaign was also        health, safety and environmental standards.     to re-emphasize the message ‘safety first’. A
organized on the                                                         detailed analysis of the incident subsequently
subject of blind spots   HIPO analyses are conducted on a quarterly      resulted in an action plan containing more
on earth-moving          basis throughout the DEME group. They           than 40 items.
machinery.               highlight worrying incidents or developments
                         that need to be addressed as soon as            ‘Risk hunts’ were organized on all vessels and
                         possible. By analyzing QHSE incidents that      in the offices, during which staff members
                         occurred during marine, hoisting, earth-        identified every potential risk or hazard in
                         moving and other operations, potential          their work environment.
                         problems are identified immediately, so
                                                                         At the same time, DEME launched a Safety
                         that the management and QHSE-S team
                                                                         Charter which asks everyone to look out for
                         can use this information to work out a
                                                                         each other. All employees were asked to sign
                         targeted action plan. This may include poster
                                                                         the Charter. An accompanying safety video
                         campaigns, additional training sessions
                                                                         was produced in which the team involved
                         or toolbox meetings, inspection rounds by
                                                                         in an incident urges its colleagues to take
                         the management, and general process
                                                                         safety seriously.
                         improvements.

20
Annual report 2017
CFE’s greatest
asset: the men and
women who work for
the group
CFE has always set great store by the men and women who work for it. This
was all the more so in 2017, a year marked by renewed major investment in
human resources at different levels.

In a context marked by numerous mergers           HR, etc) took place in a knowledge-sharing
and combinations of subsidiaries, the human       perspective.
resources teams were strengthened in all
                                                  This sharing process also stimulates in
entities, more particularly in the Contracting
                                                  the companies the search for internal
division at CFE Bouw Vlaanderen, CFE BBW,
                                                  competences within the group that meet
VMA, the HVAC cluster, and the rail activity.
                                                  the needs of their assignments. This will be
A central human resources department was
                                                  further intensified in 2018 by the creation of
also set up at group level to foster synergies
                                                  networks between managers and by other
and generate interactions between all the
                                                  initiatives to foster interaction.
subsidiaries.

Encouraging and                                   ‘Spencer for DEME’ app
facilitating knowledge                            for the staff
sharing                                           The app ‘Spencer for DEME’, which was
                                                  introduced in 2017, is also part of this sharing   Young people
The different HR managers meet every
two months to exchange best practices,
                                                  and cooperation process. It is a mobile
                                                  application that keeps employees up to date
                                                                                                     are the future!
knowledge and experience of their teams           on the latest DEME news and gives them
between entities as well as between               easy access to work-related content and            What the youngest
divisions. In the context of Ambition 2020, a     tools while out of the office. With Spencer,       employees have to
digital platform was set up to facilitate those   DEME wants to improve communication                say does not always
exchanges, and a team from CFE Polska             and cooperation by bringing together               get the attention it
came to Belgium to visit projects of the          all information and the various business           deserves in the world
group that implement Lean and Bluebeam;           applications in one central place, a true          of work. CFE BBW and
this visit led to fruitful exchanges and          mobile ‘hub’. This approach is particularly        MBG want to change
cooperation projects.                             necessary as most of DEME’s operations take        this by making the
                                                  place on an international level.                   most of what those
The Ambition 2020 project was initiated in                                                           young people have to
2016 in the Contracting division, and clearly                                                        offer. Brought together
highlights the paramount importance                                                                  in the ‘Comité des
of human resources in the group’s                                                                    jeunes’ and the group
development. The aim is to pool energies                                                             ‘Jonge Wolven’, the
in a forward-looking common project. In                                                              junior members of the
2017, several meetings of managers and                                                               teams get a respectful
inter-subsidiary working groups centring                                                             hearing for the
on specific topics (procurement, finance,                                                            innovative vision they
                                                                                                     bring to the company.

                                                                                                                             21
                                                                                                              Annual report 2017
Social
responsibility

A healthy
mind in a
healthy body!
Employee well-being
has been gauged in
surveys, followed by
on-site improvement
plans and various
training programmes,
such as on burnout
prevention at BPC.
By the same token,
sports and health         CFE, a group that is good                       Pursuing its objective of becoming an
                                                                          “employer of choice” in the dredging and
programmes have been
set up at the different   to work for                                     environmental and marine engineering
entities to improve                                                       industry, in Belgium and internationally,
health and well-being,    The CFE group, which already boasts an          DEME is making considerable efforts to
reduce stress and,        outstanding reputation as an employer,          become a more flexible employer and has
ultimately, ensure not    strengthened that image further in 2017 by      launched a number of initiatives in the
only that every worker    its highly proactive human resources policy.    area of homeworking, mobility and flexible
can flourish in his or    To make employees aware of their skills and     working hours. In the summer of 2017, the
her job, but also has     to enable them to develop in their job, a       HR team of DEME conducted a survey
a healthy mind in a       programme was set up with tools for career      on mobility issues and possible solutions.
healthy body.             planning, training and internal mobility, as    As traffic congestion on the outskirts of
                          well as talent assessment and employee          Antwerp is a serious problem, employees can
                          satisfaction.                                   now work from home or make use of several
                                                                          fully equipped and state-of-the-art satellite
                          At the local level, the various clusters and    offices situated on main roads that are
                          entities benefit from this strong image         well served by public transport. The staff’s
                          when they take part in events at schools        response to this new policy has been very
                          and universities where employers and            positive.
                          students meet, or when they recruit staff.
                          The subsidiaries are also maximizing their      DEME is confident that these measures will
                          own strong points to attract prospective        assure its workforce of a more stable work-
                          employees by offering coaching, employee        life balance and will diminish the departure
                          induction programmes, training sessions,        of workers wearied by the daily transport
                          career development opportunities and            problems.
                          mobility between entities. Those assets
                          have become even more attractive as the
                          HR teams and internal interactions were         A highly professional
                          strengthened in 2017.                           recruitment process

                          Mobility solutions                              The recruitment process has been improved
                                                                          with the help of professional experts in this
                                                                          field. The idea is to use competence as the
                          The idea of ‘hubworking’, allowing employees    only criterion, without discrimination on
                          to work in a satellite office closer to home,   grounds of gender, cultural background
                          is also gaining ground, and is already          or age, but also to meet the needs of
                          beginning to be put into practice at DEME       candidates by taking into account their
                          and MBG. Working from home is also on the       personality and discovering what the
                          agenda, particularly at DEME.                   employer can offer them. This method

22
Annual report 2017
In 2017, DEME received
                                                                        the ‘Randstad Award’
                                                                        for the most attractive
                                                                        employer in Belgium.
                                                                        This award is based
                                                                        on the results of a
                                                                        survey held among
                                                                        11,000 respondents.
                                                                        DEME also won the
                                                                        ‘Lifetime Achievement
                                                                        Award’ on the basis of
                                                                        the ratings which the
                                                                        company has obtained
                                                                        since 2009 in the
                                                                        ‘Randstad Employer
                                                                        Brand Research’.

of recruitment also makes it possible to
identify the talents of people who do not
                                                 Wide range of training                              Fine boost
necessarily have the qualifications required     programmes                                          for a Polish
for the job. Internal training programmes
have been developed specially for them.
                                                                                                     primary
This is the case in particular for the job
                                                 Broadly speaking, the training programmes
                                                 are designed to give people the best possible
                                                                                                     school
of optical fibre welder, of which there is       opportunities and to help them grow and
currently a shortage: the company Louis          develop throughout their career.                    CFE Polska, together
Stevens & Co has developed a short but                                                               with two other
highly valued training course which ensures      Besides numerous training programmes in             companies involved in
that new recruits who are talented but not       safety and technical training specific to the       Majaland Park (Plopsa
specifically qualified are not discouraged by    group’s various activities, training in financial   and Momentum
the complexity of the task.                      and analytical aspects etc, emphasis in             Capital), fitted out an
                                                 2017 at all entities was on training in more        ICT room in the primary
                                                 general and personal competencies, such as          school of Boczów in
International recruitment                        leadership, feedback, stimulating personal          Poland. The equipment
campaign at DEME                                 growth, as well as Lean management at
                                                 MBG and BPC, and on-the-job coaching of
                                                                                                     comprises 27 laptops,
                                                                                                     printers and TV and
                                                 junior employees at CFE BBW.                        multimedia materials.
DEME launched a major international                                                                  It will be used for
                                                 DEME extended its already wide range of
recruitment campaign in 2017. In view of                                                             numerous purposes:
                                                 training programmes with the launch in
the success of all its entities, the company                                                         IT classes, interactive
                                                 November of ‘EPC Community’. This virtual
wants to further strengthen its international                                                        teaching, research
                                                 training platform assists staff members with
workforce. The recruitment campaign seems                                                            and rapid information
                                                 the more technical aspects of EPC projects.
to have paid off, as evidenced by a recent                                                           transfer, and
                                                 It testifies to DEME’s intention to expand
welcome day for some 200 new employees.                                                              communication with
                                                 its range of virtual training programmes
Thirty nationalities were represented. DEME                                                          pupils and parents.
                                                 and thereby give its staff and crews greater
was particularly active in Spain, Portugal and                                                       Unquestionably a very
                                                 flexibility. Furthermore, the performance
Eastern Europe, visiting university campuses,                                                        useful present!
                                                 management tool ‘Time To’ developed by
attending regional events, and working
                                                 DEME helps staff and managers to assess
together with local employment agencies.
                                                 their performance, skills and development
It was an effective way to reinforce its
                                                 needs. A specific ‘Time To’ tool for vessel
international brand image as an employer,
                                                 crews will be implemented in 2018.
which was already strong in Belgium and the
Netherlands.

                                                                                                                            23
                                                                                                              Annual report 2017
Innovation

Innovation:
  key lever
   operational
                                                        for

 excellence
                               The importance of innovation is beyond doubt. The contribution of new
                               technologies to the construction activities is a decisive productivity factor by
                               its direct impact on operational excellence and in several respects also allows
                               a better protection of the environment and greater safety.
                               Innovation and the desire to push the envelope also remain part of DEME’s
                               DNA. DEME’s investments in new technologies show how important
                               innovation is to the company. Throughout the world, its employees participate
                               in technological developments to introduce sustainable solutions on its
                               markets. Within DEME, this approach calls for close collaboration between
                               the sites, vessel crews, project management teams and the technical and
                               engineering departments.

                               Working more efficiently                           CFE group in Belgium and internationally.
                                                                                  The Tivoli building project, a sustainable
                                                                                  district in the Brussels Region, is a prime
                               Lean Management responds to this                   example of this approach.
                               expectation. Applied to construction, it
The Tivoli building project,
                               optimizes the organization of the site by
                                                                                  BlueBeam, an original
a sustainable district in
the Brussels Region, is a      eliminating all forms of inefficiency such
                               as unnecessary actions and movements,
prime example.
                               overproduction of materials, time-                 formula at MBG
                               consuming procedures, etc. Planning is an
                               essential aspect of Lean Management. Based         Like BIM (Building Information Modelling),
                               on deadlines, needs and other information          BlueBeam is a software program that allows
                               supplied by all the parties involved in the        team members to work digitally and in real
                               project - on-site workers, subcontractors,         time and facilitates the transmission of
                               suppliers, architects, etc. - this calls for the   information. The big difference is that the
                               participation and collaboration of all the         information in the BIM model is transmitted
                               parties and makes it possible to cope with         in PDF format. This alternative to BIM was
                               any problems that arise. This method was           developed by MBG to reflect more closely
                               rolled out in 2017 across the projects of the      the real situation in the field and make the

24
Annual report 2017
information accessible without having to
use 3D software. BlueBeam was tested this
year on MBG’s Antwerp Management School
project in Antwerp, which is still in progress.
The system clearly proves its relevance
on that project: all the partners involved
(designers, suppliers, subcontractors,
administrative staff, etc.) have easy access
to the information, which is also very
efficient to manage.

Innovative initiatives in all
respects
Everyone can have a good idea. That is why                                                        More than 300 new ideas
DEME has set up innovation initiatives that                                                       were entered, selected,
are intended for its employees and really                                                         successfully implemented,
create value.                                                                                     and accoladed with an
                                                                                                  ‘Innovation Diver Award’.
‘DEMEx’ emphasizes disruptive innovation
by calling on young talents to identify
bold commercial opportunities for DEME.
‘Co-creating our future’, an event that was       Partnerships for
organized at the beginning of 2017, brought       innovation
together workers and management staff
to reflect on the commercial trends of
                                                  DEME has always entered into partnerships
the future and to explore innovative ideas
                                                  with other companies and with universities,
together.
                                                  academic institutions and government
In 2017, the ‘DEME Innovation Diver’ called       organizations with a view to working
upon all employees across the world to            together in the area of research and
resolve thirteen challenges and to submit         innovation. This sharing of knowledge
ideas for innovative solutions. Some 700          and creativity has led to new ideas for
staff members joined forces on an online          sustainable solutions to meet different
innovation platform. More than 300 new            environmental and economic challenges of
ideas - an impressive figure - were entered.      our planet.
Several of those were selected, successfully
                                                  The Flemish Institute for Agriculture and
implemented, and accoladed with an
                                                  Fisheries Research (ILVO) and the University    The first lines for mussel
‘Innovation Diver Award’.                                                                         farming were installed on
                                                  of Ghent launched the Edulis pilot project to
Within the CFE group, innovation                  examine the possibility of growing mussels      the C-Power wind farm in
                                                                                                  May 2017.
increasingly manifests itself in widely diverse   on the wind farms off the Belgian coast.
areas, as is testified by the development of      These institutions are conducting the project
several applications in the areas of training     – called ‘Noordzee Aquacultuur’ (Aquaculture
and safety, such as, for example, the apps        in the North Sea) – in partnership with a
developed by MBG and CFE Polska to report         consortium of seven companies, including
and communicate an incident or dangerous          DEME. The first lines for mussel farming
situation quickly on a digital platform.          were installed on the C-Power wind farm
Another novelty is the introduction in the        in May 2017. Within two years, the experts
Rail segment of an innovative safety and          should be able to deliver a final opinion on
test system to prevent accidents when rail        the ecological and economic feasibility of
cranes are used.                                  mussel growing on the wind farms.

                                                                                                                          25
                                                                                                            Annual report 2017
Best
Practice
Awards

                  Sharing
                 good
                   ideas
In 2017, CFE Contracting presented Best Practice Awards                       optical fibre welding. Louis Stevens & Co set
for the first time. This initiative stemmed from the desire                   to work, and this investment in time paid
                                                                              off immediately: half the workers decided to
to share good ideas with everybody. This first edition of the
                                                                              stay. This training course was an excellent
Best Practice Awards clearly showed that there is no lack of                  idea, short and well targeted!
good ideas in the group.
                                                                              In the category “Office”:
                             There were 65 entries, which were assessed       MBG for the Bluebeam
                             by a panel composed of Renaud Bentégeat          software
                             (CFE), Piet Dejonghe (CFE), Frederik Lesire
                             (BPI), Theo Van De Kerckhove (DEME),             Based on a digital 3D model, BIM (Building
                             Bernard Heiderscheidt (SECO) and                 Information Modelling) is a working method
                             Emmanuel Tual (VINCI).                           that facilitates the transmission of data of
                                                                              a building model between all the partners
                                                                              involved. MBG uses it, but has also tested
                             And the winners are…                             a more user-friendly alternative, called
                                                                              BlueBeam, on the Antwerp Management
                                                                              School project. Like BIM, BlueBeam allows
                             In the category “Human                           team members to work digitally and in real
                                                                              time and facilitates the transmission of
                             Capital”: Louis Stevens &                        information. The big difference is that the
                             Co for a training course in                      information is transmitted in PDF format
                                                                              and that it is very easily accessible for
Best Practice Awards, the
desire to share good ideas   optical fibre welding                            everyone, including on tablet. BlueBeam
with everybody.                                                               thus more closely reflects the real situation
                             There are very few candidates on the labour      in the field, as not all partners are able to
                             market with training in optical fibre welding.   use 3D software. This system has helped to
                             Faced with this shortage, the company            simplify the process and save a lot of time. A
                             decided to train new employees “in the           good idea that has won the interest of other
                             field”. However, many were discouraged by        entities.
                             the complexity of the task: nine out of ten
                             workers gave up quickly. The solution was to
                             come up with a two-week training course in

26
Annual report 2017
Category ‘ Grand Prix’ :
                                                                                                    on the Tivoli project -
                                                                                                    involving the construction
                                                                                                    of an entire sustainable
                                                                                                    district in the Brussels
In the category “On Site”:                        the project (team leaders, subcontractors,
                                                  etc), frequent meetings and precise but
                                                                                                    Region - the team of BPC
                                                                                                    implemented the Lean
CFE Polska for a safety app                       flexible planning, all imbued by a desire for     Management principle.
                                                  continuous improvement. BPC embarked on
With the safety app Karolina Safety System,       the project with great skill, and its brilliant
all the details of a dangerous situation,         Lean Management approach incited teams
with photos if necessary, can be reported         from several other entities of the group,
immediately on a digital platform. This is a      including Poland, to visit the Tivoli site.
major asset in the area of safety, as it allows
preventive action to be taken and accidents
to be avoided. The application, developed         Conclusion
by CFE Polska, can also be used for safety
audits, keeping safety statistics, and drawing
                                                  Although four awards were presented, all 65
up reports. The Karolina Safety System will
                                                  entries provided great inspiration, and were
soon be shared and used by the whole group:
                                                  all shared on One Drive among the entities
after the English version, which was ready at
                                                  of the group!
the end of 2017, French and Dutch-language
versions are planned for 2018.

Finally, the “Grand Prix”:                                                                          There were more than
BPC for Lean Management                                                                             65 entries which were
                                                                                                    assessed.
On the Tivoli project - involving the
construction of an entire sustainable
district in the Brussels Region - the team of
BPC implemented the Lean Management
principle, an approach that increases
efficiency and avoids waste of resources
of every kind by eliminating unnecessary
movements and travel, overproduction of
materials, time-consuming procedures,
etc. This approach involves maximum
collaboration between everyone involved in

                                                                                                                             27
                                                                                                              Annual report 2017
Environmental
responsability

Building
  sustainable
                                    a

 future
The CFE group has pursued a policy of sustainable                               Druart) with which they fit out buildings
development for many years now, with ever higher                                that are being constructed or renovated.
                                                                                The company be.Maintenance, which is
standards both in construction and in all its activities and
                                                                                increasingly active in passive buildings,
related practices.                                                              effectively limits energy consumption by fine-
                                                                                tuning settings and alerting its customers
                                                                                to good practices and to the significance
                               The skills acquired in sustainable building      of technological advances to reduce energy
                               not only enable the group to meet current        consumption.
                               expectations in energy and environment-          Certain activities of the group are also
                               related matters, but also to anticipate          environmentally friendly by their very
                               future expectations by getting ahead of the      nature. This is the case, for example, with
                               regulations currently in force.                  the activities to maintain and improve the
                                                                                railway network carried out by the Rail Infra
                                                                                & Utility Networks segment, and which
                               Natural materials and                            contribute to a less polluting mobility policy,
                               low-energy buildings for a                       or activities of wastewater treatment and
                                                                                power generation by wind farms.
                               sustainable future
                               This year, numerous building projects            Protecting the
                               testify once again to this know-how.             environment day by day…
                               Examples include the new head office of
                               AXA in Brussels, which won the BREEAM
                               Excellent certification (BPC and VMA); the       Environmental awareness is also put into
                               Renaissance project in Liège, developed by       practice on a daily basis in the office and
                               BPI, and the first low-energy project in the     on site in many different ways, such as by
The entities in special        Liège area, and Erasmus Gardens in Brussels,     sorting and processing waste, reducing
techniques are increasingly
                               which won the “Best Sustainable Real Estate      energy consumption, increasing digitalization
active in passive buildings.                                                    to cut down on paper consumption, and
                               Project” award in Belgium. BPI also initiated
                               a sustainable accommodation project for          rationalizing travel movements. In this
                               students, the Woodskot, with its timber          respect, the opportunities of hubworking and
                               structure.                                       homeworking are being investigated, and
                                                                                certain entities are already putting this into
                               The entities active in special techniques are    practice.
                               also particularly attentive to the sustainable
                               aspect of HVAC installations (Procool and

28
Annual report 2017
The new head office of
                                                                                                 AXA in Brussels, which
                                                                                                 won the BREEAM Excellent
                                                                                                 certification.

… today and tomorrow                            won DEME once again a CO2 Awareness
                                                Certificate Level 5 on the CO2 Performance
                                                Ladder.
Other initiatives worth mentioning are the
development by CFE BBW of more energy-
efficient site office containers, and the       Reducing greenhouse gas
compilation by CFE Tunisia of a guidebook
on good environmental practices and the         emissions with a green
on-site implementation of performance           fleet
indicators in that area. BENELMAT has
fitted out its buildings in Gembloux with
highly efficient insulation and heating         Targets are set for DEME’s direct and indirect
systems, ventilation systems with heat          greenhouse gas emissions from its own
recovery, and lighting systems that received    activities and from the supply chain. The
congratulations of the Walloon Regional         new vessels that have joined the fleet are all
Energy Consulting Agency.                       designed as ‘green’ vessels fitted with the
                                                latest-generation dual fuel engines with very
                                                low gas emissions. They include the brand-
DEME rewarded for its                           new ‘Minerva’ (3,500 m³) and ‘Scheldt River’
                                                (8,400 m³) which joined DEME’s fleet in 2017;
integrated environmental                        they are the first dredgers in the world to be
management                                      fitted with duel fuel engines and capable of
                                                running entirely on LNG.

The reduction of greenhouse gas emissions       As a matter of fact, DEME continues to
is essential to control climate change. DEME    explore ideas, initiatives and sustainable
contributes in its projects to a reduction of   technical solutions in the worldwide effort
its own greenhouse gas emissions and to a       to control greenhouse gas emissions.
diversification of energy sources.              Although currently no targets have been set      The brand-new ‘Minerva’
                                                for the reduction of worldwide emissions in      (3,500 m³) which joined
To achieve that objective, all the necessary    the maritime industry, DEME is constantly        DEME’s fleet in 2017.
plans are drawn up by different departments     looking for sustainable alternative energy
(QHSE, technical department, DRIVE,             sources in all its activities.
etc) at both project and corporate level.
The reduction of greenhouse gases is a
constituent part of DEME’s integrated
environmental management system. This

                                                                                                                         29
                                                                                                           Annual report 2017
Holding and
non-transferred
activities

     Various
      competences
The operations of the holding are essentially the concession          Good prospects for
activities, the supervision of the activity of Rent-A-Port,
the civil engineering activities that were not transferred to         Rent-A-Port
DIMCO, and the international construction activities that
                                                                      In 2017, Rent-A-Port was mainly active
were not transferred to CFE Contracting.
                                                                      internationally, such as in Vietnam where
                                                                      the firm consolidated its position, and in the
                                                                      Middle East where it was able to hold its own
                        Concessions                                   despite a temporarily difficult political and
                                                                      economic context.
                        The most important concession, Green          Rent-A-Port specializes in the study,
                        Offshore, concerns the wind farms in the      development and management of greenfield
                        North Sea. Construction works on the Rentel   port projects and industrial port zones.
                        wind farm should be completed at the          The company can ensure the overall
                        beginning of 2019 while the works on the      management of everything to do with
                        Seastar and Mermaid offshore wind farms       distribution of electricity and water, the
                        has not started yet. However, the green       collection and processing of waste, and
                        certifications have been obtained for these   wastewater treatment; it can also finance
                        future projects.                              renewable energy and drinking water supply
                                                                      projects in collaboration with its subsidiary
                                                                      Rent-A-Port Green Energy, which specializes
                                                                      in renewable energy generation.
                                                                      Both Rent-A-Port and its Green
                                                                      Energy subsidiary put their concern for
                                                                      environmental protection into practice
                                                                      in their working methods and by the very
                                                                      nature of their activities, as was testified in
                                                                      2017 by various ‘green’ initiatives in the field
                                                                      of solar energy, wind energy and wastewater
                                                                      treatment.

30
Annual report 2017
In the Netherlands,
                                                                                                the exit from the
                                                                                                Zuiderzeehaven project

Vietnam                                         Qatar                                           in 2016 should generate
                                                                                                a substantial cash flow in
                                                                                                the spring of 2018.
Rent-A-Port worked closely together with the    In Qatar, 2017 was a year troubled by the
authorities of the Port of Azov in Russia for   decision of some neighbouring countries to
the joint management of the liquids jetty       boycott all supplies to Qatar, particularly
for diesel and LPG imports, where a capacity    aggregates for concrete and asphalt from
utilization rate of 80% was attained in 2017.   the Emirates. This boycott came at a time
This collaboration with the Port of Azov        when Rent-A-Port, after considerable
will also extend to the joint management        engineering efforts, won a five-year contract
(50/50) of the new port area that is planned    for the management of port, sorting and
on the Tien Phong peninsula, in the Province    warehousing operations for 10 million tonnes
of Quan Ninh. As a matter of fact, Rent-        per year. Because of the boycott, Qatar was
A-Port has very good relations with the         forced to cancel the contract.
Vietnamese authorities in the context of
                                                However, by way of compensation, the
consultancy services for the privatization of
                                                Qatari government awarded another
the state-owned port authority (Vinalines).
                                                contract to Rent-A-Port for the Khatmat
Thanks to the good local contacts and the       Millaha project, involving the start-up of a
fact that Rent-A-Port manages a power           new aggregate production site. This project
grid that serves more than 60 industrial        was initiated in October 2017.
customers, the subsidiary RAP Green Energy
will be able to start up two new projects in
2018, one for solar energy and the other for
wind energy.

                                                                                                                          31
                                                                                                           Annual report 2017
Holding and
non-transferred
activities

                     Oman
                     Under the terms of the concession
                     agreement that was signed six years
                     ago with the Antwerp Port Consortium
                     (60% RAP and 40% PAI), the Sultanate of
                     Oman is in charge of the completion of
                     the port’s construction, while the Antwerp
                     Port Consortium is entrusted with the
                     development of the industrial sites.
                     Unfortunately, the fall in oil prices since
                     2015 has had a significant impact on the
                     Sultanate’s national budget; consequently,
                     the port infrastructure will only be finished in
                     2019, delaying the arrival of new customers.
                     Nevertheless, thanks to the dynamism of
                     the local team in Duqm and Muscat, more
                     than two-thirds of the operating costs have
                     been covered by the first customers in 2017,
                     and in view of the current situation and
                     the commercial contracts in progress, the
                     operation of the port is expected to start
                     showing a profit in 2020.

                     A steady future
                     2018 looks favourable for Rent-A-Port and
                     its subsidiary, with a solid order book in
                     Vietnam, a steadily improving situation
                     in Oman, and the probable confirmation
                     of new projects in the renewable energy
                     segment. In the Netherlands, the exit from
                     the Zuiderzeehaven project in 2016 should          civil engineering and the electromechanical
                     generate a substantial cash flow in the            activities should lead to the completion
                     spring of 2018. Rent-A-Port has also carried       of phase B, and a large part of the plant
                     out studies in Gabon and Guinea that are           should become operational at the beginning
                     likely to expand its activities on the African     of 2019. The stakes are high: the entire
                     continent in the future.                           second phase of this huge wastewater
                                                                        treatment plant should be delivered by
                                                                        31 December 2018. This challenge meant
                     Civil Engineering                                  having the whole workforce work 24 hours a
                                                                        day, six days a week, on this project during
                                                                        last November and December in order to
                     Intense activity at the Brussels-                  guarantee delivery by the end of 2018.
                     South wastewater treatment
                                                                        In Wallonia, the Kain dam project on the
                     plant                                              river Scheldt is progressing to the customer’s
                                                                        satisfaction and is due for delivery in
                     The biggest civil engineering project (not
                                                                        June 2018, as is the water pumping station
                     transferred to DIMCO) is the Brussels-South
                                                                        in Jemeppe (Liège), which is now in the
                     wastewater treatment plant (STEP). Activity
                                                                        process of being awarded the certificate of
                     on this project was intense throughout
                                                                        completion.
                     2017 and is set to remain so in 2018. The

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Annual report 2017
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