Tag: 3BL

• Duke Energy’s Site Readiness Program has enabled evaluation of 42 sites and triggered 5,400 new jobs and $2 billion in capital investment in Ohio and Kentucky since the program began in 2010
• Three high-potential industrial sites were selected for the 2025 program

CINCINNATI, October 3, 2025 /3BL/ – Duke Energy selected three properties in Southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky for inclusion in its 2025 Site Readiness Program, which prepares high-potential business and industrial sites for economic development investments and markets them nationwide to companies looking to start, expand or relocate their operations.

Bringing investment and jobs to Ohio and Kentucky: Since 2010, Duke Energy’s Site Readiness Program has evaluated 42 sites in Ohio and Kentucky. Twenty companies have selected and committed to growing on sites that have been through the program.

Those companies are bringing over $2 billion capital investments and 5,400 new jobs for Ohio and Kentucky. Examples of companies include Coca-Cola, Carvana, Shape Corp. and Niagara Bottling.

About the program: The Duke Energy Site Readiness Program sparks economic growth by helping communities understand what steps to take in order to make their sites more competitive. In turn, this results in new jobs and a new tax base.

Under the program, Duke Energy works with consultant Site Selection Group and local engineering firm Bayer Becker. It also partners closely with REDI Cincinnati and BE NKY Growth Partnership, as well as with local community governments and other utilities.

What they’re saying

Amy Spiller, president, Duke Energy Ohio and Kentucky: “Economic development is vital to the future growth and prosperity of our region. Our Site Readiness Program is one example of the proactive economic development initiatives that Duke Energy pursues to help spark investment in the communities we serve. We appreciate our collaboration with local partners and developers as we work to bring more jobs to the region and make Greater Cincinnati a place in which people want to work and live.”

Kimm Lauterbach, president and CEO of REDI Cincinnati: “Duke Energy’s Site Readiness Program not only speeds up economic development opportunities but also ensures that our communities are equipped to compete with sites that are ready to be utilized. We appreciate Duke Energy’s ongoing investment and leadership in enhancing the economy of the Cincinnati region.”

Duke Energy has selected three properties in Ohio and Kentucky for inclusion in its 2025 Site Readiness Program to enhance these sites for business and industrial development:

1. Frick Family Farms in Monroe, Ohio (Butler County)
    
2. Union Ren Farms in Middletown, Ohio (Warren County)
    
3. Commonwealth Commerce Center in Northern Kentucky (Pendleton County)

For 21 consecutive years, Duke Energy’s economic development efforts have been recognized by Site Selection magazine in the publication’s annual list of “Top Utilities in Economic Development.” In 2024 alone, the company helped recruit $548 million in new capital investment and over 1,000 jobs across Ohio and Kentucky.

Duke Energy Ohio/Kentucky

Duke Energy Ohio/Kentucky, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, provides electric service to 910,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in a 3,000-square-mile service area, and natural gas service to 560,000 customers in a 2,650-square-mile service area, in Ohio and Kentucky.

Duke Energy

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of America’s largest energy holding companies. The company’s electric utilities serve 8.6 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and collectively own 55,100 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas utilities serve 1.7 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky. 

Duke Energy is executing an ambitious energy transition, keeping customer reliability and value at the forefront as it builds a smarter energy future. The company is investing in major electric grid upgrades and cleaner generation, including natural gas, nuclear, renewables and energy storage. 

More information is available at duke-energy.com and the Duke Energy News Center. Follow Duke Energy on X, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook, and visit illumination for stories about the people and innovations powering our energy transition.

Contact: Matt Martin
24-Hour: 800.559.3853
X: @DukeEnergyOH_KY

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At Gen, giving back to the communities where we live and work is part of who we are. Recently, our Genovators — a grassroots, employee-led group driving innovation and engagement — stepped outside the office and into their local communities.

In Prague, our Genovators rolled up their sleeves at MetroFarm, spending the day helping with sustainable farming activities, connecting as a team, and supporting an organization dedicated to greener urban living.

Meanwhile, in Dublin, Genovators volunteered at the DSPCA, one of Ireland’s leading animal welfare charities. The team contributed their time to support the DSPCA’s mission of rescuing, rehabilitating, and rehoming animals in need.

These volunteer efforts highlight the passion of our people and our commitment to making a positive impact — from sustainability and the environment to animal welfare and beyond.

Our Approach to Responsible Manufacturing and Mining

Chemours is committed to the environment and our communities, and we strive to manufacture responsibly at our sites and to be good stewards of the land we operate on. We focus on two key areas: reducing our fluorinated organic chemical (FOC) process emissions at our manufacturing facilities, and restoring and conserving land where we mine raw materials for our Titanium Technologies business.

Safeguarding and restoring natural habitats helps increase the availability of clean water in watersheds, provides protection from the impacts of severe weather events, and enhances natural CO2 sequestration processes. We’re integrating nature into our corporate sustainability strategy and are actively working to enhance nature and ecosystem resilience across our sites using the Taskforce on Nature Related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) guidance.

Air and Water FOC Emissions Abatement

We have and continue to make significant investments in state of-the-art emissions control technologies at our manufacturing sites. We are committed to eliminating 99% or more of our FOC process emissions to air and water across our manufacturing sites globally by 2030. This goal’s 2018 baseline is based upon a comprehensive inventory of FOC process emissions.

The FOC Air and Water Technology Team develops technology solutions and refines our FOC implementation roadmap to achieve our 2030 goal. The team also tracks and reports annual progress toward reducing these emissions, including site-specific initiatives that incorporate known abatement technologies and cutting-edge research to explore innovative methods or closed-loop manufacturing options to make further progress. At each manufacturing site, we followed a standardized approach to report emissions data, using both measured data and calculated estimates when measured data was not available.

Mining Operations

Chemours is the only U.S. producer of titanium and zirconium minerals and one of only two domestic producers of rare earth minerals. Our Titanium Technologies business segment operates mineral sands mining and separation operations in Florida and Georgia to supply our TiO2 pigment manufacturing facilities with mineral feedstock and to recover and sell other valuable mineral products. While mining affects hundreds of acres per year, the impact is temporary as the mine pits are successively opened then refilled with sand tails, and the land is continually reclaimed.

We are committed to leaving each mining site in a condition comparable to its pre-mine condition. Through continuous reclamation, we work to re-establish the soil and plant vegetation in mined areas after mineral extraction is complete, which in turn, allows native wildlife to quickly return. Building on our current process of stakeholder engagement and state and federal compliance, we also work to pursue and apply responsible mining principles. In 2024, we maintained Responsible Care® 14001 certifications for our Georgia and Florida mineral operations, which helps us to assess a range of social and environmental impacts within our operations, with a focus on land and water management and biodiversity.

Manufacturing Sites

At our manufacturing sites, we continue to serve the surrounding communities by installing drinking water infrastructure ranging from in-house treatment systems to public water connections. At our Fayetteville Works manufacturing site in North Carolina, we’ve invested around $160 million in our off-site program and installed permanent replacement drinking water solutions for over 7,100 residents as of December 31, 2024.

We also seek opportunities at or near each site and work with partners to enhance or restore the local habitat. Efforts range from identifying and relocating protected plant and animal species to improving the habitats located on adjacent or nearby lands.

Chemours partners with Tandem Global (formerly Wildlife Habitat Council), whose certification program is the only voluntary sustainability standard designed for broad-based nature enhancement and conservation education activities on corporate landholdings. The certification recognizes meaningful wildlife habitat management, conservation education programs, and community outreach initiatives through an objective, third party evaluation.

Chemours’ Tandem Global programs are led by our sites and engage employee volunteers for many initiatives. Programs can include managing wildlife, creating or improving habitats, providing conservation education, or a combination of all three.

2024 Actions Toward Responsible Manufacturing and Mining

Continued Progress on FOC Emissions Reductions

We continue to make progress against our 2030 Corporate Responsibility Commitment goal, eliminating an additional 292 MT of FOC process emissions across our sites in 2024. Since 2018, we’ve reduced our FOC process emissions by 76%, or 1,253 MT.

We continue to invest in technologies and install projects to reduce FOC emissions, which include HFC-23 and HCFC22 emissions, at multiple facilities, and are evaluating the effectiveness of this work through direct measurement and refined engineering estimates of emissions sources. In 2024, we completed a project to recover and recycle HCFC22 emissions at our Louisville Works site in Kentucky and implemented improvements at several of our manufacturing sites including the Dordrecht Works and Washington Works sites. For our Dordrecht Works site in the Netherlands, 2024 was the first full year of demonstrating a series of projects to reduce FOC air emissions by 80% from baseline permitted values. These projects have performed as expected and have achieved target performance.

Our work toward reducing air FOC process emissions continues with 15 active projects underway globally. We continue to advance our understanding of water technologies and explore emerging technologies to further advance our progress toward our 2030 FOC emissions reductions goal. All reporting metrics surrounding our FOC emissions follow U.S. EPA’s interim guidance for PFAS destruction and disposal, which was issued in April 2024.

Assessing Nature and Biodiversity Impacts

In partnership with Tandem Global, we completed nature and biodiversity assessments at our sites in line with TNFD and UNEP guidance. As part of this work, we also launched the Power of ChemisTREE program, which exemplifies our commitment to renewing habitats and fostering conservation across our operational sites and in the communities where we work. Our Nature Team continues to work with Tandem Global to create a comprehensive framework that will establish and align priorities with our corporate vision and enable our manufacturing sites to further their nature efforts.

We continue to be industry leaders in addressing biodiversity concerns related to mineral extraction. In the normal course of mine planning, we conduct intensive field surveys to identify sensitive plant and animal species and develop comprehensive plans to mitigate potential impacts. We also sponsor and support research to better understand the natural succession of wetlands re-established on mined lands, the population dynamics of gopher tortoises and avian communities around our mines, and invertebrate populations on reclaimed lands.

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CNH brand, New Holland, has unveiled the evolution of its T7 tractor range and reinforced its leadership in alternative fuels with an expanded sustainable product portfolio.

With the launch edition bearing New Holland’s Blue Power livery, the T7.270 Methane Power CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) tractor, unveiled at Agritechnica 2023, now officially joins the New Holland range, taking the brand’s alternative fuel technology further up the power scale, to benefit a broader range of farmers. Initially the tractor can be ordered in Europe from the end of 2025, with the first deliveries in spring 2026.

“The T7.270 Methane Power is ideal for biodigester operators running haulage tractor fleets,” said Darragh Mullin, New Holland T7 Long Wheelbase Global Product Manager.

The T7 Methane Power tractor can run on biomethane derived from livestock manure, supporting on-farm sustainability. In partnership with Bennamann, New Holland enables farms to capture, process and refine fugitive methane for use as fuel. This closed-loop system reduces emissions, cuts fertilizer use, and can even achieve a negative carbon footprint.

Find out more here

With the Cascale Annual Meeting 2025 recently held in Hong Kong, Cascale team members made their mark at various events, including ReThink Hong Kong and Worldly’s Customer Forum.

Cascale had a visible presence with a booth and speakers at ReThink Hong Kong, successfully building on the collaboration of previous years. In one session, Alexandra Rieger, Cascale’s senior director of manufacturer membership, spoke on a panel titled “Procurement Leaders Confront Ethics Challenges Amid Global Strains.” The session included Wendy Chan, chairlady of activities and events, at The Institute of Purchasing and Supply of Hong Kong; Clement Chung, principal manager, Commercial & Supply Chain at CLP Holdings Limited; and Kirk Lui, group assistant director of purchasing at Regal Hotels International Limited.

The panel outlined how procurement is under intensifying pressure as companies face stricter ESG standards and scrutiny over corporate responsibility. Speakers warned that balancing ethical sourcing with cost efficiency has become more complex against a backdrop of geopolitical tension and economic uncertainty. Speakers also discussed the emerging risks in supply chains, from pinpointing Scope 3 emissions to responsible sourcing. They weighed whether technology such as artificial intelligence could help companies meet rising ethical expectations while maintaining competitiveness.

In a separate event, the Worldly Customer Forum, Joël Mertens, director of Higg Product Tools, and Joleen Ong, Cascale’s senior director of brand and retailer engagement, each contributed to thought-provoking sessions.

Mertens spoke on a panel with Worldly’s vice president JR Siegel and associate director of sustainability Paula Bernstein diving deep into the key insights of the 2024 Higg Facility Environmental Module (Higg FEM). The session explored emerging trends, shifts in performance across key impact areas, and the latest data opportunities and challenges. Attendees received key guidance on how to interpret data, identify meaningful patterns, and translate insights into action.

Ong joined a panel discussion called “Social and Labor Data Demystified: Finding Meaning in Your Higg FSLM Results.” The session featured Jaclene Roshan, vice president of products, Worldly; and Steve Harris, chief operating officer, Social & Labor Convergence Program (SLCP).

The session covered how Cascale, SLCP, and Worldly work together with data-rich insights on navigating social and labor compliance. Throughout the session, the speakers underscored their foundational commitment to supporting decent work for all within the textiles, apparel, footwear, and wider consumer goods industry.

Ong covered Cascale’s role in driving facility labor improvements and what the Higg FSLM adoption and trends point to in an ever-evolving compliance landscape.

“The Higg FSLM is more than a scoring tool—it’s about converging on credible data to spot risks early, reduce duplication, and prioritize remediation in ways that also save costs,” Ong reported. “With regulatory shifts and new technologies emerging—like Worldly’s Insights Hub and Axion—collecting data alone isn’t enough. Our industry must turn these insights into real improvements for workers and stronger, more resilient supply chains.”

LAS VEGAS, October 2, 2025 /3BL/ – Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) will contribute $400,000 to Americares as part of a two-year grant through the Sands Cares global community engagement program. Funding supports global emergency response and readiness programs, including continued investment in the organization’s Asia-Pacific emergency response hub.

With this commitment, Sands has joined the Americares Rapid Impact and Support for Emergencies (RISE) program, which provides the health-focused relief and development organization with a reliable stream of flexible funding to maintain a constant state of readiness and launch robust responses to natural disasters and humanitarian crises. The Sands Cares contribution supports Americares Global Readiness Team, which strengthens emergency and humanitarian assistance by enhancing organizational preparedness for responses.

Americares responds to more than 35 natural disasters and humanitarian crises worldwide each year, establishes long-term recovery projects and brings preparedness programs to communities vulnerable to disasters. Americares relief workers are among the first to respond to emergencies, helping to restore health services for survivors. The organization’s teams increase access to essential medicines and supplies, as well as provide medical care, surge staffing, emergency funding and psychosocial support for disaster survivors, frontline health workers and first responders. Americares maintains a Global Roster of more than 800 trained professionals who can be mobilized for deployment.

Sands has supported Americares since 2020 with Sands Cares funding for the Americares Asia-Pacific response hub in the Philippines and U.S. regional emergency readiness activities in Greater New York and the South/Southeastern United States.

“Sands’ generous support has greatly strengthened our Asia regional response operations as well as our global readiness to respond swiftly and effectively when disaster strikes,” Americares Deputy Senior Vice President of Emergency Programs Provash Budden said. “In becoming a RISE member, Sands has recognized the increased urgency of being ready to respond to more frequent and intense extreme weather events and more complex humanitarian crises.”

According to the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), disasters now directly affect approximately 200 million people annually, cause medical emergencies and disrupt health care services with long-term health implications, including mental health impact. Populations most disproportionately impacted are people in low-income communities and countries that already lack the resources needed for adequate preparedness and response.

The 2025-2027 Sands Cares grant supports the following activities:

2025-2027 U.S. Headquarters Activities

Sands’ participation in the Americares RISE program will support Global Roster recruitment and training, equipment and the pre-positioning of response supplies. In year two of the Sands Cares engagement, Americares plans to host a World Health Organization EMT Type 1 Mobile Training for Global Roster members in the United States.

2025-2027 Asia-Pacific Activities

Sands Cares funding for the Asia-Pacific region will support Americares efforts to recruit at least 25 new emergency response roster members, pre-position relief supplies and equipment in regional warehouses, as well as host ongoing trainings for Asia-Pacific Global Roster members and Americares staff. ⁠Americares also plans to host a World Health Organization EMT Type 1 Mobile Training for Global Roster members in the Philippines.

Americares and Sands Cares – Previous Accomplishments

Through engagements beginning in 2020, Sands has helped Americares substantially grow its disaster readiness response capacity in the Asia-Pacific region, establishing a response hub in the Philippines and increasing its regional emergency roster from 20 to more than 180 members in 2024. With Sands Cares support, Americares also conducted its first large-scale emergency simulation

exercise at the Philippines regional hub. As a result, Americares launched responses out of the Philippines hub for Typhoons Doksuri, Noru, Goni, Vamco and Rai; Tropical Storm Nalgae; the Taal Volcano eruption in the Philippines and severe flooding in Vietnam.

In 2023, Sands expanded its support for Americares to the United States with a two-year contribution to help Americares build emergency response capabilities in the Tri-State area of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, as well as the South/Southeastern United States. Sands Cares’ support allowed Americares to recruit 25 new Global Roster members from the Tri-State area and host its first-ever, in-person Global Roster onboarding training in Queens, New York.

With funding from Sands Cares in 2024, Americares Global Readiness Team recruited 24 new emergency responders. They fill critical roles such as doctors, nurses, pharmacists, mental health and psychosocial support professionals, and safety and security officers throughout the Southeastern United States. Through Sands Cares support, Americares led a second Global Roster Onboarding Training in April 2025 for 14 of the new recruits in Houston. Sessions covered Americares emergency response interventions, deployment processes, equipment, safety, security and more.

“We recognize the growing number of global disasters and crisis situations along with Americares proven ability to mobilize on-the-ground response efforts that address both the immediate and long-term health of people impacted,” Ron Reese, senior vice president of global communications and corporate affairs, said. “Joining the RISE program reflects our desire to support Americares so that it can be nimble and effective to meet global humanitarian needs, while we continue our investment in the great work Americares is doing at the Asia-Pacific response hub.”

Sands’ partnership with Americares reflects its Sands Cares priority on supporting hardship relief initiatives in its communities around the world. To learn more about the company’s corporate responsibility programs and other Sands Cares community engagement activities, visit https://www.sands.com/responsibility.

To learn more about Americares, visit https://www.americares.org/.

About Americares

Americares is a health-focused relief and development organization that helps people and communities around the world access health in times of disaster and every day. Each year, Americares reaches 85 countries on average, including the United States, with life-changing health programs, medicine, medical supplies and emergency aid. Americares is one of the world’s leading nonprofit providers of donated medicine and medical supplies. For more information, visit americares.org

About Sands (NYSE: LVS)

Sands is the leading global developer and operator of integrated resorts. The company’s iconic properties drive valuable leisure and business tourism and deliver significant economic benefits, sustained job creation, financial opportunities for local businesses and community investment to help make its host regions ideal places to live, work and visit.

Sands’ portfolio of properties includes Marina Bay Sands® in Singapore and The Venetian® Macao, The Londoner Macao®, The Parisian® Macao, The Plaza® Macao and Four Seasons® Hotel Macao, and Sands® Macao in Macao SAR, China, through majority ownership in Sands China Ltd.

Dedicated to being a leader in corporate responsibility, Sands is anchored by the core tenets of serving people, communities and the planet. The company’s ESG leadership has led to inclusion on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices for World and North America, as well as Fortune’s list of the World’s Most Admired Companies. To learn more, visit www.sands.com.

Contacts:

Kristin Koca
Sands
702.923.9142
Kristin.Koca@sands.com

Donna Porstner
Americares
203.658.9579
dporstner@americares.org

When Jimmy Chin shot the world’s first free solo climb of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park in 2017, staying easily connected to his family wasn’t an option. On expeditions like that one, it could take days to reach them. Fast forward just a few years, and things look very different. Not only has T-Mobile been named America’s Best Network, it now has one that delivers data from space with T-Satellite with Starlink.

And that means Chin can stay connected in places no terrestrial network can reach.

A pro climber and Oscar-winning filmmaker, Chin first put T-Satellite to the test this summer with science YouTuber Mark Rober in a video for T-Mobile. Shot deep in a remote area of Washington State, Chin said he found the service to be a “total game changer.”

“Part of the nice thing about being in a remote area is that sometimes you can’t communicate. It allows you to be 100% present and in the moment, which is really important,” Chin says. “Now that I am a father, though, I always make sure I have some way to communicate with the outside world. As life changes, so does what you need — and just being able to communicate with my family in ways and places never possible before is a huge deal!”

With T-Satellite now powering satellite-optimized apps like WhatsApp and AccuWeather, that means being able to check the weather or send a quick voice note even in the most remote of places in the U.S.

We talked with Chin about a life of adventure — and how T-Satellite, the largest satellite-to-mobile service, is helping him stay closer to the people who matter most wherever the climb takes him.

You’ve lived a life full of adventure as a professional climber, skier and filmmaker. You were even among the first three Americans to ski down Mt. Everest! How would you describe yourself in your own words?

That is definitely an answer that has evolved over time! First and foremost, I describe myself as a father. My kids mean the world to me. Beyond that, I would say I am an adventure enthusiast. There is no place I feel more at home than out in the wild — whether surfing a great swell, skiing down a mountain with fresh snow or climbing a rock wall with my friends. And of course, I love doing all of this with a camera in my hands!

You’ve been at the helm of movies such as Free Solo, which won the Academy Award for Best Documentary in 2019, and you’re a world-class athlete often on to the next big mountain with fellow elite athletes — including the climber profiled in Free Solo, Alex Honnold. What is it about adventure that draws you in?

Each day is different and unexpected things happen. I think that’s why I’m drawn to it. Our world also moves so fast, I love being in nature and reminding myself we really aren’t always in charge!

What was it like to be on an expedition before T-Satellite?

Even a small injury from anyone on an expedition requires attention by the whole team, and without this technology, you couldn’t call for help.  Or if something happened at home and they needed to reach you, it could sometimes take days.

What’s a way technology like T-Satellite can play a role in your future adventures?

The great thing about technology is that it allows us to push limits in a more safe and informed way — and T-Satellite makes that possible. Not only does it allow me to remain in contact with my loved ones, but it also can provide a further safety net for me and for the entire team out on an expedition. It’s vital.

That’s why I am incredibly excited by T-Satellite. It really elevates our ability to communicate on all levels. I learned that over 500,000 square miles in the U.S. aren’t covered by cell towers. That’s nearly twice the size of Texas! And I probably spend more time than most in those areas. So to have a provider like T-Mobile that prioritizes communication virtually everywhere in the country is really appealing to adventurers like me.

Recently, you were in a video with Mark Rober about T-Satellite. Can you give us the behind the scenes scoop on that experience?

We met in one of the most beautiful and remote places in the lower 48. We also had the most perfect day! As I think most people know, I love being in wild, remote areas that are rarely explored — so to experience that with Mark was a thrill. I have long been an admirer of his. And then to have him show up and say he had been texting his dad the whole time and let me communicate with my family through T-Satellite was a total game changer. It was really fun to experience this with Mark and to see how this technology is going to really help me on my future expeditions.

Learn more about T-Satellite and the next era of connectivity here.

Mergers and acquisitions in the energy sector represent significant opportunities for growth, but they also bring complex challenges. Amid the excitement of expanding your operations, one critical question demands attention: How do you bring newly acquired pipelines and facilities under the umbrella of your existing API RP 1173 Pipeline Safety Management System (PSMS)?

This is not just a compliance box to check. A well-integrated PSMS safeguards your people, protects the environment, and preserves the hard-earned reputation of your organization. Inadequate integration introduces risk, risk of incidents, regulatory scrutiny, operational disruption, and long-term liability.

Why Integration of New Assets Should Be a Priority

API RP 1173 was developed to provide a framework for managing pipeline safety through risk identification, prevention, and empowers operators to manage safety across the entire asset lifecycle.

Applying this framework consistently, especially to newly acquired assets, ensures a unified standard across your organization and prevents “blind spots” in your operations. Without proper integration, new facilities may operate in isolation, with outdated procedures, unclear responsibilities, or inconsistent expectations, all of which pose significant safety and compliance risks.

Starting with EHS Due Diligence

Successful integration begins before the acquisition is finalized. Pre-acquisition EHS due diligence is the first step toward understanding what you are buying, beyond just infrastructure and market share. It is about uncovering potential liabilities, assessing compliance histories, and evaluating the maturity of existing safety programs.

Gap Analysis

Once the deal is complete, the next critical move is a gap analysis, comparing the new facility’s safety culture, policies, and systems against your established PSMS. This is not just about documents. It is about how things are done on the ground.

Our teams typically conduct on-site evaluations, personnel interviews, and documentation reviews to understand where alignment exists and where it falls short. We assess key elements of RP 1173 such as leadership commitment, risk management, operational controls, incident investigation, and emergency preparedness. This analysis helps build a clear picture of what needs to change and what is already working well.

Developing a Realistic Integration Plan

Integration does not happen overnight. A phased, prioritized plan is crucial for managing expectations and allocating resources effectively.

Immediate safety-critical gaps should be addressed first, followed by efforts to harmonize systems, processes, and cultures over time. The plan should define clear timelines, assign internal owners for each part of the process, and identify where external support may be needed, whether in training, documentation, or technology integration. By mapping out the journey, you create accountability and avoid overwhelming teams on either side of the acquisition.

Implementation: Turning Plans into Action

With the plan in place, implementation begins, starting with aligning policies and procedures. Newly acquired assets often come with legacy documentation that does not meet your organization’s standards. Updating these materials to reflect your RP 1173 framework ensures consistency across the board.

Next, employee training and system integration are essential. Teams need to understand your safety philosophy, operational controls, and emergency protocols not just in theory, but in everyday practice. In many cases, this includes hands-on workshops and leadership coaching to help embed a proactive safety culture.

System integration follows. This could mean incorporating safety performance data from the new assets into your existing reporting structure or aligning audit and review processes. At the same time, any known gaps, whether environmental or procedural, should be actively addressed through remediation, upgrades, or other corrective actions.

Measuring Success: Verification and Continuous Improvement

Post-integration audits are essential for confirming that the new facility is operating in compliance with PSMS and your internal standards. These assessments offer a chance to validate progress, recalibrate as needed, and strengthen oversight.

Key performance indicators (KPIs) help monitor how the newly integrated assets are performing over time. Management reviews should be conducted regularly to assess effectiveness and drive continuous improvement, keeping your PSMS dynamic, relevant, and responsive to operational realities.

Avoiding Common Pitfalls

Integration is not without its challenges. Companies often underestimate how complex it is to align systems, cultures, and expectations. Communication breakdowns with newly acquired personnel can derail early progress. When resources are stretched thin, integration may be delayed or deprioritized, putting safety and compliance at risk.

Cultural alignment is also crucial. The best PSMS can fail if the people responsible for executing it do not feel ownership or understand its purpose. Lastly, it is a mistake to view RP 1173 as a static checklist. It is a living system that requires active management and engagement at all levels.

How Antea Group Supports Pipeline Operators

Antea Group has extensive experience helping energy companies manage the EHS complexities that come with mergers and acquisitions. Our services include:

• Strategic EHS due diligence to uncover risks and hidden value.
• Compliance audits and post-integration assessments to ensure alignment internal standards and process.
• Safety consulting to develop and deploy customized PSMS programs.
• Environmental remediation and incident management support for legacy issues.

What sets us apart is our business-focused approach. We understand that every acquisition is different and that success depends on blending technical rigor with operational practicality.

Final Thoughts

Integrating new assets into your PSMS is more than a task, it is a leadership opportunity. It demonstrates your commitment to safety, accountability, and operational excellence.

When approached with structure and intent, RP 1173 integration can turn a good acquisition into a great one, to enhance not only your portfolio but also your performance and reputation.

In fact, as RP 1173 continues to mature and is more commonly adopted across the industry, API staff have stated that they are “So proud to see industry coming together under Pipeline Safety Management Systems”

Do not let EHS integration be an afterthought.
Contact Antea Group today to ensure a seamless, complaint, and safe transition for your new pipeline facilities.

Company’s meal donation program now spans almost 20 port destinations worldwide with plans to expand into new markets globally as part of its ongoing Less Left Over food waste reduction strategy

MIAMI, October 2, 2025 /3BL/ – Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), the world’s largest cruise company, today announced it has signed a series of historic memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with food banks and community partners in Mexico, Honduras and the Dominican Republic, becoming the first cruise company to sign formal meal donation agreements with these organizations and bringing its fresh meal donation program to Latin America for the first time. The food banks participating in the agreements are part of the Global FoodBanking Network, a respected international alliance.

Carnival Corporation’s meal donation program redirects surplus prepared and unserved meals from the company’s ships to a growing network of trusted local partners for distribution to families and communities in need. Part of the company’s Less Left Over strategy to cut food waste, the program maximizes the use of high-quality surplus meals to help address food insecurity in communities where it is established. By expanding to three new ports, the program will now operate in 19 destinations worldwide.

“Expanding our meal donation program into Latin America is an important step in giving back to the amazing ports and destinations who warmly welcome our guests into their communities and make their visits so memorable,” said Vicky Rey, vice president of government affairs for Latin America, Carnival Corporation. “Our goal is to help feed families and children who may not have a hot meal to eat every day by donating healthy and delicious meals we prepared but did not serve onboard. We’re grateful to our partners in Mexico, Honduras and the Dominican Republic who helped make this possible.”

In Mexico, Carnival Corporation signed an agreement with Bancos de Alimentos de Mexico (Red BAMX). Through this collaboration, meals will first be distributed through a pilot program expected to be launched in Ensenada and then extended to other locations with food banks and where Carnival Cruise Line ships call.

In Honduras, Carnival Corporation signed an agreement with Mayor Ron McNab of Roatán. Through this partnership, unserved ready-to-eat meals and surplus ingredients from Carnival Cruise Line ships will be distributed to schools, hospitals and community organizations across Roatán.

In the Dominican Republic, Carnival Corporation signed agreements with the Catholic Diocese of Puerto Plata and Banco de Alimentos República Dominicana. Through this partnership, meals will be distributed to schools, hospitals and community organizations across Puerto Plata, with the food bank providing expertise to support implementation and local distribution.

Carnival Corporation’s surplus meal and food donation program began in 2017 through its Costa Cruises line, in partnership with the food bank charity Fondazione Banco Alimentare, in what was a first for global shipping. To date, the program has helped deliver more than 300,000 unserved meals to support community partners in Spain, Italy, France, Martinique and Guadeloupe. Carnival Corporation is working to expand the program to additional locations and is collaborating with officials across the United States, the Caribbean and Latin America to evaluate how the existing framework can meet local legal, health and operational food donation guidelines.

The program is just one of dozens of initiatives across Carnival Corporation and its cruise lines that are part of the company’s Less Left Over strategy to minimize surplus food waste while continuing to offer world-class food and dining experiences to its guests.

About Carnival Corporation & plc
Carnival Corporation & plc is the largest global cruise company and among the largest leisure travel companies, with a portfolio of world-class cruise lines – AIDA Cruises, Carnival Cruise Line, Costa Cruises, Cunard, Holland America Line, P&O Cruises, Princess Cruises, and Seabourn.

For more information, please visit www.carnivalcorp.com, www.aida.de, www.carnival.com, www.costacruises.com, www.cunard.com, www.hollandamerica.com, www.pocruises.com, www.princess.com, and www.seabourn.com.

To learn more about Carnival Corporation’s purpose and our positive impact worldwide on people and the planet, go to www.carnivalcorp.com/impact/.

Carnival Corporation Media Contacts

Jody Venturoni, Carnival Corporation, jventuroni@carnival.com

Janna Rowell, Carnival Corporation, jrowell@carnival.com

Originally published on Aflac Newsroom

During National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, employees at Aflac Northern Ireland set out to raise funds for The Children’s Cancer Unit Charity (CCUC) with the Three Peaks Challenge, a trek to the Mournes that includes Slieve Binnian, Slieve Commedagh and, finally, an ascent to the top of Slieve Donard.

Aflac Northern Ireland, located in Belfast, is a global IT and cybersecurity center that develops technology and innovative solutions to help support Aflac customers in their greatest time of need. A supporter of CCUC for five years, Aflac Northern Ireland took that commitment to new heights on Sept. 12, when 53 employees swapped their keyboards for hiking boots to help build awareness of pediatric cancer and raise funds for CCUC.

The result: More than £23,000 (about $31,000 USD) were raised and donated to support the Children’s Cancer and Haematology Unit at the Royal Victoria Hospital for Sick Children in Belfast.

“Care is at Aflac’s core, particularly when it comes to supporting children and families affected by cancer and blood disorders. Through our longstanding collaboration with CCUC, we’re able to be there for families during a difficult time,” said, Aflac Northern Ireland Head of Talent and Culture Sarah Milliken. “We set out to raise £10,000, but thanks to the enthusiasm of our team, we surpassed that goal and are eager to see every pound go directly to the Children’s Cancer and Haematology Unit.”

Each year, more than 60 children in Northern Ireland are diagnosed with cancer and blood disorders, and any child with one of these conditions will visit the Children’s Cancer Unit at the Royal Victoria Hospital during their treatment journeys. Funds raised during the Three Peaks Challenge will help provide crucial resources such as equipment, as well as training and development for staff.

Aflac Northern Ireland’s collaboration with The Children’s Cancer Unit Charity builds on Aflac’s ongoing global mission to help support children diagnosed with cancer and blood disorders, as well as the medical professionals who care for them.

Since 2020, Aflac Northern Ireland has raised a total of £100,000 (approximately $134,400 USD) — that’s in addition to the deliveries of 100 My Special Aflac Ducks® to help bring smiles to children and help them express their feelings through play. My Special Aflac Duck is a cherished robotic companion that uses medical play and realistic motions to emulate emotions and interact with children as they navigate their cancer or sickle cell disease journeys. As part of Aflac’s 30-year and nearly $192 million commitment to children and families facing these conditions, the company has given, free of charge, more than 39,000 My Special Aflac Ducks to children with cancer or sickle cell in the United States, Japan and Northern Ireland.

Learn more about Aflac’s commitment to providing support for those facing pediatric cancer and blood disorders by visiting AflacChildhoodCancer.org.

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