SATO ranked number one in Europe in an international sustainability management benchmark

SATO Corporation, Press release 1 October 2025 at 1:00 pm

SATO’s sustainability management has been recognised as top-level in Europe in the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) results published today. SATO achieved the maximum score in GRESB’s Management section and ranked first among more than a thousand real estate companies assessed in Europe.

The Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) providing valuable comparative data on sustainability management in the property sector, awarded SATO’s sustainability management full points in its assessment published today. SATO has taken part in the GRESB assessment for eleven consecutive years.

“SATO has developed its sustainability management with determination and consistency. It is gratifying to see that according to the GRESB results we have made progress in most areas of sustainability. Taking part in the assessment has supported the development of our sustainability management and practices for many years now,” says Susanna Kari González, Sustainability Manager at SATO.

SATO achieved full points in most of the GRESB assessment categories. The company scored 100% in leadership and policies, reporting, risk management, wide-ranging stakeholder engagement, sustainability targets, and ESG data monitoring and review. In addition, SATO was awarded maximum points for construction projects -related sustainability requirements, criteria for material choices, as well as water- and waste-related categories. Compared to last year, the greatest improvements were seen in areas where SATO already had a strong foundation, including risk assessment and the coverage of household waste data.

SATO’s results improved from last year in both the Performance section, which reviews existing properties, and the Development section, which evaluates construction projects. In the Performance assessment, SATO scored 78/100 points (2024: 76) and received two stars. In the Development assessment, the score rose to 86 points (2024: 83), again with two stars. SATO also received Green Star recognition in both sections, as results exceeded 50% of available points.

Points were lost in the areas of energy data coverage and building certifications. Energy data coverage remains systematically incomplete in the assessment, as Finnish rental housing providers typically have no visibility into residents’ own energy consumption. In addition, SATO has not so far applied for environmental certifications for its construction projects or existing residential buildings. In the GRESB assessment, building certifications currently carry significant weight, and therefore their impact on the overall score is considerable.

“GRESB provides us with valuable insight into how well we have succeeded in developing our operations, and how we are positioned internationally. The comparison always gives us important information, and it is fantastic to see that SATO’s sustainability management is at a top level also in the European context,” says Kari González.

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What is GRESB?
The Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark measures and evaluates sustainability in the real estate sector, covering various areas of responsibility. GRESB offers a unified and comparable reporting model, serving as a comprehensive tool for companies to manage and improve the sustainability of their property portfolios.

It assesses areas such as sustainability management, policies and reporting, risk management, environmental performance of property portfolios, and stakeholder engagement. This study has been conducted internationally since 2009, with the results from various companies forming a comparative matrix.

For more information about GRESB and SATO’s sustainability efforts, please contact:
Susanna Kari González, Sustainability Manager, tel. +358 20 134 4194, firstname.lastname@sato.fi

SATO Corporation is an expert in sustainable rental housing and one of Finland’s largest rental housing providers. SATO owns around 27,000 rental homes in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Tampere and Turku.

SATO aims to provide excellent customer experience and a comprehensive range of urban rental housing alternatives with good access to public transport and services. We promote sustainable development and work in open interaction with our stakeholders.

SATO invests profitably, sustainably and with a long-term view. We increase the value of our assets through investments, divestments and repairs. In 2025, SATO celebrates its 85^th anniversary. www.sato.fi/en