Country and operating unit initiatives in 2009

As part of efforts to reduce their impact on the environment, AEGON's country units are pursuing individual projects and initiatives, aimed at limiting waste generation and the consumption of energy and other raw materials:

• AEGON is in the process of renovating its main office in The Hague. As part of the renovation, the company has installed a series of energy-saving features. These include:
  • A system of 'free cooling', which will take the place of traditional air conditioning, leading to energy savings of between 30% and 40%
  • Motion and air quality sensors in the rooms to reduce electricity consumption
  • A cooling system for the building itself, which will cut energy use by approximately 10% compared with traditional ventilation systems.

• In 2009, AEGON's subsidiary Transamerica in Los Angeles launched a points-based 'Green Stamp' campaign to encourage employees to reduce their carbon footprint. The campaign was accompanied by an online calculator, which enabled employees to work out their carbon footprint and monitor their progress, as well a series of workshops to discuss ways of protecting the environment.
• In Canada, AEGON has a 'Green To Go' program to encourage employees and suppliers to find ways of reducing their use of energy and other raw materials, as well as cutting overall carbon emissions.
• At its offices in Leeuwarden in the Netherlands, AEGON launched a recycling scheme, which collected more than four metric tons of used paper, saving an estimated 670 kilograms of carbon dioxide.
• During 2009, AEGON also took a number of measures to reduce the environmental impact of the company's IT operations. In June, a meeting of AEGON's 'IT Inner Circle' devoted a session to discussing possible initiatives. These initiatives included:
  • Alternative cooling systems for servers and computer centers
  • Rationalizing applications
  • Introducing more efficient coding
  • And, recycling and re-using data for security.

Such measures would not only reduce the environmental impact of AEGON's IT operations, but also lower operating costs in line with the company's broader strategy.

AEGON companies have also embarked on a program of 'server virtualization', which uses new technology to reduce the number of servers the company requires and thereby lower energy consumption. AEGON's target in its three main markets - the United States, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom - is to 'virtualize' 50% of its Windows server capacity. At present, more than 320 separate servers have been virtualized, including 200 in the United States. This represents a saving in electricity of 1,624 MW a year - enough to satisfy the residential electricity needs of between 135 and 162 homes. Annual cost savings in the United States alone so far total just under USD 75,000. In Canada, AEGON has virtualized 60% of its servers, and expects to increase that figure to 70% by the end of 2010.

In October, AEGON opened a new state-of-the-art European data center in Edinburgh, one of the most environmentally friendly of its kind. The new center is part of a broader plan to improve efficiency by grouping together AEGON's regional data operations. The Edinburgh center includes several features that will help reduce consumption of electricity:

• A power supply system that saves an estimated 500,000 KW a year
• A more efficient cooling system that will reduce the center's overall carbon footprint
• A lay-out of the center's data hall that helps improve air flow and reduces cooling costs
• Reduced power consumption from better lighting and improved IT equipment.

In the United States, AEGON companies have made significant investments in both natural resources and sustainable technologies. These include investments of:

• USD 36 million in low income housing projects across the United States that use green design and promote the use of renewable energy.
• USD 70 million in private equity funds that invest exclusively in timber and timberland in the United States, Brazil and New Zealand, approximately 96% of which is certified 'sustainable'[1]... 
• USD 200 million in wind generation projects capable of producing up to 286 MW of electricity, enough to power between approximately 73,000 and 88,000 homes.

[1] Either by the Forestry Stewardship Council or the Sustainable Forestry Initiative.