Strategic sustainability approach boosts the value of Wijnegem Shop Eat Enjoy & Waasland Shopping

From fragmentation to focus

AXA Investment Managers and AEW manage leading real estate assets, including Wijnegem Shopping Centre and Waasland Shopping. Although both centres had already implemented various sustainability initiatives, these were fragmented and lacked an overarching strategy. This led to missed opportunities for synergy, efficiency and measurable impact.

The ambition was clear: to become one of the first net-zero assets globally in order to preserve and create value. There was a need for a partner who could provide both strategic advice and hands-on guidance during implementation, and who could coordinate the various initiatives so that they reinforced one another.

Future-proof roadmap

Encon acted as a strategic partner and appointed a programme manager to coordinate all sustainability initiatives and provide monthly updates to management. A multidisciplinary team of experts in energy efficiency, renewable energy, decarbonisation and flexibility worked together to identify synergies between projects and develop a future-proof roadmap.

Our collaboration began with a joint kick-off meeting with the asset and property managers of both Wijnegem Shopping Centre and Waasland Shopping. During these sessions, we not only discussed our approach but also clarified all practical arrangements, so that everyone knew what to expect. From there, we delved deeper into the subject matter: we carried out a gap analysis on existing studies to identify which initiatives were still missing or needed refining to be fully compliant.

We brought the findings to life during an interactive workshop, combining our technical expertise with their in-depth knowledge of the assets. Together, we set the priorities and laid the foundations for a concrete roadmap. Based on this roadmap, we drew up project sheets, which are currently being implemented step by step. The roadmap remains a living document and is reviewed annually and adapted to changes in legislation and the property market, ensuring that the transition to Net Zero continues to make progress.

Sustainable with an eye on financial returns

Thanks to the collaboration with Encon, Wijnegem Shopping Centre and Waasland Shopping are taking concrete steps towards CO2-neutral assets. All initiatives are now integrated into a single overarching strategy, leading to:

• Value creation for the centres: the structured approach increases market value and reduces future risks through early adaptation to legislation and market developments.
• Measurable financial benefits, including lower energy costs, greater appeal to tenants and better financing terms thanks to strong ESG performance.
• Improved environmental performance and full compliance with laws and regulations.
• Strategic long-term vision for the energy transition of the assets.