MERLIN Properties Annual Report 2024

6 | Annual report | 2024 Regarding the dividend, it was agreed to distribute an interim dividend of 18 cents per share, which, together with the dividend to be submitted for approval at the General Meeting, would bring the total dividend for 2024 to 40 cents. In 2024 MERLIN continued its progress in environmental sustainability. The green clause has been implemented in all the Company’s new contracts. Maximum embedded carbon footprint limits have been established for new developments or comprehensive refurbishments. A total of 15.6 MW of PV power has been installed since the launch of the so-called Sun project and the carbon footprint of the asset portfolio has been reduced by 0.7% to a total of 2,696 tons in the year. This commitment together with the good environmental performance has been endorsed with the inclusion of MERLIN Properties for the second consecutive year in the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index and for the fourth consecutive year in the European index of the same index. Improvements in corporate governance have also been implemented. MERLIN has a solid governance system, in line with its values of ethics, compliance and transparency, supported by independent third-party validation. In 2024, a proactive analysis has been carried out regarding sustainability-related regulations (CSRD and EU Taxonomy), although the new regulations are not yet applicable to the Company, and progress has been made in the design and implementation of a new internal control model GRC in a new tool that will help strengthen the integrity and efficiency of MERLIN’s internal control processes (SCIIF and SCIIS). In short, 2024 has been a very important year in terms of value creation for MERLIN, obtaining maximum performance from our portfolio of more traditional assets, offices, centers and logistics, while accelerating the Company’s future shift towards an asset category, data centers which are and will be the benchmark asset for a digitized economy, especially after the irruption of artificial intelligence. Once again this year I would like to thank the employees, suppliers and all MERLIN Properties stakeholders for their trust and dedication, and especially the shareholders for their confidence and support, without which everything we do would not be possible. Thank you very much.