• Bell named GHG Reductions Champion
• Solar cell site project recognized
• Catherine Goyer named one of Canada's Clean50 leaders for 2023

MONTRÉAL, Oct. 7, 2022 /CNW Telbec/ - Bell announced today that it has been recognized by Clean50 – a national sustainability organization – for its commitment to the highest environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards. Clean50 has named Bell the inaugural GHG Reductions Champion for achieving meaningful greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions, in addition to recognizing Bell's solar cell site initiative for its environmental innovation.

Bell has demonstrated its environmental leadership by setting increasingly ambitious GHG reduction goals since 2017. Clean 50 has named Bell the inaugural GHG Reductions Champion in recognition of our success reducing the GHG emissions intensity of our operations. In 2021, we surpassed our target by an additional 15 percent, with our GHG emissions per network usage showing a 55% improvement compared with our 2019 baseline.

Bell's solar-powered remote communication towers initiative was named one of the Clean50 Top Projects for 2023, ranking it among the most innovative and inspiring sustainability projects undertaken in Canada in the last two years. The project replaces diesel generators with solar voltaic cells to provide primary power to remote communication towers and was developed in partnership with Université de Sherbrooke's Interdisciplinary Institute for Technological Innovation (3IT) and its Nanotechnologies and Nanosystems Laboratory (LN2), as well as with Saint-Augustin Canada Electric Inc. (STACE). The project was successful at reducing diesel consumption at remote sites by up to 75%.

In addition to the Top Project award, Catherine Goyer, Director, Corporate Responsibility and Environment, has also been named one of Canada's Clean50 leaders for 2023, ranking her among the Canadians who have done the most to move the country toward a sustainable economy over the last two years. The recognition celebrates Catherine's leadership of Bell's Corporate Responsibility and Environment team in helping deliver sustainability solutions. Clean50 points out that "Catherine's vision of digital technology enabling the decarbonization of the country's economy and society has helped guide Bell through successive cycles of increasingly ambitious GHG reduction targets."

"Bell is committed to providing innovative products and services that help create a sustainable future. I'm delighted that Clean50 has named Bell its inaugural GHG Reductions Champion, and recognized our Solar Cell Sites initiative as one of the Top Projects. I am also happy to congratulate Catherine Goyer, whose goal-oriented leadership of Bell's Corporate Responsibility and Environment team has resulted in her being named to Canada's Clean50 for 2023."

- Marc Duchesne, VP, Corporate Security and Responsibility, Bell

Bell's leadership on environmental issues includes a wide range of innovative programs to reduce environmental impacts throughout our operations and provide tools to help our customers reduce their carbon footprint. We demonstrate our commitment to energy management and reducing the carbon footprint of our network, in line with our strategic imperative to help create a sustainable future.

• Recently surpassed GHG intensity reduction target by 15%, bringing GHG emissions per network usage down by 55% between 2019 and the end of 2021
• Over the past two years, set the goal of achieving carbon neutral operations in 2025
• Committed to science-based, absolute GHG reductions by 2030 that align with the most ambitious temperature goal of the Paris Agreement
• Achieved a rate of 63% overall waste diversion for 2021
• Prohibited unnecessary internal single-use plastics, and recovered 2.5M end-of-life electronic devices from customers in 2021, donating the net proceeds to WWF

In 2022, Bell achieved ISO 50001 certification of its energy management system for a third consecutive year, after becoming the first communications company in North America to achieve that designation for our energy management system and has been recognized as one of Canada's Greenest Employers for the sixth consecutive year.

More information about Bell's environmental achievements is available in its Corporate Responsibility Report. Bell's ESG commitment is also highlighted in the BCE 2021 Annual Report to shareholders, available at BCE.ca.

Bell is Canada's largest communications company, providing advanced broadband wireless, TV, Internet, media and business communication services throughout the country. Founded in Montréal in 1880, Bell is wholly owned by BCE Inc. To learn more, please visit Bell.ca or BCE.ca.

Through Bell for Better, we are investing to create a better today and a better tomorrow by supporting the social and economic prosperity of our communities with a commitment to the highest environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards. This includes the Bell Let's Talk initiative, which promotes Canadian mental health with national awareness and anti-stigma campaigns like Bell Let's Talk Day and significant Bell funding of community care and access, research and workplace leadership initiatives throughout the country. To learn more, please visit Bell.ca/LetsTalk.

Media inquiries
Jacqueline Michelis
jacqueline.michelis@bell.ca
@Bell_News

Investor inquiries
Richard Bengian
richard.bengian@bell.ca

Certain statements made in this news release are forward-looking statements, including statements relating to our ESG objectives including, without limitation, our goal to achieve carbon neutral operations in 2025 and to achieve our science-based targets for GHG emissions reduction, our business objectives, plans and strategic priorities, and other statements that are not historical facts. All such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of applicable Canadian securities laws and of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties and are based on several assumptions which give rise to the possibility that actual results or events could differ materially from our expectations. These statements are not guarantees of future performance or events, and we caution you against relying on any of these forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release describe our expectations at the date of this news release and, accordingly, are subject to change after such date. Except as may be required by applicable securities laws, we do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this news release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Our ESG objectives, and the benefits expected to result therefrom, are subject to risks and, accordingly, there can be no assurance that our ESG objectives will be completed or that the benefits expected to result therefrom will be realized. In addition, forward-looking statements for periods beyond 2022 involve longer-term assumptions and estimates than forward-looking statements for 2022 and are consequently subject to greater uncertainty. In particular, our GHG emissions reduction targets are based on a number of assumptions including, without limitation, the following principal assumptions: implementation of various corporate and business initiatives to reduce our electricity and fuel consumption, as well as reduce other direct and indirect GHG emissions enablers; no new corporate initiatives, business acquisitions or technologies that would materially increase our anticipated levels of GHG emissions; our ability to purchase sufficient credible carbon credits and renewable energy certificates to offset or further reduce our GHG emissions, if and when required; no negative impact on the calculation of our GHG emissions from refinements in or modifications to international standards or the methodology we use for the calculation of such GHG emissions; no required changes to our science-based targets pursuant to the Science Based Targets initiative methodology that would make the achievement of our updated science-based targets more onerous; and sufficient supplier engagement and collaboration in setting their own science-based targets and sufficient collaboration with partners in reducing their own GHG emissions. For additional information on assumptions and risks underlying certain of our forward-looking statements made in this news release, please consult BCE Inc.'s (BCE) 2021 Annual MD&A dated March 3, 2022, BCE's 2022 First Quarter MD&A dated May 4, 2022, BCE's 2022 Second Quarter MD&A dated August 3, 2022 and BCE's news release dated August 4, 2022 announcing its financial results for the second quarter of 2022, filed by BCE with the Canadian provincial securities regulatory authorities (available at Sedar.com) and with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (available at SEC.gov). These documents are also available at BCE.ca.

SOURCE Bell Canada