Keppel Corporation has announced its commitment to halve the company’s Scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions by 2030, compared to 2020 levels, and achieve net zero by 2050.
In a statement by the company on Oct 6, Keppel states that the target is in line with the Paris Agreement’s goal to limit global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels.
“As part of Vision 2030, Keppel has put sustainability at the core of our strategy. The target of halving our carbon emissions by 2030 and achieving net zero by 2050 reflects our commitment to environmental sustainability and climate action,” says Loh Chin Hua, CEO of Keppel.
“Beyond reducing the environmental impact of our operations, Keppel is also making sustainability our business by providing diverse solutions that contribute to a cleaner and greener world and to combatting climate change, such as renewables, green buildings and data centres, climate-resilient nearshore developments and various decarbonisation solutions,” he adds.
Based on Keppel’s current portfolio, under the new target, the company would reduce its Scope 1 and 2 emissions from approximately 172,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e) in 2020 to 86,000 tCO2e by 2030.
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Beyond 2030, Keppel aims to achieve net zero Scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions by 2050. For Scope 3 emissions, Keppel says the company has started tracking emissions since 2019 and will work with its supply chain and portfolio of investments to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions wherever possible.
To achieve its targets, Keppel’s initiatives will include refocusing its portfolio on sustainable urbanisation solutions, greening its properties, purchasing and using renewable energy, and investing in clean, new businesses such as solar farms, distributed energy resources and storage, and electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
Keppel has also set a target to invest at least 50% of its research and development expenditure on sustainability-linked innovation by 2030.
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On top of the group-wide carbon emissions reduction target, Keppel’s business units also have emissions reduction targets in line with their respective sectors. For example, Keppel Land plans to achieve 100% reduction for Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030, while Keppel Data Centres aims to achieve net zero Scope 1 and 2 emissions for all its new data centre assets in Singapore by 2030.
According to Keppel, environmental sustainability targets have been included in the performance appraisal of senior management across the group, including both annual remuneration and long-term incentives.
The group also plans to leverage its green credentials and sustainability efforts to tap green and sustainability-linked financing to support new investments. Since 2019, the group has collectively secured close to $2 billion in green and sustainability-linked financing facilities.
As at 2.29pm, shares in Keppel are trading 1 cent or 0.19% lower at $5.18.
Photo: Keppel Corp
