ABB has announced a new commitment to reducing its carbon emissions, with the firm aiming to electrify its entire vehicle fleet by 2030, while also committing to sourcing 100% renewable electricity by the same date.
The firm says that its new sustainability strategy is predicated on science-based targets, with an aim of pushing down the company’s impact on the environment until it reaches net zero in 2030.
Arguably the biggest pledge of ABB’s new commitment is one which will see it electrify its entire fleet of vehicles. That means the company has committed to purchasing more than 10,000 electric vehicles by 2030.
The purchase of electric vehicles by ABB has already begun in earnest. In Sweden, the firm has started to convert its around 700 company cars to all-electric vehicles, while in the UK, over 500 company cars will be all-electric by 2025.
ABB’s fleet electrification plans are part of the EV100 initiative, which was founded by the Climate Group in 2017. The aim is to get companies to commit to going electric with their fleet of vehicles, with firms such as IKEA, Deutsche Post DHL, Vattenfall, Baidu and Leaseplan having already signed up.
In addition to EV100, ABB has also joined the RE 100 and EP 100 initiative. That means ABB is committing to sourcing 100% renewable electricity until 2030, as well establishing energy efficiency targets.
In terms of renewables, ABB already sourced 32% of all the electricity it used in 2020 from either certified green electricity or through its own solar power plants, while the company’s base in Switzerland is already running off pure 100% renewable power.
As for energy efficiency, this goal is mainly predicated on the systematic use of energy management systems. So far, ABB has deployed these systems at more than 100 of its sites around the world.
All these energy reduction targets have now received approval by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) confirming that they are in line with the 1.5°C scenario of the Paris Agreement. The SBTi is a partnership between non-governmental organizations CDP, United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). The SBTi defines and promotes best practices in science-based target setting and independently assesses companies’ targets.
ABB has also joined the Business Ambition for 1.5°C Campaign, a global coalition of UN agencies, business and industry leaders, led by the UNGC.
“At ABB, we want to lead by example across our own operations and the confirmation that our ambitious targets are now scientifically verified is an important milestone for the company,” said Theodor Swedjemark, Chief Communications and Sustainability Officer.
“We believe that the combination of technology and empowered people is key to reducing emissions and avoiding the further heating of our planet.”