Climate Protection Confirmed: SBTi Validates Group Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets

The independent climate protection organization SBTi develops standards, tools and guidelines which enable companies to set concrete greenhouse gas emission reduction targets. These are transparently validated in a recognized audit procedure. At the end of last year, together with all other Salzgitter AG companies and through the overall Group KHS submitted binding short-term and long-term targets for science-based CO₂ reduction. The results that are also based on the Paris Climate Agreement and are in accordance with the 1.5°C target have now been validated by the SBTi. Compared to base year 2021, in the short term the KHS Group will cut its greenhouse gas emissions generated directly by combustion (scope 1) and indirectly by the use of purchased electricity (scope 2) by around 36% at all of its sites by 2028. Furthermore, in the same period the greenhouse gas emissions from the company’s upstream and downstream value chain (scope 3) will be lowered by 20%. “Alongside the long-term and science-based Group target of net zero by 2050 at the latest, our short-term goals for 2028, approved by the SBTi, are just as ambitious, as important measures such as the switch to green electricity at our German plants were already fully implemented before base year 2021. We’re now concentrating on further energy efficiency measures and our international facilities. These act within very different energy markets,” explains Kai Acker, CEO of KHS GmbH.

KHS adopts ambitious plan
“We only have a few years in which to achieve our intermediate goal,” Acker continues. “We thus put the time up until validation to good use and have adopted a number of specific decarbonization measures. The first steps will now be initiated in the near future. Our ambitious plan is both an incentive and an obligation. We’re also showing our customers that we act responsibly and with transparency when it comes to protecting our climate,”Acker concludes.