Stellantis Plans to Become Carbon Net-Zero by 2038

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Stellantis, the 6th largest automotive firm worldwide, revealed its plan to become carbon net-zero by 2038.

The automaker owns 14 different car brands. These include famous ones like Fiat, Chrysler, Dodge, Ram, Jeep, Alfa Romeo, Citroen, Peugeot, and Maserati.

The company seeks to be the industry champion in fighting climate change. It uses its 2021 emissions as a baseline to reduce Scope 1 and 2 by 50% in 2025 and 75% in 2030.

And unlike most auto companies that plan to hit net-zero goals by 2050, the automaker aims to achieve it by 2038.

Stellantis 2021 Baseline for Carbon Net-Zero Plan

In 2021, Stellantis Scope 1 emissions equal to over 1.6 million tonnes of CO2eq, while Scope 2 emissions amounted to 2.2 million tonnes of CO2eq. This translates to 0.663 tons of CO2eq per vehicle manufactured.

Here is the company’s breakdown of GHG emissions per region for 2021 for more details.

When it comes to tracking and managing its carbon footprint and targets, Stellantis follows the SBTi (Science-Based Target Initiative) method.

For 2021 alone, the automaker’s emissions of CO2 eq for cars sold in Europe only is equal to 136 million tonnes.

The images below show the firm’s main emission items by activities per emissions scope.

Stellantis’ initiatives in the previous year allowed it to reduce direct emissions (Scope 1 + 2) by 49,924 tonnes of CO2eq. This is equivalent to 8.8 kg of CO2eq per vehicle produced.

For instance, the electrification ramp-up and technical improvements to its cars reduced significant emissions. This particularly involves its battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and low emission vehicles (LEVs).

The LEV models sold in 2021 accounted for 12.8% of passenger cars in Europe and 3.4% (cars and trucks) in the US.

In line with Stellantis’ carbon net-zero target, it plans to make LEV sales become 100% in Europe and 50% in the US in 2030. Likewise, the automaker also aims to have more than 75 BEVs and earn BEV sales of 5 million vehicles by the end of this decade.

For the same year, Stellantis also managed to invest over €6.3 million in energy savings, corresponding to about €1.1 per vehicle produced. It was also able to gain a share of decarbonized electricity of 45%.

Stellantis Carbon Emissions Roadmap

To become carbon net-zero in 2038, the automaker focuses on the following main levers.

Short term 2025:

Energy management in all plants

Energy-efficient projects

Medium-term 2030:

Site compression and improvement of industrial footprint

Use and production of renewable energies

Long term 2038:

Technical innovations (e.g. Hydrogen, Power to gas)

CO2 capture and storage

Compensation of residual emissions

In addition, the firm continues to invest in CO2 reduction projects. This entails taking part in major emissions allowance schemes. These include the EU ETS and the Canadian Federal Output-Based Pricing System (OBPS).

Stellantis implemented two distinct internal carbon prices to aid its investments.

The first one refers to the shadow price of carbon. Its purpose is to show industrial climate-related risks and opportunities to guide the firm on which projects to invest in.

The other one is called the internal carbon price. This is to measure the cost efficiency of Stellantis’ technical levers that reduce vehicle emissions.

Finally, to make its reduction efforts run smooth, the firm links its 3 major CSR issues to its net-zero ambition. These are:

Vehicle CO2 emissions (100% nameplates with BEV offering in EU and US)

Industrial and sites carbon footprint (Scope 1 and 2 emissions are net-zero)

Carbon footprint of the supply chain: purchasing and logistics
(carbon net-zero per Paris Agreement)

On top of its carbon net-zero plan, Stellantis also aims to double its net revenues to $335 billion by 2030. This and sustain its big profit margins while growing efforts to electrify its cars.

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PNG Suspends New Carbon Credit Deals While Writing New Rules

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The government of Papua New Guinea (PNG), suspended new voluntary carbon credit schemes while making new rules to govern them.
 
PNG decided to develop a stronger legal framework governing voluntary carbon credit deals. These carbon credit schemes are arrangements made between developers and resource owners directly. Government is not part of the negotiation.
 
While PNG is creating new laws, the environment ministry, Wera Mori, set a moratorium on new carbon deals. This action was due to red flags raised over a new carbon credit deal in the Oro province.
 
The temporary ban covers all the new carbon deals. The ministry said that this is “… To ensure proper stock take and audit of existing voluntary carbon projects.”

Why PNG Bans Voluntary Carbon Credit Deals

The moratorium came after an industry watchdog, got the government’s attention. The group faulted the 100-year carbon credit scheme in Oro province, citing a lack of key details.
 
They also called on Verra, a global certifying body for voluntary carbon standards, to reject the Oro deal.
 
In response, the PNG government banned the deal and other new carbon credit schemes in the meantime. But once the new regulations are in place, the voluntary carbon market in the country will be open again.
 
Though the suspension will impact the carbon credit market big time, it’s a must. In fact, the Oro province governor, Gary Juffa, said that it’s well overdue.
 
Juffa noted that this has been the case for far too long already. The so-called “carbon cowboys” have been collecting big profits from carbon credit deals. But they are giving the forest stewards and caretakers in the province very little.
 
The coalition of other concerned society groups is also pressuring the government to have strict rules regulating the market. They said that there are already voluntary carbon projects in every part of PNG.
Without the safeguards like free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC), the market will take advantage of the native landowners.
 
FPIC is a legal tool meant to protect native landowners against commercial loggers.

The Carbon Credit Market and PNG

Carbon credits are regarded as a pivotal means for countries to hit net-zero emissions goals. Unfortunately, outside Europe, the voluntary carbon credit market remains unregulated. And the case of PNG is one example.
 
The country is home to the world’s 3rd largest tropical rainforest. It keeps 7% of the earth’s biodiversity, making PNG so attractive to carbon financiers.
 
Even more important, protecting the forests is vital to PNG’s climate goals. That is to halve emissions by 2030 and be carbon neutral by 2050.
 
Also, PNG has been the world’s biggest tropical timber exporter since 2014. But, over 70% of timber production in the country is illegal, according to reports.
 
So, if carbon cowboys continue to sway landowners to do unregulated carbon projects, the forests will be at risk.
 
Hence, having safeguards on these projects is crucial for PNG’s carbon market to thrive, ensuring that there is proper oversight. 

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IPCC AR6 Report on Climate Change: We Must Act Now

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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released the third and final installment of its AR6 report on climate change.
 
The report is Working Group III’s contribution to IPCC Sixth Assessment Report (AR6). It was published today after getting the approval of 195 member governments of the IPCC.
 
Along with the two other AR6 reports, this report is vital for climate science analysis. 
 
In general, it provides scientific data on annual GHG emissions from 2010 to 2019. It also lays out potential solutions on how to reduce emissions. These solutions are the consolidated ideas of 278 scientists from 65 countries.

Evidence Presented in IPCC AR6 Report on Climate Change

The key message of the report is this: to make our planet safe for the next generations, we must act now. It means the entire world needs urgent action to reduce GHG emissions across all sectors.
 
Otherwise, the goal to limit global warming to the critical 1.5 degrees Celsius is beyond reach.
 

The IPCC’s AR6 report on climate change shows scientific evidence why we should act now or it would be too late.

From 2010 to 2019, the average annual global GHG emissions were at their highest historical levels, as shown below.

Though the rate of increase has slowed down, the next few years’ warming reductions are critical.
 
The assessment indicates that getting to 1.5°C requires GHG emissions to peak before 2025, at the latest. Then the emissions must go down by 43% by 2030. Meanwhile, a reduction of around a third in methane is also a must.
 
In the words of the IPCC Chair, Hoesung Lee, “We are at a crossroads. The decisions we make now can secure a liveable future. We have the tools and know-how required to limit warming.”
 
Lee also noted that there are climate actions taken by countries that are proving effective. Likewise, there has been a consistent decrease in the costs of renewable energy of up to 85% since 2010.
 
Another essential report highlight is the creation of policies that improved energy efficiency. Also, global efforts had lowered deforestation rates while enhancing the use of renewables.
But still, more concerted efforts to achieve massive emissions reductions are necessary.

IPCC’s AR6 Solutions to Mitigate Global Warming

The AR6 report outlines climate mitigation strategies that cover all the major sectors. These include energy, transport, buildings, urban, industry, forestry, and agriculture.
 
Scientists in the IPCC believe that if those climate mitigations will take effect, the world can at least reduce emissions by half by 2030.
 
While rapid reductions have to occur across the board, the biggest impact will be from the energy sector. This means significant reductions in fossil fuel use and widespread electrification. It also calls for more energy efficiency and the use of alternative fuels like hydrogen.
 
In other main emitter sectors, the same solutions may also help reduce emissions. Carbon capture and storage can also be a potential option to help mitigate warming.
 
Finally, IPCC’s AR6 report on climate change stresses the need to consider other means. The two important ones are closing global investment gaps and achieving SDGs.
 
All three IPCC AR6 reports will be synthesized and published in September right before the major COP27 happens in Egypt.

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India’s Ambitious Climate Goal Threatens by the Power Sector

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India’s lofty climate goal is at risk due to the financial problems that power retailers face, along with other issues.

Part of the country’s green plan is to increase renewable energy capacity by the end of 2022.

But estimates from BloombergNEF reveal that India is likely to miss its 175 GW target. This translates to around 36% of failing to achieve such renewables goal.

This scenario is an indicator that the country is having structural issues on its way to net zero. The power suppliers, in particular, which control about 90% of the nation’s electricity supply are one of the main culprits.

How Hard is it to Achieve India’s Climate Goal?

The financial distress of India’s power retailers is the key reason why its 2022 target seems to fail. They struggle to pay off debts and recover losses, affecting their service delivery.

Such a situation led to power suppliers’ missed payments to power producers. In effect, it also impacts other transactions across the industry, hindering growth.

For instance, wind projects that won government auctions did not manage to take off. This is largely linked to the issues confronting the distribution utilities.

Thus, industry experts believe that it’s imperative not to rely on state power retailers in hitting India’s climate goal.

Otherwise, it will put the nation’s climate goals at risk.

One way to expand its renewables target is to use new technologies like green hydrogen. This prompted the government to use extreme measures to offer citizens affordable, clean energy.

Unfortunately, the quest for clean energy has driven energy prices too high. This makes things even more challenging for the nation to advance its climate plan. Other major factors are also at play.

Too many policy changes and tax matters.

“Renewable energy is a business where making the most out of the investment is vital”, the CEO of a solar power developer said. But, if there are too many changes in a policy that affect the cost, growth in the sector becomes slow.

Also, taxes and import tariffs increases caused uncertainties in costs. For example, a sharp rise in renewable energy equipment taxes, from 5% to 12%, hit power developers so hard.

Likewise, major solar power developers in India are dubious about the new import tax. They are forced to delay big solar projects, holding 900 MW, because of a high customs tax of 40%.

Such is the case with the renewables partnership between Scatec ASA and Acme Solar Holdings. There are other renewables projects that can largely contribute to India’s climate goal. But those structural issues are putting them on hold.

So, What Comes Next for India?

India managed to report some renewables achievement, 152.9 GW + 72.6 GW, powered by hydro, solar, and wind. But still, such figures are too far from India’s ambitious climate goal set by Modi at the COP26 summit.

The country seeks to have 500 GW of renewables by 2030, getting huge interest from investors.

Yet, what’s even more critical than winning investors’ attention is fixing the major problems hurting the power sector in India.

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Netflix Bought 1.5 Million Carbon Credits in 2021

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The streaming giant, Netflix, bought 1.5 million carbon credits in 2021.
 
The technology company said that such an amount of carbon offsets had cut down its scope 1 and 2 emissions by 10%. The carbon credits were from 17 carbon projects the firm chose from more than 150 million tonnes.

Projects Comprising Netflix Retired Carbon Credits

Most of the projects are under Verra, a global carbon crediting organization.
 
One of them is the Vida Manglar Blue Carbon. The project is for protecting the mangroves and biodiversity of the Colombian Caribbean. It accounts for the full value of mangroves as a nature-based climate solution.
 
Netflix also retired carbon offsets from various projects verified in the Verra registry. These include the Chyulu Hills REDD+ Project which protects 410,000 hectares of forest in Kenya.
 
Another one is the Envira Amazonia Project. It is a tropical rainforest conservation project in Brazil. Likewise, the Kasigau Corridor REDD+ Project also protects a wildlife forest in Africa.
 
Other projects are the Northern Kenya Grasslands Project and the Reforesting Degraded Lands in Chile. Both projects are also under Verra management.
 
With those carbon projects, Netflix stated it had avoided about 14,000 tonnes of emissions last year. Retiring the credits from the projects enabled the firm to be on track with its carbon goals.

Netflix Net-Zero Carbon Targets

Last March 2021, Netflix revealed its “Net Zero + Nature” plan to hit net-zero GHG emissions by the end of 2022. The company’s approach to net-zero involves three R’s: Reduce, Retain and Remove.
 
Reduce means reducing Netflix scope 1 and 2 emissions by 45% in 2030, per the SBTi Guidance. This requires switching to using renewables and sustainable aviation fuel during film productions.
 
Retain involves keeping existing carbon storage by preventing more CO2 from reaching the air. Under this strategy, Netflix focuses on carbon credits that conserve at-risk natural areas. These include tropical forests and other critical ecosystems.
 
Lastly, Remove refers to investments in projects that capture and store carbon through natural solutions like grasslands and mangroves. The Vida Manglar Blue Carbon, in particular, is an example.
 

What makes Netflix’s carbon offset projects of high quality is its diligent evaluation process. It includes a five-step screening of RFP-based procurement, resulting in identifying the highest-quality nature-based projects

 
According to reports, Netflix managed to retire a total of 1.3 million carbon credits from the start of 2021.
 
Unfortunately, all full-scope emissions increased by 50% from 1.05 million tonnes in 2020 to 1.54 million tonnes in 2021. This was due to the increase in TV and film productions after the pandemic.

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