Lenzing Group’s current carbon footprint

[GRI 302-1, 302-3, 305-1, 305-2, 305-3, 305-4, 305-5; ESRS E1-1, E1-2, E1-3, E1-4, E1-5, E1-6]

Lenzing’s Scope 1, 2 & 3 emissions

The Greenhouse Gas Protocol classifies emissions into three Scopes: scope 1 emissions cover all direct emissions from a company’s activities or activities under their control, including fuel combustion on site, e.g. from burning coal and own vehicles. Scope 2 emissions cover indirect emissions from electricity and heat purchased and used by the company.

Scope 3 emissions are defined as all other indirect emissions from the organization’s activities occurring from sources that it does not own or control and covering emissions along the value chain, for example, purchased goods and services such as chemicals and logistics.

Carbon footprint

Despite Lenzing’s business model, which is firmly rooted in the use of wood from well-managed forests and plantations that sequester carbon, the company does not assume that this alone is enough, given the current climate science. Lenzing goes further by drastically reducing the current fossil-based emissions from its own production and supply chain and innovating new technologies for further decarbonization to pave the way towards carbon neutrality by 2050. The Group advocates this bold approach to its industry rather than being complacent about the inherent climate advantage of the wood-based fibers business model.

Energy sources

The production volume of pulp and cellulosic Fibers is directly linked to the amount of consumed energy and, hence, emissions related to energy use. In 2022, the economic crisis and correspondingly challenging market environment forced temporary shutdowns of production lines or even whole sites, which led to a significant decrease in primary energy consumption (table 11). Total primary energy consumption was on the same level as 2020, but the share of renewable fuels increased slightly. The specific energy consumption index improved by 0.2 percent compared to 2021.

In 2022, absolute CO₂ emissions in all Scope’s decreased significantly. CO₂ intensity of scope 1, 2 & 3 also strongly decreased in 2022 compared to 2021. Reason for these is the slightly lower production volume as well as the implementation of various improvements (see the section “Highlight 2022” in this chapter).