With an intention to integrate its Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) goals with business targets, Larsen & Toubro (L&T), country’s largest engineering and construction company, on Thursday said it is working towards becoming a ‘net zero’ company and has set a goal to achieve carbon neutrality by 2040 and water neutrality by 2035.
A net zero company achieves a state in which the activities of the company result in no net impact on the climate from greenhouse gas emissions, achieves a sustainable balance between water availability and demand, and eliminates solid waste sent to landfills.
The company’s aim to achieve carbon neutrality is much ahead of the Paris Agreement deadline of 2050.
“We are reaffirming our vision, policies, frameworks, roadmaps and action plans on ESG. Our ESG roadmap will align with our 5-year strategic plan – Lakshya 2026, and will reflect our commitment to climate leadership, water stewardship, circular economy, green supply chain, biodiversity, and green offerings. In line with the global push on ESG, we are gearing up for a step-change in our ambitions to scale new heights,” said S N Subrahmanyan, chief executive officer and managing director at L&T.
Today, the company launched the fourth Integrated Report, ‘Sustainable Progress for a Better World’, a comprehensive document that communicates L&T’s strategy, governance, performance and prospects in the context of external environment and value creation.
The company aims to become a leader in these areas with improved resource efficiency and conservation of vital natural resources. More than 10 percent of the total electricity consumed by the company comes from renewable sources. Cumulatively, the company has saved 128 million KWh of energy since 2008 which is equivalent to powering 60,000 households for one year. Through energy conservation measures and renewable energy, the company has avoided 33,500 tonnes of CO2 emissions during FY21.
L&T’s subsidiaries such as Mindtree, LTI, LTTS and LTFH are also taking meaningful actions and ambitious targets in these areas. Mindtree, LTI and LTTS have taken targets of becoming carbon neutral and water neutral by 2030. Similarly, LTFH has taken the target to become carbon neutral by 2035.
On the water management front, 57 per cent of wastewater is recycled and reused during FY21. The company has also been focusing on material recycling. Since the year 2008, the company has cumulatively used 43,068 tonnes of recycled steel and 2.4 million tonnes of fly ash. Today, 22 percent of its input material comes from recycled or eco-friendly sources.
L&T’s green offerings, at Rs 27,700 crore, is 29.6 per cent of its revenue. Nature conservation and promoting biodiversity is one of the major focus areas and L&T has been planting trees since more than a decade. The company has urban forests at 6 locations and 150,000 fully grown trees across various company campuses. During the year it has planted nearly 1 million saplings and cumulatively 3.3 million trees. Similarly, on the safety front the company is focusing on high-risk activities and a number of measures including the use of Digital AI Technologies, have helped in significantly improving the safety performance.
Alongside, L&T is using technology and innovation to achieve sustainable growth. Digital chipsets to track and monitor assets; and Geospatial tech, LiDAR and drone-based surveys have helped L&T capture and monitor site data remotely during the lockdown. L&T’s green offerings comprise projects embedded with advanced technology, solutions centered on renewables, water, effluent treatment plants, efficient power distribution, mass transit systems, and green buildings.
Source : capital markets
