2023~24 Sustainability Report Published
"Conversion Rate Tripled Compared to 2022"
SK Secures Renewable Energy at BEP and Others
LG Innotek announced on the 27th that it has converted about 61% of its workplace electricity consumption to renewable energy. This marks a nearly threefold increase in the conversion rate within just over a year since joining RE100 (100% renewable energy transition) in early July 2022.
LG Innotek employees are presenting their achievement of a 61% renewable energy transition rate. [Photo by LG Innotek]
LG Innotek published the '2023-24 Sustainability Report' containing this information on the same day. According to the report, the company converted 60.9% of its electricity usage to renewable energy last year. This conversion rate is nearly three times higher than in 2022 (22.1%). Through this, it reduced greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 267,000 tCO2eq (tons of CO2 equivalent). This effect is equivalent to planting about 40 million 30-year-old pine trees.
Since joining the RE100 campaign in 2022, LG Innotek has set and pursued the goal of converting 100% of its total electricity consumption to renewable energy by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2040. As about 80-90% of the company’s greenhouse gas emissions come from electricity usage, LG Innotek plans to reduce emissions by switching its energy sources to renewable energy.
As part of this effort, last year the company signed a contract to purchase Renewable Energy Certificates (REC) with Bright Energy Partners (BEP), a domestic private solar power company. Following the contract, LG Innotek will be recognized for using approximately 100 GWh (gigawatt-hours) of renewable energy annually for 20 years. RECs are certificates that prove power producers supplied electricity using renewable energy facilities. They are issued by the Korea Energy Agency. Companies purchase RECs from power producers and submit them to the Energy Agency to have their renewable energy usage recognized.
LG Innotek also signed a direct Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) last year with SK E&S, an energy specialist company, to receive 10 MW (megawatts) of renewable energy annually for 20 years. A PPA means directly contracting with renewable energy producers and suppliers for electricity purchases.
The company expanded the installation of solar power facilities totaling 8 MW at domestic and overseas workplaces. It also participated in the Green Premium system. Through these efforts, LG Innotek has secured a stable renewable energy supply chain. It received a 'Leadership A' rating in the Climate Change Response assessment by the international non-profit Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP). The Leadership A rating is awarded to only 1.5% of the 23,202 global companies surveyed.
Additionally, LG Innotek is striving to manage a circular resource ecosystem and achieve zero environmental impact. It plans to obtain the 'Zero Waste to Landfill (ZWTL)' certification from the global safety certification body UL at all domestic and overseas workplaces by 2026. The Gumi, Paju, and Pyeongtaek sites already hold the highest platinum certification. The company will also rapidly pursue certification for overseas sites in China, Vietnam, and other locations.
Investment in environmental facilities has also increased. Last year alone, LG Innotek spent 85 billion KRW, about five times more than the previous year. This investment improved waste treatment facilities and air pollution prevention equipment at domestic and overseas workplaces.
CEO Moon Hyuk-soo said, "As a global company, we will lead efforts to respond to climate change and practice sincere ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management to continuously create differentiated customer value."
LG Innotek’s Sustainability Report can be viewed on the company’s website.
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