- CO2 compensation still top measure to date
- 2023 to be dominated by emission reductions
- Only eight percent have achieved significant CO2 savings
Europe aims for becoming the first climate-neutral continent, and industrial companies are forging ahead: On average, manufacturers want to reduce their emissions to zero or offset them by 2033, 18 percent even by 2025, and another 41 percent by 2030 at the latest. Only six percent of manufacturing companies plan to achieve net zero after 2045. These are the findings of a recent Horváth survey of more than 100 top executives from major European manufacturing companies with annual sales of at least 100 million euros.
"The plans of the manufacturing sector are ambitious, considering that only eight percent have progressed so far in their sustainability transformation that they have been able to significantly reduce emissions, as our analysis shows," says Ralf Sauter, partner and industry expert at Horváth. The energy crisis has severely slowed down companies in their plans. This also explains why CO2 offsetting (44 percent overall) ranks first among the measures for achieving sustainability goals in energy-intensive industry. This is followed by "energy saving/increasing energy efficiency" and "use of ecological energy sources", each with 42 percent. Measures such as "decarbonization of the supply chain" and "development of a circular economy" are mentioned by only about one third. Even fewer are focusing on renewing their asset portfolio (24 percent).
"The past few months were overshadowed by the energy crisis. Companies were preoccupied with other issues such as securing energy supplies or realigning supply chains," says Horváth expert Sauter.
Increasing pressure to reduce emissions
For 2023, however, reducing the company's own emissions is also at the top of the management agenda. Within the manufacturing industry, the most important field of action for managers looking ahead to the coming months is recycling or reuse, with 50 percent naming it.
"In order to achieve the targets, higher investments are essential. Manufacturing companies assume that they will be able to pass on a maximum of 30 percent of these extra costs to their customers - the 'cost gap' must therefore be offset by a more favorable supply chain or more efficient operations," says Horváth partner Ralf Sauter.
Manufacturing companies expect long-term benefits from the shift to a sustainable economy. 56 percent intend to improve energy efficiency at the same time, and almost half (46 percent) hope that their sustainability activities will provide important impetus for innovations and new technologies. 39 percent want to counteract climate change in order to secure the future availability of raw materials as basic requirement for their business. One third see positive effects on the value chain.
About the study
For the Horváth study "Decarbonization and Sustainability in Industry 2023", more than 100 managers from European manufacturing companies with annual sales of at least 100 million euros were surveyed.
