SGD Pharma Commits to Near-Term Science Based Targets Initiative as Part of Sustainability Drive

SGD Pharma, announces its commitment to company-wide emissions reductions as part of its decarbonization strategy by joining the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).

The SBTi is a global body enabling businesses to set ambitious targets for emissions reductions in line with leading climate science. It is focused on accelerating companies across the world to halve emissions before 2030.

Science-based targets provide companies, including SGD Pharma, with a well-defined path to reduce emissions in line with the Paris Agreement goals. More than 4,000 businesses around the world are already supported by the SBTi to outline a clear process to commit, develop a target, submit, communicate and disclose.

Ambitious targets for SGD Pharma’s plants in France, Germany, India and China have been set to cut CO₂ scope 1 and 2 emissions minus 35% by 2030 versus 2020 and minus 65% by 2040 (compared with a 2020 baseline). Olivier Rousseau, CEO at SGD Pharma explains: “Decarbonization is one of the key priorities in our company strategy and we intend to lead the pharma-grade glass industry with our decarbonization efforts. These public commitments of the business’s near-term emission reductions and decarbonization targets have been reviewed and approved by the SBTi. Approval of these targets shows that SGD Pharma is focused on maintaining excellence while adapting to the needs of the planet.”

The drive towards achieving these goals is in progress, with four of SGD Pharma’s glass manufacturing plants already certified ISO 50001 for the design, implementation and maintenance of an energy management system. A number of milestones have been reached so far, with multiple projects underway to reduce carbon footprint across all geographies, including the full coverage of the Vemula, India plant with solar panels last year and the current high performance rebuild of one of the two furnaces at SGD Pharma’s Saint-Quentin-Lamotte (SQLM) manufacturing plant in France.

This rebuild is part of SGD Pharma’s ambitious global decarbonization strategy and will contribute to a two-thirds reduction of the company’s total carbon emissions by 2040. The current project will cut the SQLM CO₂ emissions by almost 20% and will have two phases that both reduce the consumption of natural gas while increasing the use of electricity onsite. The SQLM furnace rebuild accelerates the electrification of one of the two furnaces (yielding a 40% increase in electricity output), the other furnace already being 100% electric for many years. The project will also deliver a 50% reduction of gas consumption in the furnace forehearths.

As the next step following the commitment process, SGD Pharma is currently working with the SBTi on a 1.5°C decarbonization pathway and target validation, making SGD Pharma one of the few companies in its industry with an official SBTi climate ambition.