ESG News in Brief (10/10/2022 - 16/10/2022)

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World Bank To Launch New Trust Fund For Emissions Reduction Grants

The World Bank said on October 10 that it will launch a new trust fund to provide grants for projects that reduce carbon emissions. The Scaling Climate Action by Lowering Emissions(SCALE) fund will provide grants to developing countries and will be officially launched at the COP27 climate change conference in November.

At the same time, the World Bank said the fund will finance grants in three main areas: natural climate solutions based on agriculture, forestry, land use and oceans; sustainable infrastructure such as energy and transport; and financial and fiscal solutions that directly or indirectly mobilize resources for climate action. The establishment of the fund will bring new opportunities for emission reduction projects in low- and middle-income countries and further enhance their competitiveness in accessing international carbon markets.

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Vietnam learns from South Korea to formulate a roadmap for the development of domestic carbon market

The Director General of Vietnam¡¯s Climate Change Agency, Mr. Zeng Tiang, said at a seminar held in Hanoi on the afternoon of October 11, on the topic of the development experience of Vietnam¡¯s greenhouse gas and carbon credit quota allocation system,  that Vietnam has always regarded tackling climate change as a crucial task and that reducing greenhouse gas emissions and using natural resources efficiently and sustainably while adapting to climate change is the responsibility of the entire political system. Currently, Vietnam has accumulated some experiences in implementing a number of carbon credit allocations, but there is still a shortage of expert knowledge on the carbon market for regulators and companies. To solve this problem, the Korea International Cooperation Agency will provide support in areas related to emission reduction and allocation of allowances on carbon emission reduction.

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Cross-border ESG due diligence rules in the spotlight

On March 10, 2021, the European Parliament adopted a resolution ¡°EU Resolution¡±, and issued recommendations including a draft directive, the ¡°EU Directive¡±. In late February this year, a proposal for a directive on corporate sustainability due diligence was adopted. The proposal aims to facilitate sustainable and responsible corporate behavior in global value chains. Companies have a critical role to play in building a sustainable economy and society. They will be required to identify and, if necessary, prevent, end or mitigate adverse impacts of their activities on human rights, such as child labor and exploitation of workers, and negative impacts on the environment, such as pollution and biodiversity loss. For businesses these new rules will bring legal certainty and level the playing field.

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Nescaf¨¦ to Invest over CHF 1 Billion in Nescaf¨¦ Plan 2030

Nestl¨¦, the global food and beverage company, recently announced a program to make coffee farming more sustainable: the Nescaf¨¦ Plan 2030, which will continue to support financing for regenerative agriculture and accelerate the Group's commitment to accelerate the transition to a regenerative food system while achieving net zero carbon greenhouse gas emissions.

Regenerative agriculture can improve soil fertility and biodiversity as a means to counteract the effects of climate change. Regenerative agriculture also reduces CO2 in the air and is therefore a key part of Nestl¨¦'s net-zero carbon roadmap. The Nestl¨¦ Group is committed to growing 20% of its coffee beans using regenerative agriculture by 2025; by 2030, this proportion will reach 50%.

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German power producer RWE announces elimination of coal generation by 2030

In a recent conference, Germany's largest power producer RWE announced that it will accelerate the elimination of coal generation to meet the country's clean energy strategy. The German government, which passed a bill in the first half of 2020 to achieve a national target of 80% of electricity from renewable sources by 2030, highlighted the need to invest in energy and announced that it would invest more than €50 billion globally in clean energy generation to support global sustainable development efforts.

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Shipping giant DHL announces expansion of its GoGreen Plus emissions reduction service to road transport    

German Shipping giant DHL recently announced that it is changing the structure of its land transport division to expand its supply chain emissions reduction service GoGreen Plus, a solution division of DHL Freight, to road transport. GoGreen Plus aims to reduce emissions through "carbon embedding", enabling shippers to replace traditional fossil fuels with sustainable fuels or clean technologies. The initiative is a key part of DHL's sustainability plan to be launched in 2020, and DHL officially states that the company plans to invest €7 billion in sustainable fuel replacement projects by 2030 to drive the clean energy transition.

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Iberdrola and Sempra Infrastructure to Co-develop Hydrogen and Green Ammonia Projects in the US

Iberdrola and Sempra Infrastructure, the third largest renewable energy operator in the United States, recently signed an agreement that anticipates the joint development of hydrogen and green ammonia projects powered by renewable energy in the United States. The agreement provides a framework for the companies to identify, evaluate and potentially develop large-scale green hydrogen projects to help meet the energy and decarbonization needs of U.S. and international customers.

Sempra Infrastructure is currently developing several world-class energy transition projects in North America, and its well-established platform characteristics give it a natural advantage in the deployment of new energy solutions. And Iberdrola's extensive experience in renewable energy development complements Sempra Infrastructure's complex project development and commercial expertise in clean energy, grid, LNG and net-zero solutions. Together, the two are developing hydrogen and green ammonia projects that are critical to industrial decarbonization and will help the U.S. achieve its clean energy goals.

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Spain's oil-and-gas company Cespa plans Green Hydrogen Corridor

As reported by Dow Jones Newswires on October 12, Spanish oil-and-gas company Cepsa SA and the Port of Rotterdam on Tuesday said they plan to create a green hydrogen corridor to help power northern Europe's industry while reducing its carbon footprint. The company will produce hydrogen via renewable energy near the port. This green hydrogen corridor, the first to connect Europe¡¯s solar-rich south with its industry-intensive north, is expected to be in operation by 2027.

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India's First Biomaterials Startup - Phool

In India, a large number of festive celebrations consume huge amounts of floral products every year. After being consumed, these floral products go to nearby landfills or rivers as waste products, not least of which are toxic plants, which cause significant ecological impact and pollution. Indian engineer Ankit Agarwal founded India's first biomaterials startup in 2017.

The Kanpur-based startup collects floral waste from temples in Uttar Pradesh, thereby preventing 13 tons of spent flowers and toxic chemicals from flowing into rivers every day. The startup also employs women from the Dalit community to handcraft the waste into charcoal-free incense sticks and essential oils through a "flower recycling" technique. The women in the area are mostly from the lower castes in India, and this work will bring them equality and dignity in social work and life as well.

Phool has grown threefold in just two years, attracting interest from numerous investors and raising $8 million in funding from Sixth Sense Ventures in April of this year, which the company will use to expand its operations and increase its R&D efforts to reduce the use of animal leather.