Porsche is making an impact towards a clean future

Porsche is making an impact towards a clean future

Exclusive sporting mobility company, Porsche, is committed to integrating sustainable strategies into their business model. With programmes like Porsche Impact, the company is on the way to a cleaner future.
German automobile manufacturer, Porsche, is pursuing the vision of becoming the most sustainable brand for exclusive and sporting mobility.

After adapting its sustainability strategy in 2019, the company focuses on its long-term objective of achieving value-creating growth for economic values and social responsibility. They also want to simultaneously improve sustainability within its corporate activities on all levels.

The Porsche Sustainability Index also defines clear goals to be reached by 2050. In its sustainability strategy, the automobile manufacturer has acknowledged the changes and challenges the automotive industry is facing. With these challenges come new possibilities for design and innovation for the company.

Porsche wants to ensure its operations are environmentally and socially compatible whilst contributing to its economic success. This goal is what forms their new sustainability strategy;

Their strategic action areas underline Porsche’s holistic commitment to corporate sustainability
The ultimate goal of Porsche’s sustainability strategy is for the company to continuously reduce its negative environmental impact while further reinforcing its positive influence on society
Porsche’s clearly defined corporate vision demands that it becomes the most sustainable brand for exclusive and sporting mobility
Porsche Impact: a CO2 compensation programme
Speaking to CleanTech News, Porsche outlined its sustainability goals. They are continuously looking to demonstrate their pioneering role and ambitions – in addition to e-mobility, digitalization and the spirit of innovation, especially in the area of sustainability. The sports car manufacturer understands sustainability holistically, acting in the areas of ecology, economics and society, thus actively facing up to its responsibility.

Managing their sustainability with clear targets and performance indicators. The first priority for Porsche is to avoid CO2 emissions. Where they cannot be avoided, they reduce them as far as possible. Thirdly, Porsche seeks offsetting options. Within that context, Porsche has developed its CO2 compensation programme, Porsche Impact.

Using an online calculator, Porsche customers can determine the CO2 footprint of their sports car and financially support projects to compensate for it. Porsche outlined this strategy to CleanTech News, they want to allow customers to make their own contribution and offset their CO2 driving emissions.

The company has reduced its CO2 emissions at its productions sites by 75% per car produced since 2014. This reduction was achieved by resource efficiency measures, using green electricity at production sites and biogas in the plant Zuffenhausen.

They have also increased the use of electric vehicles and rail transportation powered by green electricity.

A promising pilot for Porsche
Following a successful pilot phase, the Zuffenhausen-based sports car manufacturer is expanding their CO2 compensation programme, Porsche Impact. In addition to Germany, Great Britain, Poland and the USA, the service is now available in 15 further countries, including China, Canada, Singapore, Brunei, Cambodia, French Polynesia, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, Mongolia and the Philippines.

During the pilot period, which took place between December 2018 and April 2020, around 45,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide were offset, fleet compensations are included in the 45,000 tonnes. Since the end of 2018 , the CO2 emissions of the Porsche AG fleet have been neutralised.

Prioritising avoiding CO2 emissions, Porsche is committed to its sustainability strategy. Albrecht Reimold, Member of the Executive Board for Production and Logistics at Porsche AG, has stated concerning this commitment:

Porsche is pursuing a consistent sustainability strategy, we are emphatically committed to the CO2 goals of the Paris Climate Agreement and are continuously reducing our emissions.

Our vision is a factory that does not create an environmental impact, which is why we consider the effects of our vehicles along the entire supply chain and throughout their life cycles. With Porsche Impact, we offer customers the opportunity to make their own contribution and compensate their personal CO2 emissions”.

Where Porsche will make an Impact
With Porsche Impact, customers can choose between various internationally-certified projects. Once a customers CO2 footprint has been calculated, they can choose between initiatives that focus on forest protection in the USA, sustainable habitat protection in Zimbabwe and energy generation through hydro and wind power in Vietnam and China. As well as this, there are country-specific conservation projects in Canada and Australia.

The compensation contribution is based on consumption, annual mileage and the selected support programme. For example, the compensation amount for a Porsche vehicle that has driven 15,000km with an average consumption of 12 litres per 100km is between 46 and 104 Euros per year.

Taking sustainability one step further
It is clear sustainability is a central component of Porsche’s corporate strategy. Alongside programmes like Porsche Impact, the company are reducing CO2 emissions in other areas. In its main Zuffenhausen factory, Porsche exclusively uses electricity from renewable energies and biogas for heat generation. At the same factory, the production of the fully-electric Porsche Taycan is also CO2-neutral. These strategies will contribute to the Paris climate protection goal.

Porsche also relies on environmentally friendly rail transport solutions and electric gas-powered trucks for the transport of logistics.

Their sustainability strategies don’t end there. Porsche Cars Great Britain Ltd. has partnered with Autogreen Ltd. to provide a Government-approved national network of certified dismantling companies. This partnership allows customers to recycle their car.

The company’s ambition of becoming the most sustainable brand for exclusive and sporting mobility seems to well within reach. With the integration of these sustainable strategies in their business model, Porsche is on the path to a cleaner, greener future.

Carbon-cutting policies at the forefront of the world’s biggest automakers’ business plans

Some of the world’s biggest automakers are adopting carbon-cutting policies despite an expected fall in car sales post-COVID-19. Macro trends have been identified explaining why the shift to sustainability is accelerating across the globe.
The world’s biggest automakers are making commitments to tackle their carbon emissions. Adopting carbon-cutting policies in their business models seems to be at the forefront of a lot of automakers minds. Porsche have a solid commitment to sustainability and reducing their carbon emissions. It seems many other large companies are following suit.

It is clear that the world is accelerating up their commitments to a clean future and adopting carbon-cutting policies post-COVID.

Just this week, German automotive company, BMW, have set a huge goal of reducing its carbon emissions per car by at least one-third by 2030. By developing and selling electric vehicles, incorporating more sustainable materials, working with its supply chain vendors and adopting clean energy facilities, BMW hopes to achieve its sustainability targets.

As part of an accelerated push into the technology to catch up with Tesla, BMW intends to offer 25 electric and hybrid models by 2032. Concerning their huge targets, Chief Executive Officer, Oliver Zipse said: “We will report on our progress every year and measure ourselves against these targets”. He also added that BMW will “overachieve” meeting stricter emission limits that are taking effect in Europe this year.

BMW also wants a third of its cars sold in Europe to be electric by 2025. Earlier this month the German automaker signed a $2.3 billion order for battery cells made by Sweden’s Northvolt AB to help with their sustainability plans.

Ford and Volvo following the trend
American automaker, Ford, announced last month their plans to be carbon neutral by 2050. This is a striking commitment for an American company, and they are the only full-line US automaker doing its part to reduce CO2 emissions in line with the Paris Agreement.

To achieve their goal, Ford will focus on three areas that account for about 95 percent of its CO2 emissions; vehicle use, supply base and company’s facilities. The company pledge to ‘protect the planet, put people first and create tomorrow, together’.

Mary Wroten, director of sustainability at Ford has stated that Ford is aiming for 2050 to align with the Paris Commitments and because: “…Anything after 2050 is unacceptable climate change risk”.

With Asia rapidly switching to sustainable modes of transport, the continents largest automakers are also pledging carbon-cutting policies.

Volvo Cars, owned by China’s Geely Holding (not to be mistaken by Volvo Group) is pledging to become carbon neutral by 2040. By 2025, Volvo Cars plan to reduce the CO2 footprint of each car it makes by 40 per cent.

Chief Executive of Volvo Cars, Hakan Samuelsson stated concerning their commitment to sustainability: “We will address what we can influence, by calling on our suppliers and the energy sector to join us in aiming for a climate-neutral future”.

Why are companies committed to carbon-cutting?
Although automakers are expecting slower sales this year to a global recession, three macro trends have been identified behind the carbon-cutting policies adopted by car companies;

Regulators in Europe and China are tightening emissions rules and pushing automakers that sell into those markers to launch zero/low-emission vehicles. Although the US, at a federal level, is lagging behind in this movement, Joe Biden has promised to return the US to the Paris Agreement if he becomes president.
Over the years the auto industry has been slow to adopt zero-emission vehicle technologies. Opening up opportunities for sustainable EV companies like Tesla and Nikola to emerge. Losing market share, and fear of losing market share is a key driver of remaking the auto industry around sustainability.
The pandemic as a learning tool showing the need for change. “Build back better” is a refrain used repeatedly in relation to rebuilding post-COVID-19 sustainably, urging companies and leader to adopt carbon-cutting policies. In Europe particularly, there has been a huge push for the adoption of clean transport with the EU’s €750bn recovery plan to boost transport.
The identification of these macrotrends, along with the world’s biggest automakers committing to carbon-cutting policies, shows the worldwide commitment in transforming the mobility industry. It is exciting to think of what is to come in the world’s recovery post-COVID-19.