Promoting energy savings and GHG mitigation through industrial supply chain initiatives

摘要

Minimising greenhouse gas emissions from industrial processesis one of the most urgent and high profile sustainability topicsfacing business today. Structured interventions by companiesthat are able to exert significant leverage with their industrialsuppliers can be an effective way to achieve energy and climategoals among a number of disparate businesses and across nationalborders. These so-called 'supply chain initiatives' (SCIs)can result in tangible benefits for buyers and suppliers includingcost-savings, reduced exposure to climate policy-related risks,improved energy and greenhouse gas (GHG) performance, andimprovements in productivity, product quality and other cobenefits(e.g., water efficiency). Ten SCIs case studies have beenresearched from across a range of industrial sub-sectors andgeographical regions, and housed in a free online database1.Examples include General Electric's capacity building initiativein Chinese factories, Walmart's supplier energy efficiencyprogrammes in the US and China and Prorail's use of the CO_2Performance Ladder for construction and maintenance tendersof the rail network in the Netherlands. This paper provides an analysis of the ten SCI case studies. It examines the benefits ofthe different approaches employed, the effectiveness of theseinitiatives, and the lessons learned by the organisations leadingtheir implementation. It concludes with some key messagesand success factors for consideration by buyers or organisationsseeking to reduce supply chain GHG emissions.