While others are setting their own net-zero emission goals for 2050, Zurich Insurance Group has decided to move things up the calendar, hoping to achieve that objective by 2030.
“Since we first started measuring our carbon footprint in 2007, we have avoided an estimated one million metric tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions, and our focus remains on reducing them to a minimum,” Alison Martin, Zurich’s chief executive for Europe, Middle East, and Africa and bank distribution, said.
“Innovative carbon removal techniques are being supported to balance out our inevitable residual emissions.” Because of the severity of the situation, we must be proactive and assist in the scaling up of the carbon removal sector, which is still in its early stages.”
According to the insurance, it has negotiated carbon removal agreements with nature-based solution providers, where it believes it can have the most impact on the industry’s development. In addition, the organisation has provided payments in advance to assist these suppliers in their continued development, scaling, and commercialization.
InterEarth, based in Australia, Bio Restorative Ideas, based in Puerto Rico, and Oregon Biochar Solutions, based in the United States, are the suppliers. Zurich stated that its cooperation is critical for the projects to get off the ground and grow.
“By moving our goal to net zero for our operational emissions in 2030, rather than 2050, we believe we are helping to demonstrate the urgency of achieving large emissions cuts and the need to scale up investments in removal solutions immediately,” the insurance company stated.
“We’re also looking to our supply chain to set emissions reduction and net zero targets,” says the company. By 2025, we want 75 percent of our managed procurement spend to go to vendors with science-based emissions reduction targets, and by 2030, we want to be at net zero. We intend to use our clout to push for change, expecting suppliers to establish their own goals, which is consistent with our strategy as an insurance and an investment.”
