Net Zero Carbon – Criticism grows as mining behemoth Vedanta Limited makes ambitious carbon-neutral claims – Are they a savior or just another corporate illusionist?
Unveiling the Carbon Neutral Pledge
Vedanta Limited, one of the largest natural resources companies in India, has announced that it aims to be the leader in ESG (environmental, social, and governance) performance in the natural resources sector and has committed to reducing carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 or sooner.
In an era where humanity’s progress inevitably collides with the preservation of nature, Indian conglomerate Vedanta Limited has made a bold claim. The company has pledged to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, an announcement that might seem praiseworthy, but under closer inspection, evokes a range of questions and doubts about its feasibility.
Vedanta Limited is a global natural resources company headquartered in Mumbai, India. The company produces and sells aluminium, copper, zinc, lead, silver, iron ore, oil & gas, and commercial energy.
Vedanta has operations in India, South Africa, Ireland, and Australia. The company employed 75,556 people in FY2022 and reported a consolidated revenue of INR 131,192 crore, up by 51% year-on-year.
Net Zero Carbon: Can Profits Cease to Harm Nature?
Operating across various heavy industries, including mining and power production, Vedanta’s operations are fundamentally associated with substantial carbon emissions.
Critics argue that it seems quixotic for a company, whose profit largely relies on activities that harm nature, to pledge complete carbon neutrality. The consensus is clear – while reducing emissions is a realistic goal, eliminating them entirely appears to be an overreach.
How can a mining company be carbon neutral?
According to an IEA report, Globally, the top 10% of emitters were responsible for almost half of the global energy-related CO2 emissions in 2021, compared with a mere 0.2% for the bottom 10%.
The top 10% averaged 22 tonnes of CO2 per capita in 2021, over 200 times more than the average for the bottom 10%. There are 782 million people in the top 10% of emitters, extending well beyond traditional ideas of the super-rich.
By comparison, around 0.6% of the world – an estimated 46.8 million individuals – are considered millionaires or billionaires.
India is not a major polluter, with per capita emissions about one-eighth of the US and one-fourth of China in 2020. However, it is never too early to start taking action. The top contributors to India’s carbon emissions are power (40%), steel and cement (25%), transportation (15%), and agriculture (14%).
Industry experts say that many industries have implemented renewable energy (RE) projects, such as solar power plants, and replaced fossil fuels with biomass or agro-waste. Metal industries are also shifting to gas-based power plants.
The company’s main sources of emissions are its coal-based power plants, aluminium smelters, iron ore mines, oil and gas fields, and copper refineries. These activities are inherently carbon-intensive and polluting, and cannot be easily decarbonised.
“Vedanta’s net zero carbon pledge is based on dubious assumptions and accounting tricks. It is not possible for any company, especially a large-scale industry, a mining company, a coal-based power producer, or an earthmoving company, to be a carbon-neutral company. Carbon emissions can be reduced but cannot be eliminated completely,” said, an environmental expert.
CEO and Net Zero Carbon 2050 commitment?
The Group CEO of Vedanta Limited holds a pivotal role in developing and supervising the execution of climate change mitigation and resilience strategies across all group companies. This involves overseeing the formulation of long-term Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reduction targets and spearheading high-investment decarbonization projects.
The CEO is an integral member of the Board-level ESG Committee and also chairs the Group ESG-Executive Committee (ESG-ExCo). Under the CEO’s guidance, the ESG-ExCo has approved several critical decisions proposed by the company’s Carbon Forum in the fiscal year 2022. These include:
- Establishing the long-term Carbon Vision for the organization, a crucial part of which involves Vedanta’s commitment to achieving ‘Net Zero Carbon’ by 2050.
- Setting absolute GHG emissions targets in alignment with the Science Based Targets Initiative.
- Conducting further assessments to understand the impact of physical and transitional climate risks on the organization.
Corporate Green Promises: A Cloak of Sustainability?
In the current era, numerous companies worldwide, particularly those from high-emission industries, are making claims of future carbon neutrality. Such declarations often attract praise but also skepticism among those acquainted with the complexities of environmental impact management.
Critics suggest these proclamations may be cunning stratagems – crafted to mislead stakeholders, the public, and regulatory bodies.
Net Zero Carbon – Corporate Green Promises: Savior or Illusion?
Indeed, many companies across the globe, especially those from high-emission industries, have begun to claim carbon neutrality in their future. Such pronouncements often draw public applause but, simultaneously, raise eyebrows among those familiar with the intricacies of environmental impact management.
Critics argue that these announcements merely serve as smoke and mirrors – crafted to mislead stakeholders, the public, and government bodies.
How will Vedanta achieve net zero carbon by 2050?
Vedanta has not disclosed the details of its net zero carbon strategy or roadmap, but it has hinted that it will rely on various measures such as improving energy and process efficiency, diversifying its energy mix, decarbonising its vehicle fleet, and offsetting its residual emissions through carbon capture and storage (CCS) or nature-based solutions (NBS).
However, these measures are either inadequate or unproven to achieve net zero carbon by 2050, experts say.
Objectivity vs Impracticality
In the case of Vedanta Limited, there is significant skepticism regarding its carbon neutrality ambitions. The company’s diverse operations – spanning mining, earth-moving, and coal-based power production – are notorious for their carbon-intensive nature.
Can a company with such a heavy carbon footprint truly achieve zero emissions without radical industry transformation, or is it simply an impractical claim?
Ambitious Alignments or Greenwashing Tactics?
Vedanta’s pledge to align itself with national and international climate goals, including India’s 2070 net-zero target and the Paris Agreement, may seem ambitious. However, skeptics question its realism.
Can the company significantly diversify its energy mix and enhance its energy and process efficiency to achieve full decarbonization, or is this pledge just another instance of greenwashing?
The Imperative for Accountability
As Vedanta and similar companies continue making bold climate pledges, the urgency for rigorous scrutiny and accountability becomes paramount. The repercussions of climate change demand more than mere corporate declarations – they necessitate tangible, effective, and transparent actions.
It’s essential that these companies prove their commitment to sustainability, showing that their promises are not merely an attempt to appear ‘green’ in the public eye.
Also Read: Every Human Progress Is A Byproduct Of The Earth And Environment I India CSR
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