Frasers Property commits to net-zero carbon by 2050
- Established five sustainability goals to raise the bar and strengthen its sustainability core
- Net-zero carbon roadmaps and science-based carbon reduction targets across all businesses to be developed by 2022
Frasers PropertyLimited (“Frasers Property”, and together with its subsidiaries, the “Group”),todayannouncedits officialcommitmentto be a net-zero carbon corporation by 2050–one of five new sustainability goals which Frasers Property established in FY2020(from 1 October 2019 to30September2020)and published in its latest sustainability report.
Mr Panote Sirivadhanabhakdi, Group Chief Executive Officer of Frasers Property Limited, said: “Delivering a sustainable impact – for our planet, people and communities has never been more important. As a multinational business, we want to do our part to address the world’s most urgent sustainability challenges and act on climate change. Sustainability is one of our core capabilities and we are targeting carbon neutrality across our properties by 2050, which is part of five sustainability goals driving our Group-wide businesses. We have further mapped out a sustainability roadmap to incorporate environmentally and socially friendly practices throughout the entire value chain – from investment to design, development and operations – with a focus on carbon reduction, energy efficiency and innovative solutions. We will continue to enhance our business processes and practices, as we stay committed to creating places for good and inspiring experiences that matter to our stakeholders.”
To be an enduring and progressive company, Frasers Property has mapped out its fivecurrent keysustainabilityprioritiesas follows:
1)To be a net-zero carbon corporationby 2050
This isin linewith the United Nations (UN)Sustainable Development Goals and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recommendation.With the real estate industry responsible for 39% of energy- and process-related emissions, tackling climate change is Frasers Property’s top priority.By 2022, all its businesses will have completed the developmentoftheir net-zero carbon roadmaps and carbon reduction targets using a science-based approach, andprogressively implement strategies to achievenet-zero carbon by 2050.A numberofits business unitsare expectedto achievethis targetbefore2050, with one as earlyas 2028.
2)To be climate-resilient and establish adaptation and mitigation plans by 2024
Frasers Propertyhas started carrying outscenario analysis of possible climate-related outcomes, such as the impact from temperature increases, to determine how its businessesmight perform in the future. Such insights informdecisions on risk adaptation and identifycurrentopportunitiesand business strategies.Climaterisk assessments and asset-level adaptationand mitigation planswill be implementedby 2024,whilereportingwill be alignedwith the Task Force on Climate-related FinancialDisclosures(TCFD)framework.
3)To green-certify 80% of its owned and managed assets by 2024
With over 200green-certifiedbuildings since 2005,Frasers Property issetting a goal to certify 80% of allitsowned and managed assets by 2024as well ashavingall new projects under development certifiedfrom2021.Thesewill bein line withvarious certification schemes such as Green Mark in Singapore,Green Star in Australia,Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM)and German SustainableBuilding CouncilinEurope,as well asWELL and LEED in Thailand.Frasers Property believes that green buildings contribute to many aspects of environmental sustainability, from being energy-,water-, and waste-efficienttooptimising the use of resourcesforproviding healthy environmentstotenants.
4)To financethe majority ofits sustainable asset portfolio with green and sustainable financing by 2024
Green and sustainable financingencouragesbusinesses to prioritise sustainable developmentas well asprovides access to a wider pool of financing partners and direct savings on financing costs.It has set a goal tofinance the majority of itssustainable asset portfolioswith green and sustainable financing by 2024.
5)To train all its employees on sustainability by 2021
To educateand empoweremployeesto acton its sustainability goals, Frasers Property has beenorganisingactivation campaigns and training programmes. The organisation aims to train all its employees on sustainability by 2021 andfurtherextend the training to its supply chain and other stakeholders beyond 2021.
Key sustainability efforts in FY2020
- Moving towardsnet-zero carbon
Across theGroup,Singaporeand the United Kingdomwill be Frasers Property’s first geographiestocompleteits climate risk assessmentaligned to thefiveGroup’sgoals.Some business unitsacross the Grouphavealreadyembarkedonnet-zero carboninitiatives.
Frasers Property UK signed the Better Buildings Partnership Climate Change Commitmentabout a year agopledgingto achieve net-zero carbon by 2050.
In Australia for the fifth year running, Frasers Propertyincluding business units Frasers Property Australia and Frasers Property Industrialwerere-certified as carbon-neutral under the Climate Active Carbon Neutral Standard.Frasers Property Australiahasalsocommitted to the WorldGreen Building Council’s Advanced Net Zeroinitiative andistargeting toachieve net-zero carbon by 2028alignedwithscience-basedtargets.Likewise, Frasers Property Industrialistargeting to align its business practices and processesin Australia and Europewithscience-basedtargets to achieve net-zero carbon by 2030.
Frasers Property Thailand also recently announced its participation in the ‘Carbon Pricing’ project organised bytheThailand Greenhouse Gas Management Organization andtheWorld Bank.The projectisdesigningan internal carbon pricing policyaimed at reducingcarbon emissions and driving green innovationslocally.
- Expanding ourportfolio of green assets
To support the goals,Frasers Propertyis focused onextending its portfolio of green buildings, which includes investingresponsibly and enhancing the sustainability of its existing buildings.Since 2018, Frasers Property has secured 12 green and sustainability-linked loans amounting to about S$4 billionas well asincreased the number of properties and projectsawarded withgreen certification.
In Singapore,35developmentsnow haveBuildingand Construction Authority’sGreen Mark certifications in FY2020, upfrom 31 in FY2019. Theseincludesix Green Mark Platinum buildings and 11 Green MarkGoldPLUSbuildings.
In Australia,developmentswithGreen Starratings by the Green Building Council of Australiahave gone up to 137 in FY2020 from 129 in FY2019.Frasers Property is the largest portfolio owner of Industrial Green Starpropertieswith4-staraverageGreen Star Performance portfolio certificationlocally.Inthe United Kingdom,19propertiesarecertified withBREEAM.
- Nurturing a culture of sustainability
To uphold international standards, Frasers Property uses the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) to track and measure the Environmental, Social and Governance performance of our portfolio.As a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact,Frasers Propertyis committed toraising sustainabilityideals across the Group.Frasers Property has introduced groupwide Corporate Social Responsibility and Diversity & Inclusionpoliciesas well asa Community Investment Frameworkin FY2020.To advance and empower women at the workplace, the Group hasendorsedthe Women’s Empowerment Principles,a joint initiative ofUN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. These arejust some of theinitiatives that Frasers Propertyareimplementing to ensure empowerment and gender equity across the organisation, which includehigherfemale representation on the boards across the Group.
The details of Frasers Property’s sustainability goals and initiatives can be found in its sustainability report athttp://bit.ly/FrasersPropertySustainabilityReportFY20.
