WEEK 12 2012
2011 Results Confirm Carlsberg's Position As The Most Efficient Global Brewer
2011 was a defining year for the Carlsberg Group in terms of driving, accelerating and embedding its eight CSR areas* across its operations around the world. This was recognised by the fact that Carlsberg was included in the top five of the 2011 Newsweek Green ranking for its respective category, scoring highest among global brewers in terms of environmental management and footprint. Commenting on this performance, Janda Campos, VP Corporate Social Responsibility and Public Affairs, Carlsberg Group, says: "We are pleased with the progress we are making in terms of integrating CSR throughout the value chain. We understand that our long term success depends not only on growing, but growing responsibly. "2011 saw us reach some significant milestones across many of our local markets. One that stands out is in Russia, where our largest operation, Baltika Breweries, achieved an 18% reduction in specific energy in the St. Petersburg brewery as a result of us introducing a programme targeting reduction of losses in steam supply lines and heat recovery." To read this article in full click here
The feel good factor of SIPP diversification
Tony Hales of Stadia Trustees discusses how green investments can add an element of diversification to an individual’s SIPP. There has been a significant increase in the number and type of ethical investments in recent years, especially in investment funds managed on behalf of high net worth individuals. The Financial Times defines sustainable business as managing the triple bottom line – financial, social and environmental risks, obligations and opportunities, or ‘profits, people and planet’. While ‘green’ is important, there are often social and economic aspects too, with projects helping to provide employment, education and perhaps healthcare in the communities surrounding the underlying investment projects. For example there is one investment company, working with its plantation operators in Malaysia, which ensures all the families on its plantations receive a house, a small holding to grow their own fruit and vegetables, and gas and electricity from renewable sources, thereby enabling the families to send their children to school. To read this article in full click here
World Bank approves $1 billion to boost power
The World Bank on Tuesday approved a $1 billion loan to Pakistan to boost electricity supply and improve farm irrigation methods, the global development lender said. The bank said $840 million of the loan will help boost capacity at the Tarbela hydro power project, north-west of Islamabad, by 1,410 megawatts. The project would shift capacity away from expensive imported fuel oil to low-cost hydropower, it added. "It will help Pakistan reduce the gap between supply and demand of electricity by maximising the benefits of existing infrastructure of Tarbela Dam without requiring any land acquisition or relocation" of people, said Rachid Benmessaoud, World Bank country director for Pakistan. The remainder of the funding, about $250 million, will improve irrigation on 120,000 acres of land in Punjab and cut wasteful water use, the Washington-based institution said.About 17,500 families in Punjab would directly benefit from the new irrigation systems, which would increase crop yields and promote water conservation, it added. The World Bank's Board of Executive Directors approved two projects totalling $1.09 billion aimed at supporting Pakistan's growth agenda for reducing poverty. To read this article in full click here
UK carbon support rate nearly doubles to compensate for emissions trading system decline
The decline in the price of carbon dioxide in the EU's emissions trading system has forced the UK government to almost double its carbon support rate for 2014-15, budget documents published Wednesday show. Under its carbon price floor policy, the government "will set 2014/15 carbon price support rates equivalent to GBP9.55 [$15.16] per tonne of carbon dioxide in line with the carbon price floor set out at Budget 2011," the documents said. A carbon price floor for UK electricity generation is to be introduced from April 1, 2013. It will start at around GBP16/mt of CO2 and follow a linear path to GBP30/mt in 2020 to drive investment in the low-carbon power sector. In last year's budget, the government said the carbon price support rates for 2013-14 would be equivalent to GBP4.94/mt of carbon dioxide. The rate has climbed as ETS prices have fallen. The increased rate was in line with industry expectations, investment bank Nomura said Thursday. "We think the step up of GBP2.50/MWh in calendar forward spark spreads from 2013 (GBP3.50/MWh) to 2014 (GBP6/MWh) suggests that this is already in the forward price," the bank said. The spark spread is the theoretical margin earned by gas-fired power stations after accounting for input costs. To read this article in full click here
Australian carbon tax 'gutsy', power firm says
The Australian Government is "gutsy" to follow through on its pledge to introduce a carbon tax, the world's top industrial conglomerate says. GE vice chairman John Rice said the $23 a tonne tax applying from July 1 would prompt the company to allocate more resources to carbon-reducing technologies. Mr Rice said GE, which made the nuclear power plant reactors at Fukushima and was heavily involved in renewable energy, had long believed in a trading mechanism to reduce carbon emissions and encourage the development of new technologies. It was courageous for the Federal Government to move before the rest of the world in introducing a price on carbon emissions, he said. "I applaud the Australian Government for having the courage to go through with it because I think over the long run, the world is going to be better served if there is a cost associated with the production of carbon," Mr Rice told ABC Television. "It takes gutsy politicians and so we applaud the Australian Government, the Prime Minister for following through. "It takes leadership and if you wait for the world to act in unison, it will never happen." He indicated that he believed it would take some time for China, the world's biggest greenhouse gas emitter, to introduce a national carbon emissions trading scheme. To read this article in full click here
Emission reduction in China drives green economy
Corrado Clini, Italy’s minister of environment, said Monday that China’s efforts to reduce CO2 emissions will drive clean energy innovation and introduce new technology to the field. In an exclusive interview with Xinhua, Clini said China has led the world in terms of investing in innovative technology for the generation and efficient use of energy. “If you look at data from 2006 to 2010, China is by far the largest single country worldwide in terms of total investment in clean energy. Greenhouse gas emissions were reduced by 1.5 billion tonnes during the period,” Clini said. China’s CO2 emissions from fossil fuel burning reached over 1,800 million tonnes in 2010, although the emissions were reduced by 1.5 billion tonnes between 2006 and 2010, according to a report on China’s low-carbon development published by the Social Sciences Academy Press at the end of November. To read this article in full click here
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