SearchCLIMATE CHANGE AND RESOURCE EFFICIENCY
Our Carbon Neutrality Roadmap outlines a 20% reduction in direct greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, a step towards carbon neutrality by 2050.
- Customer Centricity
- Innovation and Sustainability Solutions
- Product Stewardship
- Our Manufacturing Assets
- Digitalization
- Cybersecurity
- Environment, Health, Safety, and Security
- Climate Change and Resource Efficiency
- Supply Chain
- Procurement
- Raw Materials
- Our People
- Toward Saudi Vision 2030: Driving Local Content
- Communities
- Ethics, Compliance, and Human Rights
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17.3%
Energy intensity reduction1
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19.5%
Water intensity reduction1
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52.2%
Material loss intensity reduction1
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2.09
Flaring (Mn. tCo2e)
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37.2%
Flaring emission reduction1
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25.0%
GHG intensity reduction1
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3.84
Total CO2 utilization (Mn,t)
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12.5%
Absolute GHG (total scopes 1 and 2) reduction2 (tCO2e)
1Baseline: 2010
2Baseline: 2018
Having publicly pledged to achieve carbon neutrality in all operations by 2050, our Carbon Neutrality Roadmap outlines a 20% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (scopes 1 and 2) by 2030 from a 2018 baseline. In addition, our resource efficiency targets are central to achieving our sustainability goals.
The roadmap identifies five key pathways toward de-carbonization: reliability, energy efficiency, and improvements; renewable energy; electrification; carbon capture, utilization, and storage; and low-carbon hydrogen. To meet our 2030 interim target, our primary emphasis will be on reliability, energy efficiency and improvements, renewable energy, and carbon capture. Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) remains the most strategic option for us, while electrification and low-carbon hydrogen remain an integral part of our long-term plan to drive progress toward carbon neutrality by 2050.
In 2023, SABIC affiliates also started rolling out affiliate-specific roadmap execution plans. These plans are the first step in identifying the carbon abatement mechanisms specific to an affiliate and evaluating each program for proper planning of resources and investment.
SABIC is committed to the Saudi Energy Efficiency Program (SEEP) in firming up the roadmap to support the government’s 2025 SEEP goals. In 2023, SABIC continued to progress in the SEEC second cycle journey with a commitment to bring efficiency of operations and energy usage on par with global trends. To achieve this ambitious target, we have invested over US$ 1 Bn. in more than 90 projects since the start of the cycle in 2020.
Read more about our progress on our carbon neutrality pathways.
SELECTED DECARBONIZATION AND CIRCULARITY PROJECTS
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| Electrically heated steam cracker furnace (demonstration plant) Germany |
In September 2023, the last transformer was installed at the demonstration plant where the world’s first large-scale electrically heated steam cracker furnace is being built in partnership with BASF and Linde. Combining novel heating concepts and using electricity from renewable sources instead of natural gas, this technology holds the potential to reduce CO2 emissions by at least 90% compared to conventional technologies. A stepwise commissioning phase will begin in 2024. | |
| Advanced plastic recycling project Saudi Arabia |
In July 2023, Saudi Aramco, TotalEnergies, and SABIC, for the first time in the Middle East and North Africa, successfully converted oil derived from plastic waste into ISCC PLUS certified circular polymers. The chemical recycling process allows the use of non-sorted plastics, which can be difficult to recycle mechanically, and consequently contributes to solving the challenge of end-of-life plastics. A first milestone for the project was obtaining ISCC PLUS certification to assure transparency and traceability of the recycled origin of feedstock and products. The pyrolysis oil was processed at the SATORP refinery jointly owned by Saudi Aramco and TotalEnergies, and it was then used as a feedstock for polymers manufactured by SABIC affiliate Petrokemya. | |
| Decarbonizing the chemical Industry Saudi Arabia |
SABIC entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with Scientific Design (SD) and Linde Engineering to explore collaboration opportunities to decarbonize the SD Ethylene Glycol Process, leveraging SABIC's proprietary CO2 technology at the largest CCU plant at United to SD- licensed manufacturing glycol plants worldwide. | |
| Advanced recycling Unit The Netherlands |
A joint venture between SABIC and Plastic Energy to process 20,000kt of plastic waste per annum into circular materials is expected to be completed in 2024. The new unit will enable SABIC to significantly upscale the production of certified circular polymers to provide customers with greater access to sustainable materials that have been recycled, repurposed, and produced in a way that can help protect our planet’s natural resources, while acting as a drop-in solution. |
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS
SCOPES 1 AND 2
In 2023, emissions have been reduced by 12.47% compared to the 2018 baseline. On year-over-year bases, the 2023 emissions were down by 3.6%. Year-over-year GHG emissions related to scope 1 were down by 2.6%, while scope 2 emissions were down by 6.1% for the same period.
Absolute scope 1 emissions in 2023 are lower as a result of planned maintenance activities and improvement initiatives. Increased flaring and operational inefficiencies offset reduction of emissions. Scope 2 emissions are down in line with lower production and through increased use of renewable energy.
SCOPE 3
SABIC’s scope 3 GHG emissions for 2023 was 30.12 Mn. tCO2e.
In 2023, we included all upstream categories of scope 3 emissions, including category C1 to C8. We disclose scope 3 categories, which are measurable to a reasonable degree of certainty and for which a credible methodology exists. At present, we are revisiting downstream (C9 to C15) reporting methodology to ensure clarity and parity with peers. Therefore, the reduction in the reported scope 3 emissions compared to last year is mainly due to the exclusion of downstream categories C9 to C15.
We aim to collaborate with our partners on initiatives that aspire to reduce our indirect scope 3 GHG emissions along the value chain. We follow the World Business Council for Sustainable Development’s (WBCSD) corporate value chain (scope 3) accounting and reporting standards, and have developed detailed procedures adapted to SABIC’s needs.
2010-2025 INTENSITY-BASED TARGETS
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSION INTENSITY
In 2023, GHG intensity reduced by 25% compared to the 2010 baseline. On year-over-year bases, the 2023 GHG intensity was 1.3% lower. Negative impact resulting from planned maintenance activities and unplanned shutdowns was offset by the production mix.
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSION INTENSITY (tCO2e/t product sales)
ENERGY INTENSITY
In 2023, energy intensity reduced by 17.3% compared to the 2010 baseline. On year-over-year bases, the 2023 energy intensity was 0.8% lower. Lower volumes negatively affected impacted energy intensity trends. This was somewhat offset by reliability improvements in selected sites.
Energy Intensity (GJ/t product sales)
WATER INTENSITY
In 2023, water intensity reduced by 19.5% compared to the 2010 baseline. On year-over-year bases, the 2023 water intensity was 0.8% lower. Overall steam venting was reduced resulting in a positive impact to water intensity.
Water Intensity (m3/t product sales)
MATERIAL LOSS INTENSITY
In 2023, material loss intensity reduced by 52.2% compared to the 2010 baseline. On year-over-year bases, the 2023 material loss intensity was 3.3% lower. Negative impact resulting from increased flaring (see table: Flaring Emissions by Regions) was offset by reduced process losses.
Material Loss Intensity (t/t product sales)
Read more about our performance on our intensity-based targets.
CLIMATE-RELATED RISKS AND OPPORTUNITIES
We assess and evaluate the risks and opportunities related to climate change to ensure that the company’s efforts are in line with climate science and holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, recognizing that this would significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change.
Identification and assessment of risks as part of the SABIC risk management process (which is applied for all risks including climate change-related risks) is aligned with the ISO 31000 Risk Management standard. The results of risk assessments are used to influence strategic decisions about climate-related policy.
Innovation and collaboration are key mitigation actions in this context and our commitment to them has strongly supported our sustainability efforts through the years. Mitigation actions are focused on bridging the gap between our materials and our customer's applications development teams to collaborate on products that will meet or exceed consumer expectations with respect to climate change impacts. Our portfolio of sustainability solutions–those that create less CO₂ than traditional materials during production or save more in other phases of life cycles–continue to drive our innovation.
Read more about how we manage climate-related risks and opportunities.
Disclaimer: This abridged interactive version of the SABIC Integrated Annual Report 2023 is based on the original PDF report published on this website. In case of any discrepancy, the original PDF report will prevail.