Sustainability

The world is evolving at a rapid pace, from changing climate to rising standards of living to diminishing resources for a growing population. To stay competitive; become safer, more sustainable, and more productive; and better meet customers’ evolving needs, Nouryon increasingly relies on automation and smart digital technologies – known as “Industry 4.0.”

Sustainable innovations

We are creating more value for our customers by developing sustainable innovations that meet their needs. We are growing our revenue coming from products that are sustainable or offer customers clear sustainability benefits compared to commonly available alternatives.

Sustainable business

We are developing new sustainable businesses worldwide that create long term value. We are leveraging our knowledge, long term customer relationships, integrated value chains, and capabilities in public/private partnerships. We are building upon our existing technology platforms, pursuing innovations in biomass to chemistry, resource efficient polymer technologies, and green electrochemistry.

Increasing energy efficiency and use of sustainable energy

We aim to reduce our cradle-to-grave Product Carbon Footprint per ton of sales in line with the Paris Climate Agreement target of an 80-95% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. We also strive to decouple economic value creation from resource constraints and environmental impact. We will monitor this by measuring our Resource Efficiency Index, which measures gross margin over carbon footprint compared to a 2012 baseline. 

We are increasing the energy efficiency of our operations, through continuous improvement of existing processes as well as adoption of innovative new processes and technologies. We increase our use of renewable energy by protecting our current renewable share, participating in cost-effective, large scale energy ventures and exploring commercially viable on-site renewable energy generation. The proportion of renewable energy use in our own operations is already over 45%. The world energy transition will bring opportunities and threats. We will use renewable energy to de-risk our supply chains and create new business opportunities.

Increasing use of bio-based raw materials

We have set 2025 targets on a range of operational eco-efficiency parameters, focusing on the contribution each of our businesses can make. One of the ways we’re doing this is by increasing the use of bio-based raw materials. These efforts benefit our business performance as well as the planet, as they simultaneously reduce operational costs, ensure our license to operate, and lower our environmental footprint.

Creating a diverse and inclusive workplace

We are a global company serving a large and diverse customer base through extensive international operations. We believe a diverse and inclusive workforce is essential to understanding our customers and achieving our ambitions. We aim to actively embrace diversity of thought and empower people to challenge each other to be more innovative and deliver better results.

Partnering with society

Partnerships accelerate our evolution into an even more sustainable business. We strive to be transparent towards our stakeholders and involved in the communities we operate in. We engage with external stakeholders and partners to build capability and momentum to support the transition towards a sustainable economy. We believe that our partnerships enable us to have an impact on creating economic, environmental, and social value, thereby contributing to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.