Climate Action: How Indian Companies Are Adapting To Meet Panchamrit Goals

Towards achieving the above, some Indian companies have taken this problem head-on. They are the torch-bearers among a large number of companies that need to strike a balance between business model, profitability, and environmental sustainability.

Lowering the carbon footprint without affecting economic growth remains the biggest creative challenge for the world and India. It requires an imaginative business model with changes in technological processes.

Infosys, Dalmia Bharat, Mahindra Holidays & Resorts, and Tata Motors appear on the list of RE100 companies in the world. RE100 is the global corporate renewable energy initiative bringing together hundreds of large and ambitious businesses committed to 100 per cent renewable electricity.

The example of Dalmia Bharat is particularly important as the cement industry world over is highly carbon intensive. Dalmia Bharat’s carbon footprint is 40 per cent lower than the global average for a cement company, which is the lowest in the world. We must look at what it has done to reengineer the processes and invest in green technologies. Balancing the profit and environmental sustainability makes this company unique.

There are five important steps that Dalmia has taken to make it a company that combines the cause of sustainability with profit. First, the company joined the Fossil Free Electricity Initiative to commit to a long-term transition to renewable energy. It has identified 40 MW green power generation potential through waste heat recovery from exit gases in its plants.

Second, the company is switching from fossil fuels to green fuels, including biomass. It has accelerated the use of industrial and municipal wastes to replace the use of fossil fuels in pyro-processing, helping it to avoid fuel-related CO2 emissions. Third, the company aims to capture carbon emitted from the plant. ;It is setting up a carbon capture plant of 500,000 tonnes per year carbon capture at Tamil Nadu.

Dalmia Bharat signed a memorandum of understanding with Carbon Clean Solutions Limited (CCSL) UK, a leader in low-cost carbon dioxide separation technology to provide technology and operational services for the plant based on its patented CDRMax Technology.

Fourth, the company has increased the proportion of environmentally-friendly blended cement within the product mix to 80 per cent, reducing the company’s carbon footprint.

Finally, Dalmia Bharat became 12.4 times water-positive in FY 2020-21 at a group level. It created various check dams, farm ponds and rehabilitation of village ponds, through the Dalmia Bharat Group Foundation for rainwater harvesting and recharging groundwater.

Additionally, it reduced the freshwater demand in its cement plants through the use of harvested rainwater in plants and recycled water use.

The other important company that has done some real good work is Tata Motors,whose actions can make a huge impact on the cause of sustainability. Tata Motors, by creating vehicles that run on alternate fuels and its production process depending on renewable energy, could be the finest example of combining the sustainability imperative with corporate profit.

Waste management, water conservation, commitment to using 100 per cent renewable energy for the production of cars and buses, and use of bio-plastics can help the company to transition to its commitment to net-zero.

The story of sustainability and energy transition will be incomplete in India without mentioning the commitments made by Reliance Industries Limited.

Reliance will be investing US$ 10 billion in the next 15 years to create a new energy and materials ecosystem. Its new energy and materials ecosystem will include an optimal mix of reliable, clean, and affordable energy solutions with hydrogen, wind, solar, fuel cells, and batteries.

In the RE 100 list, 40 multinationals are present in India and doing business on a larger scale. Their commitment to renewable energy and also sustainable practices brings good news to the Indian economy.

These companies can help their suppliers in the adoption of sustainable practices. Hindustan Unilever is a fine example of an multi-national enterprise operating with great commitment to sustainable practices in India. Unilever aims to become net zero by 2039 including its suppliers. It aims to bring the concept of circular economy in making its operation waste-free which will include the packaging of products.

Many such initiatives at a larger scale and also the adoption of environmentally-sustainable production systems and technologies by small and medium enterprises will help India be able to achieve its Panchamrit goals and solutions.

(The author is Professor of Strategy and International Business at the IILM Institute of Higher Education. Views expressed are personal)