Climate & nature
Our decarbonisation commitments
At the VELUX Group, we're working to address emissions across our own operations and value chain, and we've made significant progress in reducing our Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions. Through strategic partnerships and close collaboration with our suppliers, we're decarbonising our value chain and helping to shape the future of a more sustainable building industry.
To guide our decarbonisation work, we have established near-term emission reduction targets that are aligned with climate science and validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
By 2030, we are committed to reducing absolute Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 100% and absolute Scope 3 emissions by 25%, compared with a 2020 baseline.
See more details in our Climate Targets and Action Plan
Where we are today
Reducing our own emissions by 2030
To achieve the decarbonisation goals for our own operations, we are transitioning to renewable energy, focusing on energy efficiency across all our sites, and shifting to electric vehicles.
We have advanced renewable heating projects with major bioboiler installations at key sites. To reduce our energy intensity and operational emissions, we have invested heavily in making our processes and buildings more energy-efficient, with a focus on high-energy-use systems.
Despite making steady progress on reducing emissions in our own operations and investing in multiple renewable heating projects, we have concluded that a 100% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions is currently not possible within the given timeframe. We are looking into the most effective way to address our remaining emissions.
The VELUX Group has also invested in additional renewable power generation. We have successfully secured 100% renewable electricity by leveraging virtual power purchase agreements that enabled two new solar plants to be built in Spain.
These solar parks produce enough power to cover the equivalent of all VELUX Group European operations and about 90% of our current global electricity consumption. The remaining power is supplied by onsite solar PV installations and purchase of renewable power certificates in countries where PPAs are not yet possible.
Our work to decarbonise across the value chain is a joint effort that involves all parts of our organisation, from procurement to product design and logistics. We focus on increasing the share of recycled content in our primary materials, product innovation, and collaborating with suppliers and logistics partners.
The majority of the Scope 3 reductions achieved so far come from sourcing lower-carbon materials, launching new products with optimised design and reducing business travel emissions. In addition, our logistics network is shifting towards electrified and alternative-fuel transport, supported by fixed delivery days in collaboration with key customers to minimise emissions.
Guided by data
Understanding our emissions is the first step to reducing them. We ask suppliers to disclose emissions data, including through CDP, a global climate disclosure organisation. This data gives us a more accurate picture of our Scope 3 emissions. We use the data to guide us and help ensure the effectiveness of our decarbonisation initiatives. We also encourage top suppliers to set science-based reduction targets and have outlined this expectation in our Requirements for VELUX Suppliers.
Supplier partnerships to remove carbon
With more than 90% of the VELUX Group's carbon footprint coming from the materials used in our products, we continue to focus on securing lower-carbon alternatives with a higher share of recycled content. In recent years, we've built strategic partnerships with suppliers across our value chain, including ArcelorMittal, Hydro and Novelis, to source lower-carbon materials and enable the development of more circular pathways for aluminium and steel.
These partnerships support our goal of reducing Scope 3 emissions by 25% by 2030, while also helping our suppliers decarbonise their own operations.
Protecting nature around us
To address the global biodiversity crisis, we are working to promote biodiversity in our operations and aim to collaborate with our suppliers to minimise the negative impacts of our value chain.
Guided by science, rooted in action
We have stepped up work to assess and improve biodiversity at our sites. By improving the green areas around our factories and offices, we aim to take responsibility and show what nature-oriented management looks like in practice.
We worked with external partners to develop our Biodiversity Playbook which includes a methodology for assessing the state of biodiversity at VELUX Group sites. The methodology builds on existing tools, including those developed by the Society for Ecological Restoration, and follows the approach of the Science Based Targets Network.
Our approach integrates nature and people, and the initiatives consider not only how we support biodiversity, but also how green spaces can improve well-being and connection to nature.