Smurfit Kappa Raises Climate Change Ambition

Smurfit Kappa announced new targets to further reduce its fossil CO₂ emissions, including its ambition to reach at least net zero emissions by 2050. 

It has also increased its existing intermediate 2030 CO₂ reduction target by 15 percentage points to 55%, in comparison to the 2005 baseline. The company will have these targets validated by the Science-Based Target initiative as being in line with the objectives of the Paris Agreement. 

Smurfit Kappa has been a market leader in sustainability since 2005. Before today’s announcement, the company had already achieved a reduction in CO₂ emission intensity of 32.9% on its 2030 target of a 40% reduction. This impressive achievement has resulted from the successful implementation of key projects that form part of the company’s medium-term strategic plan.  

One such project was the installation of an industry-leading recovery boiler at the company’s Nettingsdorf Paper Mill in Austria which began operating in June of this year. 

The new boiler is set to cut CO₂ emissions by an additional 40,000 tonnes, which translates into an additional 1.5% reduction in CO₂ emissions across the business. 

“We are proud to support the EU Green Deal objectives to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. We have made good progress on our existing targets and these new targets underline the organization’s continued commitment to sustainability and to do better for the planet,” said Tony Smurfit, Group CEO. “Sustainability has been at the core of our business for decades, we want to lead from the front and raise the bar for the paper and packaging industry by setting such ambitious targets. This is a source of pride for all our customers and employees.”