Our net zero pathway informs how we will reduce our emissions

In Australia, the built environment represents 23% of the country’s carbon emissions. We already lay claim to Australia’s largest Green Star property portfolio and, as a manager of 1,100+ assets nationally, we have the presence and the partners to effectively deliver carbon reductions.

A key part of our climate resilience strategy, under the low carbon economy scenario, is to become a net zero emissions company by 2030. That means a 100% reduction in our Scope 1 and 2 emissions through investing in more energy efficient buildings, renewable energy and offsetting residual emissions through a carbon offset project that supports community development.

To measure and address our indirect emissions (Scope 3), we are also finding opportunities to work with our tenant customers and contractors.

Each of our sectors contribute to our net zero pathway and climate resilience strategy.

Acknowledging the key role that renewable procurement will make for our pathway, this year we established a cross-business Energy Committee to address current and projected energy requirements for our operational portfolio. Their role is to facilitate a co-ordinated and consistent implementation of our energy management strategies, programs and procurement, and to meet our 2030 strategic emissions reduction strategy outcomes.

On-site renewables is another significant stage to our pathway to net zero. Last year, our retail team began an ambitious solar power and battery storage rollout plan that will over time see us generate 31,000MWh of 100% renewable energy across our retail centres. Through our Power Purchasing Agreement (PPA) with Clean Peak Energy and Solgen we now have first and second stage agreements in place for solar systems at 28 convenience-plus retail centres.

Our industrial & logistics funds have announced a 100% net zero target for Scope 1 and 2 by FY22. The pathway for these funds has commenced with energy efficiency initiatives such as LED upgrades of 19 assets, achieving 2,950MWh in electricity reductions and 3,300 tonnes of carbon reductions, resulting in almost $500,000 in reduced energy costs across our customer tenancies.

The industrial and logistics pathway to reducing Scope 3 emissions includes working with our tenant customers on energy initiatives, which this year included, installation of an additional 2.7MW of solar PV, resulting in a total of 9.5MW of solar systems installed, which has the potential to generate 12,000MWh in renewable energy. Our sustainability approach has also attracted the Clean Energy Finance Corporation to invest into CPIF, to further bolster our net zero approach.

Our office business continues to enhance its carbon and energy footprint through the implementation of its targets. Our energy efficiency approach is measured through NABERS Energy and this year we became the largest office portfolio to participate in the NABERS Sustainable Portfolios Index 2020.

All our funds and 62 commercial assets are included in the Index, with our Charter Hall Long WALE REIT (CLW) placed in the top three portfolios. The many initiatives we have underway are just part of the story. Data will transform our collective understanding and deeply influence our approach. Our industrial & logistics energy metering project will enable us to build an evidence-based approach to reduce tenant energy use.

We are also working with the University of Western Sydney to gain a deeper understanding of the operational data from our office buildings. This initiative will enable, more accurate testing on the life of our buildings and provide an evidence based understanding to inform our future developments.

Partnerships are another powerful asset. Our commitment to sustainability is shared by many of our large customers, who have themselves invested in PPAs or renewable energy investments. We are partnering with a number of our larger national retail, industrial & logistics and office tenant customers as they strive to achieve their own energy targets.