KARACHI – Industrialists, researchers, academia, and civil society activists have urged corporations to prioritize transparency and accountability in their commitment to achieving net-zero emissions.
The discussion at the “Champions of Change: A Dialogue with the Private Sector” centered on the severe impacts of emissions on Pakistan’s health, lives, and environment.
Two ground-breaking research studies were launched at the event. The first, titled “Scoping Study of Corporate Sector Energy Consumption,” conducted by the Indus Consortium in collaboration with the research team of the Centre for Business and Economic Research (CBER), Institute of Business Administration, focused on the energy consumption of corporate sectors, particularly the findings related to Indus Motor Company (IMC) and Coca-Cola Beverages Pakistan.
The second study, presented by Alternate Development Services, examined the carbon emissions of the textile and sports industries, titled “Textile and Sports Industry- Assessing Decarbonization and Growth Potential.”
Addressing the event as the chief guest, CEO of Indus Motor Company Ali Asghar Jamali said that Toyota’s global commitment included going carbon neutral by 2035 and reaching out to net zero emissions by 2050 while IMC was using energy efficient equipment to reduce carbon footprints.
He said that IMC was using the largest solar plant by any automobile company in the country with 4.5MW energy generation while it’s all buildings were covered with solar panels.
He said that IMC was committed to increasing the green energy share in its overall energy consumption.
Asad Abdullah, Head of Corporate Communications and CSR, IMC, said Toyota was on a mission to reduce its carbon footprints.
He said that IMC was all set to launch the first locally manufactured hybrid vehicle in Pakistan in the next month and has invested $100 million in hybrid vehicle manufacturing, which reduces the consumption of energy, mostly based on fossil fuels.
Hussain Jarwar, CEO Indus Consortium, said that there was no trace of Scope-3 emissions of IMC, whose data should be made available if they were being recorded.
He urged that the corporations and IFIs should make efforts to support the affected environment and communities to make their lending Paris-aligned.
Mashood Ali Khan, Former Chairman Pakistan Association of Automotive Parts and Accessories Manufacturers (PAAPAM) said that it was imperative for the auto parts manufacturers to move towards solar energy, which would not only be healthy for the environment but also reduce the cost for the sector.
