Carbon Accounting and Carbon Reduction Plan with Eland Cables
Eland Cables is a global supplier of electrical cables and cable accessories, providing power, data,
control, and instrumentation cables to projects worldwide. They work with all industries including Renewable energy, Construction, Rail, Utilities, Mining, Manufacturing & Automation, and e-Mobility. Headquartered in London, they have a large operations centre and testing laboratory centrally located in South Yorkshire, along with a fleet of owned vehicles for delivery across Europe.
Eland Cables’ primary objective at the outset was to establish its baseline GHG emissions in the year 2020 and have a deeper understanding of the carbon hotspots within its operation. The results of this analysis would feed into developing a targeted reduction strategy.
There are a few business barriers to Eland Cables’ reduction strategy, given such a large portion of their footprint comes from upstream activities in scope 3, the principal ones being:
This means they had to collaboratively develop a strategy that was centred around their scope of influence, to ensure that they were doing everything possible within their own operations to minimise impact.
Working with Green Element has helped put into focus where we can take positive actions in our Greenhouse Gas emissions and how that shapes our wider ESG strategy of Sustainable Operations. We can see where these actions are linked – pulling together our colleagues, our communities, and our customers, to sit alongside our environmental actions – and it encourages us to continue to do even more,
Deborah Graham-Wilson Head of Communications & ESGA full supply chain GHG accounting analysis was undertaken for 2020 and 2021. With the 2020 analysis commissioned in Q3 2021 and the 2021 analysis started late in Q1 2022, there was limited time to implement positive changes between reviews, although the groundwork was quickly laid in order to deliver results during 2022.
As part of the 2021 analysis, we set and submitted Science Based Targets for validation, which underpinned some of the key recommendations and actions. Given that under science-based targets (SBTs) they qualify as a Small and Medium Enterprise (SME- under 500 employees) they were only required to submit Scope 1 and 2 targets, which come from fuel used in buildings and by their fleet of delivery vehicles, as well as electricity consumption in the office and operations sites. In addition to the scope 1 and 2 focus on the SBTs, there was also a deeper-dive analysis of their supply chain, identifying target areas and future opportunities where immediate actions are not currently possible.
The carbon emissions reporting that Green Element worked with Eland Cable on feeds into almost every aspect of their business and it has helped give form to a wider ESG strategy. The GHG hotspots identified in the reporting fast-tracked plans that were already being discussed internally.
A recent employee engagement survey had underlined what they already knew – that their people cared and were conscious of the environmental challenges the world faces – and so being able to make visible changes helps bring them together as a business, as well as making positive gains on their path to science-based net-zero GHGs. It shows they are listening and taking action.
The solar panels that will generate enough electricity to cover operations are a really positive investment – it talks to the long-term plans for the business and job security for all – and the EVs stand out on the road as they make deliveries highlighting both brand and values to their local communities. The use of biofuels may be a little more niche but it’s been warmly embraced by their HGV drivers who see the steps being taken to make their jobs ever more sustainable. Through the lens of sustainability, these positive changes can be made and have the recognition and support across all levels of the company that they need to succeed.
Of course, their efforts aren’t limited to the Environment part of ESG – their people, their communities, and their customers are all equally important. Where they align, it’s great, but “thinking about Sustainable Operations rather than just Sustainability in its narrowest sense means changes, opportunities, services, and benefits have been introduced that elevate them further and make them an even better company to work for.”