Ludwigshafen, Germany — BASF has announced its goal to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
Based on the most recent progress in developing low-emission and CO2-free technologies, the company said it is also significantly raising its medium-term 2030 target for reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. BASF now wants to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions worldwide by 25 percent compared with 2018.
Excluding the effects of the planned growth, this means cutting CO2 emissions in half in the current business by the end of this decade. Overall, BASF plans to invest up to €1 billion by 2025 to reach its new climate target and a further €2 billion to €3 billion by 2030.
In 2018, BASF Group’s worldwide emissions amounted to 21.9 million metric tons of CO2 equivalents. In 1990, this figure was roughly twice as high. The new 2030 emissions goal represents a reduction of approximately 60 percent compared to 1990 levels, which exceeds the European Union’s target of minus 55 percent.
“The new climate goals underscore our determination and BASF’s commitment to the Paris Climate Agreement. Climate change is the greatest challenge of the 21st century. In response, we must adapt our processes and our product portfolio. We need to accelerate this transformation now. We must first concentrate on the initial steps of this journey, not the final ones.
“That is why BASF will increase its use of renewable energies. And we will accelerate the development and deployment of new CO2-free processes for the production of chemicals. With transparency and offerings to systematically and incrementally reduce the carbon footprint of BASF products throughout the entire value chain, we help our customers in all industries to reduce the carbon footprint of their own products,” said Dr. Martin Brudermüller, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE.
