VELUX Group makes progress towards 100% renewable electricity, zero-plastic packaging and historical emission capture
VELUX Group’s 2021 Sustainability Report outlines the progress made at the end of the first year of working to achieve our 2030 sustainability strategy.
The report provides updates on all targets, including progress towards becoming carbon neutral in our own operations, halving CO2e emissions from our value chain and capturing the equivalent of the total carbon footprint of our company’s operations between 1941 and 2041 (historical scope 1 and 2 CO2e emissions).
After a year of intense work, we now realise the sheer scale of the task ahead of us. With the UN having called the 2020s the Decade of Action, we no longer have time for just talking and planning. We need to see real leadership and a spirit of collaboration to accelerate progress. At VELUX, we have started to take action and can already see the first results but there is still much to do,
First carbon capture forest project underway
One of the major highlights of 2021 was the start-up of the first carbon capture forest project in Uganda with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). This is part of our commitment to capture the Group’s historical carbon emissions from our operations (scope one and two). The Uganda project aims to capture around one million tonnes of CO2 by restoring and conserving forests in the Albertine Rift in Uganda, a biodiversity hotspot. This is the first of five forest projects that combined will capture the VELUX Group’s historical CO2. All projects are developed and run by WWF.
100% renewable electricity supply by 2023
As part of our aim to become carbon neutral, we are working on a global decarbonisation programme with carbon neutral action plans for each of our factory sites. In 2021, we partnered with Schneider Electric to speed up the switch to 100% renewable energy for electricity by 2023 through a renewable Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) contract. This is contributing to our 2030 target of a 100% reduction in the carbon footprint of our own operations.
Green our packaging
During 2021, we worked on transitioning to single material, 100% recyclable packaging with zero plastic. To do this, we developed a new packaging material made solely of paper and cardboard to replace the previous material that was a mix of plastic, paper and cardboard. This new material provides the required protection for products and makes it easier for customers to dispose of the packaging in one waste category. It is already being used for main residential windows in Europe and selected products in the US.
We achieved limited assurance for our 2021 sustainability reporting and are working towards achieving the auditing level of reasonable assurance in the next few years.
See our Sustainability Report 2021 highlights.
Read the full Sustainability Report 2021.
About the VELUX Group
For more than 80 years, the VELUX Group has created better living environments for people around the world; making the most of daylight and fresh air through the roof. Our product programme includes roof windows and modular skylights, decorative blinds, sun screening products and roller shutters, as well as installation and smart home solutions. These products help to ensure a healthy and sustainable indoor climate, for work and learning, for play and pleasure. We work globally – with sales and manufacturing operations in more than 36 countries and around 11,000 employees worldwide. The VELUX Group is owned by VKR Holding A/S, a limited company wholly owned by non-profit, charitable foundations (THE VELUX FOUNDATIONS) and family. In 2022, the VELUX Group had total revenue of EUR 2.99 billion, VKR Holding had total revenue of EUR 4.29 billion, and THE VELUX FOUNDATIONS donated EUR 181 million in charitable grants.
For more information about VELUX Group, visit velux.com.