City Development Limited (CDL) C09 is the first company in Southeast Asia to apply the two-pillar Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) disclosure framework in its Integrated Sustainability Report (ISR), its sixteenth sustainability report since 2008. The two-pillar ESG disclosure harmonises nine key ESG reporting standards and 14 UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Themed “Zero in on Positive Impact”, the digital report communicates the real estate organisation’s progress towards its ESG goals and targets under the CDL Future Value 2030 Sustainability Blueprint. Aligned with global and local climate goals and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the blueprint is integral to the company’s business strategies and operations, allowing it to mitigate and adapt to ESG risks and capture growth opportunities.
In the report, CDL said that it achieved a 24% reduction in carbon emissions intensity in 2022, from 2016.
The company has met its interim 2022 target and is on track to achieving its Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi)-validated target of a 63% reduction by 2030. As part of its renewed SBTi-validated greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets to align with a 1.5°C warmer scenario made in 2021, CDL stepped up on operationalising and tracking its carbon reduction performance for Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions.
Scope 1 and 2 emissions are emissions caused directly and indirectly by a company, such as running machineries or purchasing equipment to run the organisation. Whereas scope 3 emissions involves tracking activities across the entire business model — or value chain — from suppliers to end users.
CDL has also completed the 3rd Climate Change Scenario Study according to the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations.
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The company achieved a 10% reduction in total operational carbon emissions across all its business operations in Singapore this year as compared to the year before. It also achieved a 22% reduction in embodied carbon emissions compared to the conventional equivalents.
From 2012 to 2022, CDL reported energy savings of over $38 million from energy-efficient retrofitting and initiatives across all its commercial buildings.
Sherman Kwek, CDL Group CEO, says: “Our latest Integrated Sustainability Report reaffirms our commitment to accelerate collective action in the global race to zero. Having embraced sustainability in our business for nearly three decades, we have remained steadfast in achieving a triple bottom line so as to generate positive environmental and social impact while achieving sustained growth for our investors. We will continue advancing our climate act."
