ComfortDelGro Corp (CDG) is committing $50 million towards clean energy technology and research as part of its plan to intensify sustainability efforts.
In a media release dated March 17, the company announced that it had entered into a memorandum of understanding with the National University of Singapore (NUS), whereby CDG will invest about $10 million for a CDG-NUS Smart & Sustainable Mobility Living Lab which will research mobility technologies that could later be implemented in solutions for the mass market. The lab is expected to be set up by September.
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CDG will invest another $40 million to replace its fleet of diesel buses with electric buses, which may be deployed to the NUS Kent Ridge Campus; as well as supporting infrastructure and mobility technologies.
Concurrently, ComfortDelGro Engineering will also seek to explore the introduction of electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure into the campus’ car parks to study the impact of using EVs for travelling in and around the campus.
CDG notes that the partnership with NUS marks it as the first mobility operator in Asia, and one of eight leading Singapore companies to commit to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), a collaboration between a number of international organisations including the United Nations Global Compact snd the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
The SBTi encourages companies in the private sector to set science-based emission reduction targets to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.
As part of this initiative, CDV plans to work towards having the SBTi targets validated and approved over the next 24 months, including transiting towards a clean-energy fleet, improving energy efficiency, adopting renewables and driving business innovation.
Yan Beng Seng, CEO of CDG, says the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a keen awareness for the company to step up its commitment to green technology.
“The collaboration with NUS and our commitment to SBTi are just some of the new initiatives in this regard and we fully intend to invest and commit further in sustainable activities in the months and years ahead,” he says.
Shares in CDG closed up 2 cents or 1.2% higher at $1.69 on March 16.
